Coverage Law

A Texas federal court declined to toss a policyholder's argument that a metal-roof cosmetic-hail endorsement was "largely illusory", signaling the specific facts of what the endorsement actually pays for may matter, not just the carrier's boilerplate.

Merlin broke down Pollock v. Federal into nine takeaways for handling wildfire-smoke damage claims, aimed squarely at the Palisades and Altadena fire aftermath.

New data shows Florida's share of US homeowners claims lawsuits has fallen to roughly half its 2020 peak, credited to the state's AOB and litigation-reform laws.

A cluster of pieces this week exposes the mechanism: appraisal only decides the amount of a covered loss, not whether coverage exists.

Four rulings/analyses landed that shape disputed claims: a court declined to compel appraisal where coverage itself is disputed (narrowing the fast remedy); California's genuine dispute doctrine got a fresh critical look as a bad-faith shield; a piece argued ensuing-loss coverage shouldn't vanish when rain finds a construction defect; and expert testimony was flagged as the make-or-break in property cases.

In Perry & Perry Builders v. Cowbell Cyber / Obsidian Specialty Insurance, a builder that got tricked into wiring money on a fraudulent payment instruction found its recovery capped by the cyber policy's social-engineering / funds-transfer-fraud sublimit, not the full policy limit.

In Global Approach v. Scottsdale (S.D. Fla., June 1, 2026), the court sided with the insurer: a six-week reporting delay plus demolition and repairs done before notice violated the prompt-notice clause and barred the whole claim.