The Road to Insurance Recovery

Last week’s GEICO decision drew national attention for its salacious facts – a Missouri woman secured a $5.2 million judgment for a sexually transmitted disease she caught while having unprotected sex in her boyfriend’s car, and GEICO, the boyfriend’s auto insurer, may ultimately be on the hook.

Unlike many other causes of loss, such as fire, lightening, or hail, which are typically self-evident, water damage—especially when hidden under the surface of the ground—may not be immediately evident and may require more analysis as to the cause (which can drastically effect insurance coverage).

A member of our Insurance Recovery & Counseling team, Counsel Robyn Anderson, has been out there spreading the word on supply chain disruption and potential coverage losses by business interruption insurance since October.

AIG Private Client Group—a division of American International Group Inc. that specializes in insurance products for high-net-worth individuals—recently announced that it has begun the process to cease offering certain lines of admitted insurance solutions in California consistent with applicable law.

As a general rule, law enforcement liability insurance policies cover wrongful acts and/or injuries that result from law enforcement misconduct. However, the typical policy may include exclusions for claims of excessive force. This provision is generally referred to as the “intentional or expected acts exclusion” or “intentional injury exclusion.”

Now that 44 states have permitted the use of cannabis to some extent, Congress is taking action to overcome some of the obstacles mentioned in previous post, "Five Insurance Considerations for Cannabis-Related Businesses". Bills have been introduced in Congress which, if passed, would have a substantial favorable impact on the cannabis industry.

Even though the cannabis industry has grown rapidly since many states have authorized the sale and use of cannabis to some extent, traditional insurers have been less willing to enter the industry because marijuana remains illegal under federal law as a Schedule 1 drug.

On May 7, 2021, a cyber-attack shut down Colonial Pipeline, the largest fuel pipeline network in the United States, for multiple days. The hackers requested nearly $5 million in ransom after the attack.

Policyholders that are still fighting their insurers for COVID-19 business interruption losses will want to take note of a recent policyholder win, this time from a federal court sitting in Texas.

Peloton Interactive enjoyed a surge of sales during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its newly released exercise equipment and its high-energy fitness classes, available on demand, were the perfect fit for health-minded, and virus-wary, individuals who decided to ditch gym memberships for the convenience and safety of at-home workouts.