{"id":899916,"date":"2022-05-05T14:12:20","date_gmt":"2022-05-05T20:12:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=899916"},"modified":"2022-05-05T14:12:35","modified_gmt":"2022-05-05T20:12:35","slug":"appraisal-denied-by-insurer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/","title":{"rendered":"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Claims Journal<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal<\/a> is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment before denying the appraisal request, an Illinois appellate panel ruled Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A panel with the 3rd District of the Illinois Appellate Court\u00a0affirmed a county judge\u2019s decision\u00a0to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Travelers Indemnity Co. that sought a declaration that the appraisal provision in a policy issued to the Townes of Cedar Ridge Condominium Association did not apply. Travelers filed the action after refusing the condo association\u2019s request for an appraisal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA declaratory judgment action is not the proper vehicle to review past conduct,\u201d the appellate court\u2019s opinion says. \u201cTravelers\u2019 denial effectively terminated Cedar Ridge\u2019s opportunity to have its claim resolved through the appraisal process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The use of appraisals to resolve insurance disputes has been a frequent source of litigation in recent years. The controversy stems in part from skepticism among insurers that appraisers chosen by policyholders will give disinterested opinions about value. Insurers also often object when an appraisal is requested to decide whether coverage exists rather than to determine the cost of repairing the damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Travelers and Cedar Ridge disagreed over the extent of damage after a March 2019 hailstorm. Travelers said that the vast majority of the alleged damage was ordinary wear and tear and issued a check for $17,140.88 to repair hail damage to gutters, downspouts, air conditioning units and one shingle on one roof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The condo association submitted a repair estimate for $2,078,657.08 and demanded an appraisal. Travelers denied the request, saying there was no wind or hail damage to appraise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The insurer filed a lawsuit in the 12th Judicial Circuit in Will County seeking a declaratory judgment that the appraisal provision in the policy did not apply to the coverage dispute. Judge John C. Anderson granted a motion for summary judgment by Cedar Ridge dismissed the lawsuit. Travelers appealed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/
Christina Phillips<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Chicago attorney Christina Phillips, with the Merlin Law Group, represented Cedar Ridge. She said she intends to file a breach of contract lawsuit against the insurer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phillips said insurers often try to avoid appraisals, but they have lost several cases at the US District Court for Northern Illinois and now try to avoid litigation before federal judges on appraisal questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of a rush to the courthouse on the insurer side because they\u2019d rather be in state court than federal court,\u201d Phillips said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said \u201cmultiple insurers\u201d have sought declaratory judgment to avoid the appraisal process and failed, but the Cedar Ridge case is the first she is aware of that reached a state appellate court. She said the appellate panel\u2019s decision in Cedar Ridge shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDeclaratory judgment is to learn the consequences of your actions before they occur,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appellate panel said as much in its judgment affirming dismissal of Travelers\u2019 lawsuit. While the insurer argued that Cedar Ridge never withdrew its request for an appraisal, leaving a controversy in place, the court said Travelers had eliminated any opportunity to change the outcome when it denied the association\u2019s request for appraisal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHad Travelers wanted guidance on the scope of the appraisal provision as it maintains, it should have sought a declaration prior to making a determination about Cedar Ridge\u2019s appraisal request,\u201d the opinion says. \u201cInstead it denied first and sought guidance later.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When one of your cases is in need of a construction expert, estimates, insurance appraisal or umpire services in defect or insurance disputes – please call Advise & Consult, Inc. at 888.684.8305, or email experts@adviseandconsult.net<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Claims Journal If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment before denying the appraisal request, an Illinois appellate panel ruled Monday. A panel with the 3rd District of the Illinois Appellate Court\u00a0affirmed a county judge\u2019s decision\u00a0to dismiss a lawsuit filed by… Continue reading Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice<\/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":[9895,351],"class_list":["post-899916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insurance-appraisal","tag-advise-consult","tag-insurance-appraisals","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nInsurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\"},\"headline\":\"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\"},\"wordCount\":619,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Advise & Consult\",\"Insurance Appraisals\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Insurance Appraisal\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\",\"name\":\"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00\",\"description\":\"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"description\":\"Construction Expert Witnesses\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"width\":162,\"height\":75,\"caption\":\"Advise & Consult\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.","og_description":"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment","og_url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/","og_site_name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","article_published_time":"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@adviseconsult","twitter_site":"@adviseconsult","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7"},"headline":"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice","datePublished":"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/"},"wordCount":619,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg","keywords":["Advise & Consult","Insurance Appraisals"],"articleSection":["Insurance Appraisal"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/","name":"Insurer That Denied Appraisal Can\u2019t Seek Declaration That it Made the Right Choice - Advise & Consult, Inc.","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg","datePublished":"2022-05-05T20:12:20+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-05T20:12:35+00:00","description":"If an insurer wants confirmation by a court that an appraisal is inappropriate, it needs to file a request for declaratory judgment","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/appraisal-denied-by-insurer\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.merlinlawgroup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/christina-phillips.jpg"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"Construction Expert Witnesses","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Advise & Consult","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","width":162,"height":75,"caption":"Advise & Consult"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com"]}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2ztG6-3M6M","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=899916"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":899917,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899916\/revisions\/899917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=899916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=899916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=899916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}