Insurance Recovery Forfeited by Failure to Report Damages Before Undertaking Repairs

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | Newsletter Article

Where a developer performed repairs to correct water intrusion before reporting to its Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurer, a court held it had lost its right to demand that its insurance carrier indemnify it for the cost of repairs. The developer investigated...

No Excuse for a Bad Contract

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | construction contract tips, Newsletter Article

I am sometimes asked during my risk management seminars if a party to a contract can safely sign an onerous contract with harsh indemnification clauses or other clauses that create excessive liability for an “innocent” party and then avoid the consequences...

Statute of Repose for Construction Activities Time-Bars Claim that could also be Asserted as Products Liability – with Longer Statute of Limitations Period

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | Newsletter Article

A plaintiff filed suit for negligence as well as products liability against a firm that designed, manufactured and installed precast concrete products for a parking garage. The court dismissed the suit because it was filed beyond the six years permitted under the...

Defective Workmanship Potentially Covered By Insurance

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | Newsletter Article

An insurance dispute arose when the commercial general liability (CGL) insurance company refused to defend a suit by a prime contractor against an inspection firm (SLT, Inc.) that it had hired to inspect and approve shop welds of pipe sections that were brought to the...

Cost of replacing defective work excluded under Builder’s Risk Policy

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | Newsletter Article

A construction contractor (Laquilia Construction, Inc.) poured concrete that failed to meet the specifications for minimum strength for the floor slab of a high rise commercial building. The defective concrete had to be ripped out and replaced. This replacement...

Contractor Not Bound By Architect’s Decision on Claim

by Kent Holland | Feb 7, 2011 | Newsletter Article

Contracts between owners and contractors often state that the contractor must submit any claim to the architect for final determination. Most contracts state that this must be done as a condition precedent to further review by a dispute resolution board or a court....