Indiana Court of Appeals Holds That Anti-Stacking and Offset Clauses Barred Insured’s Recovery Under Auto Policy
Glover v. Allstate Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2019 WL 4399865 (Ind. Ct. App. 2019) When two or more insurance policies apply to a loss, a dispute often arises over whether the insured can combine or “stack” the coverage limits of those policies to increase the total coverage for the loss. While Indiana law generally […]
Court of Appeals Enforces Liability Exclusion for Claim by Minor Child in the “Care” of Named Insured
Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. Shroyer 2019 WL 2518757 (Ind. Ct. App. 2019) A mother of two sons began living with the named insured boyfriend. One day, the boyfriend was moving a skid loader out of his barn when he accidentally drove over one of the son’s battery-operated four-wheeler, resulting in personal injuries to the young […]
Indiana Court of Appeals Permits Named Insured Under Commercial Auto Policy to Purchase UIM Limits That Were Less Than Liability Limits
Lee v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co., 2019 WL 1475092, (Ind. Ct. App. 2019) An employee was driving an employer’s automobile when he was involved in an accident with an underinsured motorist (UIM). After receiving $225,000 from the UIM, the employee sought coverage under his employer’s auto policy, which contained $2,000,000 in bodily injury liability […]
Additional Insured Coverage — Get What You’re Bargaining For
Many contracts require one party to name the other as an “additional insured,” but too often without specifying the scope of coverage required. This is problematic because coverage for additional insureds comes varied, and the parties may have different ideas of what coverage the contract requires. By the time the parties realize they have different […]
Indiana Court of Appeals Holds That Landlord’s Insurer Could Not Pursue Subrogation Claim Against Tenant for Damage to Leased Property
Youell v. Cincinnati Ins. Co., 2018 WL 6816772 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018) When a landlord’s insurer pays for damage to the leased property caused by the negligence of the tenant, can the landlord’s insurer pursue a subrogation claim against the negligent tenant? Maybe. But as the Indiana Court of Appeals recently held in Youell v. Cincinnati Ins. […]
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Determines That TV Satellite Provider Lawsuit Against Insured That Did Not Pay Proper Subscription Rate Was Not Covered as a Defamation Claim
Martinsville Corral, Inc. v. Society Insurance, 2018 WL 6566671 (7th Cir.) An Indiana restaurant subscribed for satellite TV service under a residential subscription rate. The satellite provider sued the restaurant by contending that the restaurant’s display of the satellite TV services in a commercial establishment, but at a residential rate, violated various federal statutes. The […]
Court of Appeals Affirms Evidentiary Privilege Protection of Insured-Insurer in Bad Faith Litigation
Zurich American Ins. Co. v. Circle Centre Mall, LLC 2018 WL 5813048 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018) In Indiana, there have not been many cases addressing the discoverability of insurance claim materials. In the case of Zurich American Ins. Co. v. Circle Centre Mall, LLC, the Court of Appeals addressed a number of evidentiary privileges in […]
Florida Supreme Court Reinstates Bad Faith Verdict Against Insurer Despite Its Offer of Insured Policy Limits Within Nine (9) Days of Accident
Harvey v. GEICO Gen. Ins. Co. 2018 WL 4496566 (Fla. 2018) Normally, the authors of this newsletter do not present cases from other jurisdictions. However, a recent Florida Supreme Court decision determining that an insurance company engaged in bad faith despite its tender of its insured’s policy limits within nine days of an accident is […]
Indiana Court of Appeals Holds That Insured’s Two Wrongs Were One “Occurrence”
Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. Long, 2018 WL 5575178 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018) Commercial general liability (“CGL”) policies provide coverage for property damage and bodily injury caused by an “occurrence” (an accident), and the available limit of coverage is usually tied to the number of “occurrences.” Because the number of “occurrences” can affect, among other things, […]
Federal District Court Addresses Whether Liability Insurance Coverage Existed for College Student’s Sexual Assault Claims Against Fellow Student
AYALA v. BUTLER UNIV. 2018 WL 5044678 (S.D.Ind. 2018) On April 18-19, 2015, a male Butler college student engaged in sexual activity with a female college student, who had advised her friend that she was going back to her dormitory room instead of going to the male college student’s room. The friend of the female […]