Construction Defect Indemnity Obligations Under CGL Policies: Identifying Covered vs. Non-Covered Damages

This CLE course will discuss an insurer's indemnity obligations in construction defect claims and how to distinguish between covered and non-covered damages. The program will review the issues from the perspective of both the insurer and the general contractor or subcontractor.

Coverage for a construction defect claim requires a determination that there has been property damage within the meaning of the policy. Without an allegation of property damage within the meaning of the policy, the insurer has no duty to defend.

Even if the allegations create a duty to defend, coverage counsel must determine whether the actual damages are the result of property damage within the meaning of the policy and whether the damages arise from an occurrence.

Jurisdictions vary on whether defective work can ever constitute "property damage" within the meaning of the policy. Likewise, there is a split in judicial opinion on whether defective construction can ever constitute an "occurrence."

Listen as our authoritative panel of construction insurance practitioners analyzes the insurer's duty to indemnify in construction defect claims and provides a methodology for distinguishing between covered and non-covered damages. The program will discuss the issues from the perspective of the insurer as well as the general contractor or subcontractor.