Condo group sues State Farm for water damage 30 years too late: Court
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A Tacoma, Washington, condominium association that sued a State Farm Insurance Co. unit for water damage filed its suit nearly 30 years too late, a federal appeals court ruled Monday, affirming a lower court ruling.
Gold Creek Condominium Phase I Association of Apartments Owners first learned of water damage to its 72-unit complex, which was completed in 1982, in 2018, according to court papers in Gold Creek Condominium-Phase I Association of Apartment Owners v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co., Travelers Casualty Insurance Co. of America, et al.
State Farm had issued an all-risk insurance policy on the property that was effective from Oct. 1, 1989, to Oct. 1, 1990. Travelers Cos. Inc. units insured Gold Creek between October 1991 and October 1996 under all-risk policies.
The insurers denied coverage, and the condominium association sued them. The U.S. District Court in Tacoma granted them summary judgment dismissing the case, which was affirmed by a three-judge appeals court panel.
Because the State Farm policy’s “plain text unambiguously requires that Gold Creek bring suit within one year of rain events during the policy period (from 1989 to 1990) and because Gold Creek effectively filed suit nearly thirty years later, the policy bars claims against State Farm,” the panel’s ruling said.
It also affirmed Travelers’ dismissal. The record “would not permit a reasonable juror to conclude that damage exceeding the deductible occurred during the policy period,” it said.
State Farm attorney Michael Rogers, a shareholder with Reed McClure in Seattle, said in a statement, “This decision is consistent with the expectations of the parties at the time the policy was issued. It may provide guidance for a number of cases in the federal district court.”
The condominium’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.
