Month

February 2010
The flammability of approved cigarettes is of great importance to insurers as significant property damage occurs each year from carelessly discarded smoking materials.  According to NFPA’s 2008 article U.S Smoking-Material Fire Problem, in 2006 over $606 million dollars of property damage occurred due to smoking materials.   In order to try and reduce the number of fires related...
Colorado’s legislature is considering passing a bill that would limit subrogation in personal injury cases.  House Bill 10-1186 is aimed at situations where the insured would not be made whole if the insurer was allowed to recover its payments through subrogation.  In other words, if there is a limited pool of money to go around,...
Toyota’s unprecedented recall of some 8.1 million vehicles will impact consumers, businesses, and their insurance carriers all over the country.  Since 1999, an estimated 2,000 complaints of sudden unintended acceleration in Toyota and Lexus vehicles have been reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ["NHTSA"].  On February 9, 2010, Toyota issued a global recall of...
The Oregon Court of Appeals once again affirmed the viability of negligent construction claims while delivering another blow to the Economic Loss Doctrine.  In Cowan v. Nordyke, 232 Or.App. 384 (2009), plaintiff purchased a home from a Professional Home Designer (PHD).*  Of course, the home was not without problems, including water intrusion.  Plaintiff filed suit against...