A study conducted by scientists at the University of Miami has revealed that almost three dozen high-rise condos and luxury hotels along the beach in South Florida are sinking, and insurance companies are on high alert. To be exact, thirty-five buildings, including both luxury hotels and condominiums, have sunk between one to three inches in…
Recognizing, investigating, and aggressively pursuing subrogation potential is a very important part of claims and subrogation professionals’ day-to-day responsibilities. But doing so carelessly is not without its traps, pitfalls, and consequences. Claims handlers who also wear a subrogation hat must delicately balance the exigent need for an insured to get his burned dwelling or structure…
On July 25, 2020, a man named Wesley Little showed up at the front door of Vicki Baker, who was a long time resident of McKinney, Texas. Little had a 15 year-old girl with him when he knocked on the door. Only Vicki’s daughter, Deanna Cook, was home at the time. She recognized Little because…
California is facing particularly severe wildfires this fall, with multiple fires raging across the state. These fires have led to widespread damage, including property loss, environmental destruction, and health hazards. On September 8, the Bridge Fire began in the Angeles National Forest. It exploded in size to over 50,000 acres, the cause of which is…
A Texas House Committee confirmed last week that a rotting and decayed utility pole that broke, causing power wires to fall on dry grass in the Texas Panhandle on February 26, sparked the Smokehouse Creek Fire, the largest and costliest wildfire in Texas history, and the largest U.S. wildfire in 2024. This confirms our initial…
The law in Pennsylvania regarding the ability of a landlord’s property insurer to subrogate against a tenant whose negligence causes damage to the landlord’s building has been very slow to develop. But they are quickly making up for lost time. Until recently, Pennsylvania had only one case speaking to this issue. In 1990, the Pennsylvania…
For almost five decades Texas has had a single statute of repose which imposed a ten (10) year period for claims against architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects, builders, and construction contractors.[1] Texas has imposed a ten-year statute of repose on suits against builders or contractors who construct or repair improvements to real property. It…
Subrogation professionals are seeing more and more cases involving a landlord’s carrier wanting to subrogate against a negligent tenant who caused damage to the leased premises. The ability of a landlord’s property insurer to subrogate against a tenant for property damage caused by the negligence of the tenant depends on which state the loss occurs…
Louisiana, with its short one-year tort statute of limitations (in Louisiana called prescription), catches many insurance subrogation professionals unaware. Some may assume that because suit was filed by another party involved in the accident or even by their own insured, the property subrogation claim will relate back to the time of filing of the original…
We are all aware that Missouri’s prohibition against assignment of a cause of action for personal injuries has complicated subrogation in that state. Subrogation in personal injury cases is considered to be against public policy because it amounts to an impermissible assignment of the insured’s right to a cause of action for suffering a personal…