{"id":895176,"date":"2018-11-08T12:15:09","date_gmt":"2018-11-08T19:15:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=895176"},"modified":"2018-11-08T12:15:09","modified_gmt":"2018-11-08T19:15:09","slug":"insurance-appraisers-may-determine-cause-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/insurance-appraisers-may-determine-cause-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"Insurance Appraisers May Determine the Cause of Loss"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mollie Pawlosky | Dickinson Law<\/a> | November 1, 2018<\/p>\n

In a case of first impression,\u00a0Walnut Creek Townhome Association v. Depositors Insurance Company<\/em>, the Iowa Supreme Court has held that insurance appraisers may determine the cause of loss in addition to the amount of damage.<\/p>\n

Walnut Creek Townhome Association submitted a claim to Depositors Insurance Company for hail damage to the Association\u2019s roofs.\u00a0 Depositors felt that damage had been caused not by hail, but rather by defective shingles.\u00a0 As part of the dispute, Walnut Creek exercised its right to an appraisal under the insurance policy. \u00a0Each party picked an appraiser, and an umpire was picked.\u00a0 The three individuals then examined the roofs and prepared a report.<\/p>\n

Two of the three on the panel opined that damage in the amount of approximately $1.4 million resulted from hail damage.\u00a0 After a bench trial, the court found in favor of Depositors.\u00a0 The trial court held that Walnut Creek had not proved that the storm was the only cause for damage.\u00a0 The trial court also ruled that the appraisal award was not binding on the parties.<\/p>\n

The Iowa Court of Appeals reversed, finding that the trial court was bound by the appraisal.\u00a0 The Iowa Supreme Court granted further review, for the first time addressing whether parties are bound not only by appraisers\u2019 decisions of valuation, but also by the appraisers\u2019 causation decision.<\/p>\n

The Court recognized the historical importance of insurance appraisal provisions, which can resolve insurance disputes without a formal lawsuit.\u00a0 Since the 1940s, the Iowa Code has contained an approved appraisal provision for property insurance policies.\u00a0 Iowa\u2019s provision is similar to provisions adopted by 45 other states.\u00a0 Courts are only allowed to set aside appraisal awards if the record demonstrates fraud, mistake, or misfeasance of the appraiser or umpire.\u00a0 Depositors did not raise such arguments, so the appraisal award was binding.\u00a0 The question was: Was the appraisal binding as to the amount of damage alone, or was the appraisal also binding as to what caused the damage?<\/p>\n

Courts across the country are divided as to whether appraisers determine the cause-in-fact of damage.\u00a0 The Iowa Supreme Court ultimately found that the \u201cbetter-reasoned cases\u201d hold that appraisers necessarily recognize causation when determining the amount of loss.\u00a0 For example, if an appraiser is determining the amount of \u201cstorm damage,\u201d the appraiser is not just assessing damage, but the appraiser is also stating that the damage is from a storm.<\/p>\n

Without fraud, mistake or misfeasance, the district court was not free to make its own factual determination as to whether there was hail damage, even if the court disagreed.\u00a0 The appraisers\u2019 findings remained subject to coverage exclusions and limitations, which the trial court decides.\u00a0 Thus, the Court remanded the case, with directions for the trial court to accept the appraisal award and then determine if any coverage defenses applied.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mollie Pawlosky | Dickinson Law | November 1, 2018 In a case of first impression,\u00a0Walnut Creek Townhome Association v. Depositors Insurance Company, the Iowa Supreme Court has held that insurance appraisers may determine the cause of loss in addition to the amount of damage. Walnut Creek Townhome Association submitted a claim to Depositors Insurance Company… Continue reading Insurance Appraisers May Determine the Cause of Loss<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10235],"tags":[9895,191,10407],"class_list":["post-895176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insurance-appraisal","tag-advise-consult","tag-hail-damage","tag-insurance-appraisers","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nInsurance Appraisers May Determine the Cause of Loss - 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