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The Connecticut Supreme Court recently handed down an important decision reiterating the high bar to overturning arbitration awards while, at the same time, clarifying a portion of the applicable statute providing for vacating an arbitration award as well as a prior ruling concerning the timing of payment of heldback depreciation.

In Kellogg v. Middlesex Mutual Assurance Company, the plaintiff insured her historic property under the defendant’s restorationist policy. Unlike traditional homeowners policies, the restorationist policy had no policy limit; rather, if repairs were completed, it provided for the full replacement or restoration cost of the property without deduction for depreciation. The insured property was damaged when a large tree fell on the roof and chimney during a storm. When the parties could not agree as to the amount of the loss, the insured submitted the dispute to appraisal. Following seven site visits, the submission of voluminous materials, and hearings with multiple witnesses concerning the correct amount of the claim ($1.6 million v. $476,000), the umpire and the insurer’s appraisal awarded the insured nearly $580,000 on a replacement cost basis. The insured filed an application with the Connecticut Superior Court to vacate the arbitration award under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-418. Following an eight day trial that covered the entirety of the claim and appraisal process, the court vacated the award and ordered a new arbitration hearing.
Continue Reading Connecticut Supreme Court Reaffirms Court’s Limited Power To Review Appraisal Awards

The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut recently reaffirmed its ruling that the term “collapse,” as defined by a homeowners insurance policy, is unambiguous and that the policy in question did not provide coverage for the alleged “cracking” and/or “bulging” of the insureds’ foundation walls.  In Alexander v. Gen. Ins. Co. of Am., 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5963 (D. Conn. Jan. 17, 2017), the court denied the plaintiffs’ motion for reconsideration, rejecting their argument that the policy’s definition of collapse is ambiguous. The court had previously granted the insurer’s motion to dismiss on the grounds that the policy’s definition of “collapse” is unambiguous and the policy’s language expressly excludes coverage for cracking or bulging.

The plaintiffs owned a home insured by the defendant. They claimed that, in May of 2015, they discovered a series of horizontal and vertical cracks in their basement walls. They eventually learned that this condition was caused by pyrrhotite, a mineral contained in certain concrete aggregate during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The plaintiffs made a claim for coverage under their insurance policy, and the defendant denied their claim on the basis that the condition of the plaintiffs’ foundation walls did not constitute a “collapse” as defined by the policy.
Continue Reading District of Connecticut Reaffirms That Definition Of “Collapse” Is Unambiguous

In determining whether or not to provide insurance to a particular applicant, one thing that insurance companies typically rely on is the insurance application submitted by the prospective insured. The application is designed to provide the insurance company with, among other things, a comprehensive overview of the risk to be insured. Given the importance of…