Appellate Argument of an Entrustment Exclusion Case

***OLT POLICY -- ENTRUSTMENT EXCLUSION***   In August 2020 the Chenango County (NY) Supreme Court granted summary judgment to the insurer d...

NYS Appellate Division, Fourth Department, Holds That the Undefined Term "Reasonable Care" as Used in a Homeowners Policy's Freezing Exclusion, Is Ambiguous

PROPERTY –  HOMEOWNERS POLICY  – FROZEN/BURST WATER PIPES  – FREEZING EXCLUSION  –  REASONABLE CARE TO MAINTAIN HEAT McAleavey v. Chautauqua...

New York County Supreme Court Grants Insurer's CPLR 3211(A)(1) Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Complaint Based on Insured's Failure to Submit Timely Proof of Loss

PROPERTY  – BURST WATER PIPE-CAUSED WATER LOSS  – PROOF OF LOSS REQUEST – MOTION TO DISMISS Stein v. National General Ins. Co. (Sup. Ct., NY...

NYSSIU Legal Update 2019-2020 Edition

  LEGAL UPDATE I have been privileged since incorporating the New York State Chapter of Special Investigation Units (NYSSIU) in 1997 to serv...

$7,332.02 a Day -- Bench-Trying a First-Party Property Coverage Dispute

Ever wonder how the non-jury trial of a first-party property coverage dispute plays out in court?  Wonder no more. Christine Wagner's si...

Jury Verdict Finding Named Insured Was Residing in Insured Premises Affirmed

PROPERTY  –  HOMEOWNERS – RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT  – POLLUTION EXCLUSION  – ASBESTOS CONTROL COSTS  – LOSS OF RENTS Cotillis v. New York Cent....

Court Upholds Insurer's Refusal to Produce in Discovery Information Regarding Claims of Other Insureds

PROPERTY  – QUESTIONS OF FACT PRECLUDING SUMMARY JUDGMENT  – SCOPE OF DISCOVERY   Gray v. Tri-State Consumer Ins. Co. (2nd Dept., 1/31/2018)...

Deleting the Preantepenultimate and Antepenultimate Paragraphs

Why waste a hyphen when multiple prefixes will do? This morning I received a batch of Google Scholar email alerts.  I discovered Google Sch...

The HOME in HOMEowner's Insurance -- Questions of Fact on Policyholder's Residence Preclude Summary Judgment

PROPERTY  –  HOMEOWNERS  – RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT Sosenko v. Allstate Ins. Co. (3rd Dept., decided 11/30/2017) No, not HOME as in four-fifths...

What Does It Mean To "Reside" for Insurance Purposes?

PROPERTY – RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT – CHANGE IN OCCUPANCY  – AGENT LIABILITY Harrison v. Allstate Indemnity Co. (Sup. Ct., Steuben Co., decided...

86-Day Delayed Notice of an Approximately $200,000 Claimed Theft Loss Found Inexcusable as a Matter of Law

PROPERTY  – RENTERS POLICY  –  PERSONAL ARTICLES POLICY  – THEFT  – LATE NOTICE   – LATE NOTICE EXCUSES  –  PREJUDICE Minasian v. IDS Prop. ...

Replacement Cost Coverage Denied to Insured Who Did Not Replace the Dwelling Within Two Years or Show That His Actual Repair/Replacement Costs Exceeded the Insurer's ACV Payment

PROPERTY  – HOMEOWNERS – TWO-YEAR REPAIR/REPLACEMENT DEADLINE  – REPLACEMENT COST COVERAGE   Mateyunas v. Cambridge Mut. Fire Ins. Co. (Sup....

Wind or Water? -- A Superstorm Sandy Loss

HOMEOWNERS – PROPERTY – FLOOD  – WATER DAMAGE EXCLUSION – WIND  – ANTI-CONCURRENT CAUSATION CLAUSE        Clarke v. Travco Ins. Co. (S.D.N.Y...

Water Damage from Broken Water Main Not Due to "Explosion"

PROPERTY  – HOMEOWNERS  – WATER LOSS EXCLUSION  – EXPLOSION EXCEPTION Platek v. Town of Hamburg (Ct. Apps., decided 2/19/2015) A subsurface ...