It’s the oldest trick in the book. Insurance companies think that they can collect premiums from insureds and not pay valid claims when there’s a loss. Don’t ever be scared off by your insurance company for losses associated with property damage, business interruption, or life insurance because you may be covered under your policy and owed substantial money. Major League Baseball (MLB) is an important case study in insurance policy coverage.
Take Me Out to the Ballgame
All 30 MLB teams, the baseball commissioner’s office, MLB’s digital and streaming services, MLB Network, and Tickets.com have collectively sued their insurance providers, citing massive property damage and “time element” losses that the clubs and their affiliates have experienced due to the pandemic, according to the lawsuit filed in Alameda County, California.
The lawsuit filed in October by MLB alleges that providers AIG, Factory Mutual, and Interstate Fire and Casualty Company have refused to pay claims made by MLB despite the league’s “all-risk” policy purchases.
“Baseball paid millions of dollars in premiums year after year because it deliberately bought broad, more protective coverage” the lawsuit states, but the insurance companies “have very publicly refused to live up to their contractual obligation to pay what they promised.”
Unfortunately, this is an all-too-common story concerning the insurance industry. In fact, it’s why our law firm takes particular pleasure in successfully suing insurance companies who wrongfully and in bad faith refuse to cover valid claims.
Let’s Play Ball
In the era of COVID-19, homeowners and business owners must hire a law firm that aggressively seeks remedies for one’s home or business losses. Homeowners and business owners are required to carry insurance policies that protect them when disaster strikes. The most common claims involve disasters such as floods, hail, wind, fire, sinkholes, and tornadoes.
Corless Barfield Trial Group is a nationally recognized insurance law firm with the skill, experience, and resources to successfully fight insurers in court. CBTG is committed to ensuring that insurers are held accountable for insuring property damage and business interruption losses. To schedule a free consultation with CBTG, call 813-258-4998 or email service@corlessbarfield.com.
Play Every Game Like Its Game 7
The MLB lawsuit is an important case study because it illustrates the types of COVID-related insurance claims we’re seeing more frequently in court.
MLB likely lost billions of dollars on unsold tickets, hundreds of millions on concessions, tens of millions on parking, and many more millions on suites and luxury seat licenses, merchandise sales, and corporate sponsorship. It cites in its lawsuit over a billion dollars in local and national media losses, plus tens of millions in missed income for MLB Advanced Media. It says all of those losses should be covered by their insurance policies.
Swing for the Fences
You’ve got to be in it to win it, and our goal is always the same: protect insureds from the wrongful denial of insurance coverage for losses. CBTG trial lawyers will review your insurance policy and identify whether your policy provides coverage and what stated exclusions are named in the policy. We will then gather the necessary documentation needed to substantiate and submit your claim.
One of the minor league cases, filed in Arizona and led by the Chattanooga Lookouts, a Class AA minor-league affiliate of MLB’s Cincinnati Reds, has been dismissed due to a virus exclusion in the policy.
However, a Missouri federal judge ruled jurors should be able to decide if Cincinnati Financial Corp. should pick up the tab for coronavirus losses claimed by a group of restaurants and hair salons under an “all-risk” policy. (This is the same type of “all-risk” policy language used in support of the league’s lawsuit.) The judge said the virus made their properties “unsafe and unusable, resulting in direct physical loss to the premises and property.”
Insurers have insisted that financial losses caused by the coronavirus do not constitute physical loss or property damage. MLB is claiming that the virus has led to both.
We’re in a League All Our Own
Right now, many insurance providers are engaging in widespread bad faith behavior by denying coverage to insureds who should be protected under their policies. Our insurance lawyers will vigorously advocate for insureds and their right to coverage.
By reviewing your policy in-depth and determining your legal options, we’ll help you understand your options and find a clear path forward. We assist clients in getting the compensation they bargained for under their insurance policy. Call CBTG at 813-258-4998.