Key Takeaways:
- Sales Tax and Fees: Insureds Prevail in Class Certification and Merits Decisions
- Total Loss Valuation: Projected Sales Adjustment Class Certified
- Labor Depreciation: Texas Claims Survive Pleading Stage, but Other Claims Falter Due to Appraisal
- Automobile Insurance Coverages: New Case Filed Challenging Insurer’s Failure to Offer Comp/Collision Coverage
- Privacy: Dismissal of Claims Challenging Transmittal of PHI to ISO
- Medical Payments: Medical Bill Audit Class Action Survives Motion to Dismiss
Sales tax and fee cases continued the trend in favor of insureds, with a merits victory in the Sixth Circuit and a class certification victory in an Ohio state court.
On the labor depreciation front, Texas proved to be the active jurisdiction this quarter. One Texas federal court followed the Fifth Circuit’s ruling in Mitchell (a case under Mississippi law), suggesting labor depreciation is similarly inappropriate under Texas law. In another Texas federal court, an insurer used the appraisal process to score summary judgment victories against some of the named plaintiffs.
Privacy class actions continue to persist, but an insurer achieved a victory in a case challenging the transmittal of personal health information.