Three years makes a difference. A Florida federal court has held that repair costs are to be measured at the time of the loss – not at the time of the later repairs – when calculating actual cash value/replacement cost. The court considered and applied a common policy provision, which required that the value of …
The Supreme Court of Florida recently resolved a long disputed issue holding that an appraiser who enters into a contingency agreement with a homeowner is not a disinterested party for appraisal purposes. In Jon Douglas Parrish v. State Farm Florida Insurance Company, the Court found that an appraiser cannot be disinterested if they, or a …
Property in 60 Seconds: Florida Supreme Court Defines “Disinterested” Party in Appraisal Read More »
A federal district court in Texas has become the latest to weigh in on whether insurance carriers may depreciate labor when determining the Actual Cash Value (“ACV”) of a loss. On January 11, 2023, in Sims v. Allstate Fire, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas was asked to decide whether labor could be …
Property in 60 Seconds: Texas Federal Court Addresses Depreciation of Labor Read More »
We are very pleased to celebrate HKR’s First Anniversary on July 1, 2022! Thank you to our valued clients and colleagues for your support. Here are some facts about today’s HKR: We have offices in 3 states: PA, NJ, and NY HKR attorneys are admitted in 9 states: PA, NJ, NY, MD, OH, IL, IN, …
HKR’s Bob Horst has recently been quoted in two articles published in Claims Journal dealing with appraisal: Appraisals, Water Damage Fraud Among ‘New Normals’ Discussed at PLRB (April 5, 2022) Insurers Challenging Awards When Appraisers’ ‘Disinterest’ in Question (April 19, 2022) The law surrounding the appraisal process has been developing rapidly throughout the country in recent months. …
PROPERTY IN 60 SECONDS: Bob Horst Quoted in Claims Journal Read More »
This morning, in the first state supreme court opinion on COVID-19 business income coverage, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that the virus does not cause physical loss of or damage to property that could trigger coverage under commercial property policies. In Verveine Corp. v. Strathmore Ins. Co., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld the trial court’s ruling in favor of …
Property insurers are enjoying a late Winter harvest courtesy of Minnesota. In Elm Creek v. State Farm, the Minnesota Court of Appeals recently ruled that the “harvesting” of undamaged siding was a reasonable method of repair. The loss location was a “residential, common-interest community” with 21 buildings, some of which were damaged during a 2017 hailstorm. …
PROPERTY IN 60 SECONDS: Harvesting Undamaged Siding is a Reasonable Repair Read More »
As 2021 draws to a close, we at HKR wanted to take this opportunity to review some of the important property insurance decisions from the past year. Below, in no particular order, is our list of the top 10 cases from this year, with a particular emphasis on our home state of Pennsylvania: Oral Surgeons, …
PROPERTY IN 60 SECONDS: HKR’s Top 10 Property Insurance Decisions of 2021 Read More »
The ability of an insurance carrier to depreciate labor costs when determining Actual Cash Value (“ACV”) varies from state to state, with a number of states yet to weigh in. On September 23, 2021, the Supreme Court of Illinois provided definitive guidance in Sproull v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., affirming the appellate court, and …
PROPERTY IN 60 SECONDS: ILLINOIS SUPREME COURT ADDRESSES DEPRECIATION OF LABOR Read More »
In the wake of Hurricane Ida, please consider this reminder about the application of the Surface Water Exclusion in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Pennsylvania Pennsylvania courts recognize the enforceability of the Surface Water Exclusion and have long understood “surface water” as an unambiguous term meaning “waters on the surface of the ground, usually created by …
PROPERTY IN 60 SECONDS: SURFACE WATER EXCLUSIONS Read More »
