Three industry associations have concluded that a recent denial by a Mississippi court of a motion for dismissal concerning flood damage in Mississippi could end up being a silver lining to a lingering issue about flood versus wind.
Though the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi dismissed the motion brought by Allstate, the American Insurance Association, the National Association of Mutual Insurers, and the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America all agreed that evident in the court's explanation was an understanding of the water damage/flood exclusion in most insurance policies.
The ruling involved the case Buente v. Allstate, which was brought forth in the wake of Katrina. The judge is reported to have acknowledged that any damage from hurricane flood waters would not be covered by the Buentes' policy, which contained the standard flood exclusion. He also found there were issues of fact about what percentage of the damage was caused by flood waters, and how much was caused by wind.
“While we would have preferred that the motion for judgment on the pleadings be granted at this stage, the underlying opinion is good because it strongly suggests that the Court understands that the explicit water damage/flood exclusion in this policy does exclude coverage for hurricane-driven water,” the associations stated in a joint release. “This part of the decision is positive for insurers and other businesses that rely on the integrity of their contracts in Mississippi because it recognizes this contract provision is valid, enforceable, and applicable in this case.”
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