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Mealey's Insurance

September 29, 2025
Texas High Court Denies Review In COVID-19 Contamination Suit

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court on Sept. 26 denied an insured’s petition for review of a state appellate court’s ruling that a contamination exclusion bars coverage for the insured’s claim seeking coverage for damages and losses incurred as a result of the coronavirus.
September 29, 2025
Insured Maintains Defense Owed By Insurer Under Pollution Liability Policies

LAFAYETTE, La. — A pollution liability insurer has a duty to defend its insureds in an underlying suit seeking damages for saltwater contamination because the underlying complaint alleges potentially covered claims under the policies, the insureds say in a reply brief filed in support of a motion for partial summary judgment pending in Louisiana federal court.
September 26, 2025
Insurer Waives Right To Respond To Petition Seeking High Court Review In PFAS Suit

CINCINNATI — An insurer waived its right to respond to a petition for a writ of certiorari filed by an insured seeking the U.S. Supreme Court’s review of a Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that vacated a district court’s decision to retain jurisdiction over breach of contract and bad faith claims but remanded a declaratory judgment claim in a dispute over coverage for underlying per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure suits.
September 26, 2025
Suit Limitation Provision Bars Insureds’ Water, Mold Damage Suit, Panel Says

EDINBURG, Texas — A trial court did not err in finding that a policy’s suit limitation provision bars a lawsuit filed by insureds who claim that they are owed coverage for water and mold damage in their home because the insureds clearly filed their suit after the limitations period expired, the Texas 13th Court of Appeals said Sept. 25 in affirming the lower court’s decision.
September 25, 2025
Insurer Owes No Coverage For Remediation Costs, Indiana Federal Judge Says

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — No coverage is owed to insureds for remediation costs incurred as a result of the discovery of perchloroethylene (PCE) in an insured building because no suit was filed against the insureds as required to trigger coverage under the policies, an Indiana federal judge said.
September 24, 2025
Texas Panel Partly Rules In Favor Of Insurers In Coronavirus Coverage Suit

DALLAS — A Texas appellate panel held that a lower court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of certain commercial property insurers in a breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit arising from the coronavirus pandemic, finding that one of the “follow-form” insurance policies included a coverage-extension endorsement that was not present in the lead policy and the insurer that issued that policy failed to demonstrate that the contamination exclusion superseded the endorsement.
September 23, 2025
Oral Arguments Set In Pollution Exclusion Suit Pending In 8th Circuit

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Oral arguments are scheduled for Oct. 23 in the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in an appeal by insureds who argue that a pollution exclusion does not bar coverage for an underlying bodily injury claim stemming from carbon monoxide exposure because the pollution exclusion applies only to traditional environmental pollution claims.
September 23, 2025
Insurer, Reinsurer File Joint Dismissal Motion In Mine Coverage Dispute

OMAHA, Neb. — National Indemnity Co. (NICO) and a reinsurer it sued for breach of contract and declaratory judgment jointly moved in Nebraska federal court to dismiss the reinsurer with prejudice as part of NICO’s suit to enforce its reinsurers’ obligations for incurred liabilities related to asbestos exposure stemming from a Montana mine.
September 22, 2025
Insured Says Insurer Owes Additional Coverage For Underlying Silica Lawsuits

NEW YORK — An insured filed counterclaims against its insurer in New York federal court, seeking declarations that the insurer has a continued duty to defend and indemnify the insured in underlying silica bodily injury lawsuits and further seeking declarations that the underlying lawsuits constitute multiple occurrence and that a pro rata method of allocation applies.
September 22, 2025
Insurers Appeal Subrogation Ruling In Bankruptcies Of Imerys Asbestos Talc Parties

WILMINGTON, Del. — An appeal by a group of insurers of asbestos talc debtors Imerys Talc America Inc. and Cyprus Mines Corp. who say they have subrogation rights to the proceeds of the debtors’ $280 million settlement with other insurers was docketed in the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
September 22, 2025
Pollution Liability Insurer Says No Defense Owed For Contamination Suit

LAFAYETTE, La. — A pollution liability insurer says it has no duty to defend its insureds in an underlying suit seeking damages for saltwater contamination because the underlying complaint does not stem from activities performed by the insured for a third party at a job site as required by the policies’ covered operations requirement.
September 18, 2025
Virginia Federal Judge Says Chemical Exposure Dispute Will Proceed To Arbitration

RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia federal judge granted an insured’s motion to compel arbitration in a dispute over coverage for underlying chemical exposure claims after determining that the insurer failed to show that it will be prejudiced if forced to proceed with arbitration, a Virginia federal judge said in granting the insured’s motion to compel arbitration and to stay the insurer’s declaratory judgment suit.
September 16, 2025
Insured’s Assignees Say Coverage Owed For Underlying Carbon Monoxide Suit

CLEVELAND — A commercial auto insurer breached its contract when it claimed that its pollution exclusion barred coverage to an insured for an underlying carbon monoxide poisoning suit, the assignees of the insured contend in a complaint filed in Ohio federal court.
September 16, 2025
Countertop Manufacturer Seeks Coverage For Underlying Silica Bodily Injury Suits

LOS ANGELES — An insured manufacturer and distributor of countertops and countertop products filed suit in California state court, claiming that its insurers breached their contracts of insurance and acted in bad faith in relying on their policies’ pollution and silica exclusions to deny coverage for underlying silica-exposure bodily injury suits in which the insured is named as a defendant.
September 16, 2025
Insurer Moves For Judgment To Appeal Ruling In Suit Brought By Petroleum Company

HONOLULU — An insurer moved for entry of judgment on Sept. 12 so it can immediately appeal a federal court in Hawaii’s summary judgment ruling against it in a lawsuit filed by an insured petroleum company seeking coverage for underlying claims that the company is responsible for contributing to the effects of global warming based on its failure to warn of the hazards of using fossil fuel products, challenging the court’s finding that it has a duty to defend under two policies that did not include pollution exclusions.
September 15, 2025
Insurers Settle Dispute Stemming From Hot Tub Injury Suit Filed Against Insured

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California federal judge entered an order of conditional dismissal in a dispute between two insurers over whether coverage is owed to a mutual insured for an underlying hot tub injury lawsuit after the insurers reached a settlement.
September 12, 2025
Insured Condo Association Settles Water Damage Suit With Insurer; Suit Dismissed

SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge dismissed a water damage coverage suit filed by an insured condominium association against its insurer after the parties reached a settlement and stipulated to dismissal of the suit.
September 10, 2025
Breach Of Contract Suit Dismissed Following Settlement Between Insurer, Reinsurer

NEW YORK — A New York federal judge ordered the dismissal without costs and without prejudice of an insurer’s breach of contract suit against its reinsurer after the parties reached a settlement.
September 09, 2025
Silica Exclusions Bar Coverage For Silica Exposure Lawsuits, Insurers Say

LOS ANGELES — No coverage is afforded to Home Depot U.S.A. Inc. for more than 100 bodily injury lawsuits seeking damages as a result of silica exposure from countertops sold and marketed by Home Depot because the retailer is not an additional insured under policies issued to the countertop manufacturer and because the policies’ exclusions for silica and pollution bar coverage, insurers maintain in a complaint filed in California federal court.
September 08, 2025
Pollution Liability Insurer Owes Defense For Contamination Suit, Insureds Maintain

LAFAYETTE, La. — A pollution liability insurer has a duty to defend its insureds in an underlying suit seeking damages for saltwater contamination because the underlying complaint alleges claims that are potentially covered under the policy, the insureds maintain in a motion for partial summary judgment.
September 08, 2025
Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage For Stormwater Damage Suit, Judge Says

SAVANNAH, Ga. — An insurer has no duty to defend its insured in an underlying property damage suit caused by stormwater runoff because the policies’ pollution exclusion bars coverage, a Georgia federal judge said, noting that multiple Georgia courts have found that stormwater qualifies as a pollutant.
September 08, 2025
Fla. Panel Reverses, Finds ‘Triable Issue’ As To Loss In Homeowners Coverage Suit

MIAMI — A Florida appellate court reversed and remanded a trial court’s final judgment of $25,711.90 for Citizens Property Insurance Corp., which describes itself on its website as Florida’s “insurer of last resort,” after the trial court granted summary judgment for the insurer, finding that the record contains disputes of fact regarding whether the insureds met the burden to show that the cause of their loss is a “triable issue.”
September 04, 2025
Calif. Federal Judge: Insurance Companies Liable For Cleanup At CERCLA Site

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California federal judge ruled that intervening insurers in a dispute over responsibility for groundwater contamination under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act at a former wood preservation plant are liable on behalf of a former operator for past and future cleanup costs in granting a state agency’s motion for partial summary judgment.
September 04, 2025
Parties Agree To Dismiss Contamination Coverage Suit In Pennsylvania Federal Court

PITTSBURGH — An insurer and its insured filed a joint stipulation of dismissal in Pennsylvania federal court after agreeing to litigate the insurer’s declaratory judgment suit in Massachusetts federal court where the insured filed a similar suit seeking coverage for underlying environmental contamination lawsuits.
September 02, 2025
Pollution Liability Insurer Has No Duty To Defend Insured, Federal Judge Says

SAN FRANCISCO — A pollution liability insurer has no duty to defend its insured against underlying suits stemming from the insured’s environmental remediation work because the pollution conditions at issue were not unexpected or unintended as required by the policies, a California federal judge said in granting the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.