On April 16, 2014, Maloney Lauersdorf Reiner attorneys F.J. Maloney and Nick Thede obtained a directed verdict in favor of their client at the trial of Yamaguchi v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Wash., King County District Court, Cause No. 135-02038.  The trial involved claims of insurance bad faith and violations of the Washington Consumer Protection Act (CPA).  At the conclusion of plaintiff’s case, the trial court granted the motion for directed verdict in favor of MLR’s client.  Prior to trial, MLR obtained summary judgment on claims for breach of the insurance contract and violation of the Washington Insurance Fair Conduct Act (IFCA).

The case concerned an insured’s claim following a fire loss at his residence.  The fire damaged several windows that were original to the 1950’s-era home.  Each of the damaged windows was surrounded on the exterior by a Roman-style brick veneer.  The insured demanded that the insurer pay for the removal of bricks surrounding the windows in order to install windows with a nailing flange.  The insured claimed that the Roman-style bricks would likely break if removed and that “matching” bricks were no longer available.  Due to those issues, the insured demanded that the insurer pay to remove and replace the entire brick veneer that surrounded the home.  The insurer proposed installing “finless” windows that did not require removal of any bricks.  The insured rejected the insurer’s proposal and sued the insurer for breach of contract, bad faith, and violations of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) and Insurance Fair Conduct Act (IFCA).

The attorneys of Maloney Lauersdorf Reiner frequently represent clients throughout Washington in cases involving similar claims to those presented in the Yamaguchi v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Wash. matter.  Please contact us with any questions concerning this case or any other matter you see addressed in our Insurance Coverage Blog.