Construction Defect Claims

Over the past 25 years or so, the property/casualty insurance industry has confronted an onslaught of construction defect claims. Since the construction sector is a critical component of our Gross Domestic Product, it is not surprising that the impact of construction defect claims on the economy is significant. In addition, the ubiquity of these claims negatively impacts the availability and affordability of insurance, particularly for new residential construction. Managing such claims is challenging given the number of parties involved and the variety of construction contract language dealing with, among other things, indemnity obligations and insurance requirements. Risk-transfer language can be complex and has been the subject of much litigation. This handbook provides a practical and user-friendly framework for those professionals who manage construction defects. It will assist the professional's continuing learning, critical to the professional's success, and it will provide a handy reference.

Topics:

1. What is a Construction Defect Claim?
2. Duty to Defend v. Duty to Indemnify
3. CGL Coverage - Is Faulty Workmanship An Occurrence? Are Construction Defects Property Damage?
4. CGL Coverage - Trigger of Coverage and Number of Occurrences
5. CGL Coverage - Known Loss and Montrose
6. CGL Coverage - Other Insurance and Allocation
7. CGL Coverage - Reconciling Contractual Indemnity and the Additional Insured
8. CGL Coverage - The "Business Risk Exclusions"
9. Professional Liability - Design Professionals
10. Liability, Damages, and Litigation Management                                       

Joseph M. Junfola, CPCU has been in the insurance industry for 37 years, the last 22 of which have been spent at a major surplus lines insurance carrier as a claims officer. Joe specializes in long-term exposure, or continuous injury/damage, claims, in particular construction defect and product liability claims, and he also handles design professional liability claims. Joe holds numerous industry professional designations. He created and conducts the webinar/workshop series, Cause and Effect: Managing the Construction Defect Claim. Published articles include Allocation in Continuous Damage Claims, CPCU eJournal, February 2011 and Perspectives on the Mediation Process and Its Participants: How and Why People Mediate – The Claims Professional’s Perspective, FDCC Quarterly, Winter 2012. Joe is a graduate of LaSalle University in Philadelphia and resides in Washington Township, New Jersey. He is past-president of a small condominium association in Cape May, NJ. He is also a member of the CPCU Society and other professional organizations.