Articles Posted in Commercial Policies

Someone in Arlington, Mansfield, Bedford, Benbrook, Burleson, Hurst, Euless, Keene, Grand Prairie, Dallas, Fort Worth, Pantego, or anywhere else in this state would go crazy trying to understand how to correctly interpret an insurance policy. They have to do two things. One, talk it over in detail with the insurance agent at the time of purchase. Two, seek the advice of an experienced Insurance Law Attorney.

An example of the first sentence above is found in the case styled, VRV Development L.P., formerly known as VRV Development, Inc.; Marken Management GP L.L.C.; Kenny Marchant v. Mid-Continent Casualty Company. This case was decided on January 7, 2011, by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

In this matter, the plaintiffs above were sued by Goodman Family of Builders, L.P. successor in interest, K. Hovnanian Homes – DFW, LLC. and the City of Dallas. The lawsuit was alleging damage to lots developed by the plaintiffs. The alleged damage was to retaining walls and a public utility easement. The facts are a little confusing and the relevent time period, which begins in May 2004 and goes through sometime in 2007, is also at issue.

Business persons in Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Mansfield, Burleson, Cleburne, Weatherford, Mesquite, Garland, Richardson, or any other location in Texas will usually have a commercial insurance policy covering their business. The policies they have are usually referred to as commercial general liability (CGL) policies. The following case looks at a problem one insured had with coverage and serves as an example of why a business person should try to understand what the coverages and exclusions are in any policy of insurance that money is spent on.

The Court of Appeals, Dallas, issued an opinion on November 22, 2010, styled, Frito-Lay, Inc. v. Trinity Universal Company, Trinity Universal Insurance Companies, Trinity Lloyd’s Insurance Company, and Unitrin Property and Casualty Insurance Group. In this case the court eventually ruled in favor of the various insurance companies and against Frito-Lay based on exclusions in the insurance policy.

Here is some background. Adampac, a food packaging company, obtained a CGL policy from Lloyd’s and a commercial excess policy from Universal. During the policy period, Frito-Lay hired Adampac to repackage a Frito-Lay food product to be used in consumer testing. During the repackaging process, the Frito Lay product became contaminated or adulterated with a foreign substance from another product Adampac was packaging for another customer. The foreign substance was a wintergreen flavoring used in a non-tobacco product similar to snuff. Because of the contamination, the Frito-Lay product could not be used for consumer testing.

Business people in Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, Grand Prairie, Mansfield, Keller, Coppell, Irving, Mesquite, Garland, Richardson, or anywhere else in the State of Texas might want to read the case below. It illustrates why it is important to know what your commercial insurance policy covers and how to interpret it.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a decision on November 24, 2010, in a case styled, Atlantic Casualty Insurance Company v. Horatio Gonzalez. This is appeal from a district court where the district court had ruled in favor of the insurance company. This appeals court upheld the ruling of the district court.

In this case Atlantic Casualty Insurance Company (Atlantic) insured PV Roofing Corp. (PV). PV was sued by Gonzalez when Gonzalez was injured at a site where PV was performing roofing work.

A business man in Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Praire, Arlington, Mansfield, Duncanville, Mesquite, Garland, or anywhere else is Texas, will usually have a hard time understanding exclusions in their commercial insurance policies. Here is a case where policy interpretation and exclusions were the issue.

On October 8, 2020, the United States District Court, S. D. Texas, Houston Division, issued an opinion in the case styled, Associated Marine & Industrial Staffing, Inc. v. Liberty Surplus Insurance Corporation. In the case the court ruled in favor of the insurance company.

Here are some facts:

Someone in Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, Keller, Colleyville, Roanoke, Springtown, Azle, Weatherford, or anywhere else in Texas who has a commercial liability policy would assume they have coverge if someone gets hurt. Well, depending on the policy and the exclusions contained in the policy, there may not be any coverage.

On October 5, 2010, the United States District Court, Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, decided a case styled, Essex Insurance Company v. Michael Clark, d/b/a Ace Construction Company and Augustin Delrazo.

Here is some background: Essex Insurance Company (Essex) had issued a policy of insurance to Michael Clark (Clark), d/b/a Ace Construction Company (ACC). While the policy of insurance was in force, Delrazo cut his left hand on a table saw while doing work for ACC. Delrazo’s lawsuit alleged atleast eleven things ACC did to cause or contribute to his injuries.

What does the policy mean? A good question for anybody in Mansfield, Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, Grapevine, Colleyville, and other cities in Texas.

The answer is hard. The short and quick answer is: Consult with an experienced Insurance Law Attorney. The longer answer is: It depends. Each case and each policy and each set of facts is different and have to be looked at in light of all together.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, recently was called on to interpret an insurance policy and to determine whether or not the facts of a claim implicated coverage in the policy at issue. The opinion in the case was issued on July 16, 2010. The style of the case is, Standard Waste Systems Ltd. v. Mid-Continent Casualty Co., Mid-Contitent Insurance Co., Oklahoma Surety Co. The justices were, Dennis, Owen, and Southwick.

Businesses in Hurst, Euless, Bedford, De Soto, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, Dallas, Mansfield, Southlake, Grapevine, or any other city in Texas have various kinds of insurance policies to protect their bussiness. One of those kinds of insurance is called Crime Protection Policies. Here is a recent case dealing with this type of insurance coverage.

The case is, Great American Insurance Company v. AFS/IBEX Financial Services, Inc. The opinion in this case was issued on July 22, 2010, and authored by Circuit Judge Carl E. Stewart. This is from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

In this case, Great American Insurance Company (GAIC) issued crime protection policies to AFS/IBEX Financial Services, Inc. (AFS). After suffering a loss caused by the forgery of certain checks, AFS submitted a claim to GAIC. GAIC denied coverage and filed this lawsuit asking the court to affirm their decision.

People everywhere, including Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Mansfield, Irving, Burleson, Granbury, Lake Worth, or anywhere else in Texas, have dreams of someday having their own business. When that happens they will find themselves having to purchase commercial insurance policies to protect themselves and their business from accidents and mistakes that are simply going to happen at one time or another.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decided a case on July 9, 2010, that involved a small business person and their commercial insurance policies. The style of the case is, Employers Mutual Casualty Company; Emcasco Insurance Company v. Juan Miguel Bonilla, et al. This case is an insurance coverage dispute and though there are other issues in the case, the primary issue was the meaning or definition of the word “use” within the insurance policy.

Here are some background facts: Bonilla leased a truck from Jolly Chef Express, Inc. On a daily basis he hired a driver and cook for each of his trucks. At the end of each day the driver and cook would return to their parking place to clean the truck and prepare for the next day’s route.