Investigating subrogation claims for property damage involves assessing a handful of key elements: (1) identifying the cause and origin of the loss; (2) ascertaining third-party targets; and (3) assessing whether a viable claim and recovery exists against those targets. The third element takes many forms, including determining the applicability of state laws to the third-party’s...
Technology is advancing and so are subrogation investigations. We are seeing investigations of losses and presentations for recovery make use of new technology, including laser scanning, 3D imaging, Lidar, drones, etc. Some tech can come at a high expense, but as the tech becomes more available, it will become standard use in the industry. For...
A 2018 N.Y. Court of Appeals case has shed light on the limitations of privacy settings on social media accounts. Previously, a user might have thought that marking a post or photo “private” would be sufficient to shield it from prying eyes, even in the event of a lawsuit. But that’s not necessarily the case....
On October 13, 2016, Roylco Educational Light Cubes were recalled because its lithium battery can overheat and catch fire. On the same day, Samsung expanded its recall of the Galaxy Note7 Smartphones based on additional incidents with the replacement phone’s lithium battery overheating and catching fire. On September 20, 2016, Denon recalled its rechargeable battery...
Despite over a decade of laptop battery recalls, one of the latest chapters in the lithium-ion fire hazard saga unfolded on June 23, 2016, when HP issued a sweeping recall of batteries installed in its notebook computers. The particular lithium-ion batteries subject to the recall, the company states, “have the potential to overheat, posing a fire...
Recently, a subrogation action was filed on behalf of an insurer alleging that a product sold on eBay and Amazon caused a fire for which the insurer is seeking recovery. The action was filed in state court and thereafter removed to federal court. This lawsuit again reminds us in the subrogation world of the difficulty...
The first known fatal accident involving a vehicle operating in a type of autopilot mode occurred in Williston, Florida on May 7, 2016. The accident involved a Tesla Model S electric car that was engaged in Autopilot mode. The driver was killed when the Tesla crashed into a large 18-wheel tractor-trailer. The National Highway Traffic...
On July 6, 2016, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a recall for more than 500,000 hoverboards due to fire hazards. The recall involves ten manufacturers, retailers, online retailers and/or US importers, with over half involving the popular Swagway model. The basis for the recall is: “The lithium-ion battery packs in the self-balancing scooters/hoverboards...
It was just a matter of time. As cyber-attacks rose and the data security breaches became increasingly devastating to businesses and individuals, cyber breach insurance became more prevalent. And where insurance appears, subrogation recovery follows. We have not seen an overwhelming number of cyber claims or lawsuits filed – yet. One of the main lawsuits...
ICYMI: Social Media has Revolutionized the Gathering, Sharing and Publication of Information both Newsworthy and Non-Newsworthy. The use of social media posts authored by members of the public and casual observers to describe news-as-it-happens is prominent even among traditional media outlets. Social media posts, as we know (I do not want to belabor this), have...
