A California appellate court has concluded that core provisions of the Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations do not conflict with the Unfair Insurance Practices Act. (PacifiCare Life and Health Insurance Company v. Jones (2018) 2018 WL 4501610) Facts In 2008, the California … Read More

An insured’s “unclean hands” in denying the authenticity of a certificate of cancellation filed with the California Secretary of State prevented the insured from continuing to pursue a lawsuit against its insurer. (DD Hair Lounge, LLC v. State Farm General Insurance … Read More

A trial judge’s prejudicial errors during trial mandated reversal of an $8.2 million bad faith award and a $46 million punitive damage award against liability insurers who allegedly mishandled the defense of an insured in underlying litigation. (Victaulic Co. v. … Read More

For purposes of a commercial general liability policy, an “occurrence” includes an insured employer’s alleged negligence in hiring, retaining or supervising an employee who intentionally injures a third–party claimant. (Liberty Surplus Insurance Corp. v. Ledesma & Meyer Construction Co., Inc. (2018) … Read More

An insurer’s agreement to defend an additional insured developer under a reservation of rights did not trigger a conflict of interest sufficient to give the developer the right to have independent counsel. (Centex Homes v. St. Paul Fire and Marine … Read More

A liability policy covering the “personal injury” offense of “invasion of the right of private occupancy” required the insurer to defend an insured against a suit alleging a non-physical invasion of the claimant’s rights in real property. ( Albert v. … Read More

A professional liability insurer had no duty to defend its insured against a claim that the insured knew about, or reasonably could have foreseen, before the effective date of the policy. (Admiral Insurance Company v. Superior Court (2017) 18 Cal.App.5th … Read More

A general liability insurer had no duty to defend its insured, a pharmaceutical company, against governmental lawsuits alleging that the insured engaged in a fraudulent scheme to promote opioid use. ( Traveler’s Property Casualty Company of America v. Actavis, Inc. … Read More

A commercial general liability policy’s “faulty workmanship” exclusions – exclusions j.(5) and j.(6) – did not relieve the insurer of a duty to indemnify its insured for property damage to the insured’s non-defective work occurring before the work was complete. … Read More

Although an insurer issued additional insured endorsements purportedly limiting coverage to “ongoing operations,” the insurer was liable for breach of contract, bad faith and punitive damages after refusing to defend an additional insured against two construction defect lawsuits. ( Pulte … Read More

An insurer was not entitled to rescind a policy based on an insured’s answers to ambiguous questions in an application for insurance. ( Duarte v. Pacific Specialty Insurance Company (2017) 13 Cal.App.5th 45) Facts Victor Duarte owned a rental property … Read More

The cracking of an underground storage tank’s sheathing was not a “collapse” where the policy expressly stated “collapse” did not include “cracking” and where the tank, although in a state of “substantial impairment,” was not in a state of “imminent” … Read More

A personal auto policy’s “non-owned” auto coverage did not apply where the insured had “regular use” of a company vehicle furnished by her employer. ( Medina v. GEICO Indemnity Co. (2017) — Cal.App.5th —-, 2017 WL 510878) Facts Leigh Ann … Read More

A liability insurer’s failure to accept a policy limit demand that preserved the claimants’ right to recover court-ordered criminal restitution against the insured rendered the insurer liable for the full amount of a subsequent “excess judgment” entered against the insured. … Read More

When an auto insurer elects to repair an insured vehicle to its pre-accident condition, the insurer is not also required to pay for any resulting “diminution in value” to the fully repaired vehicle. ( Baldwin v. AAA Northern California, Nevada … Read More

In calculating whether the ratio of punitive damages to compensatory damages is constitutionally excessive, the amount of compensatory damages should include attorney’s fees awarded pursuant to Brandt v. Superior Court (1985) 37 Cal.3d 813, whether those fees are awarded by … Read More

The controlling shareholder of an insured corporation did not have sufficient legal “standing” to pursue a claim for declaratory relief against the corporation’s liability insurers. (D. Cummins Corporation v. United States Fidelity & Guaranty Company (2016) WL 1726079) Facts For … Read More

In a construction defect suit involving allegations that an insured was liable for continuous and progressive property damage occurring over a period of years, successive primary insurers were obligated to contribute toward the insured’s defense costs, notwithstanding “other insurance” language … Read More

A general liability insurer had a duty to defend its insured, a bedding manufacturer, against a consumer class action lawsuit arising from the insured’s sale of allegedly defective mattresses. ( Hartford Fire Ins. Co. v. Tempur-Sealy International, Inc. (2016) WL … Read More