A Video About More Exclusions

Exclusions for Wear & Tear, Depletion, Deterioration, Rust, Corrosion and Erosion, and Water DamageShow more

The wear and tear exclusion, perhaps because it is so obvious, has seldom been the subject of appellate review. The exclusion for wear and tear is not, however, as argued by the insured, limited to ‘abnormal wear and tear,’ but rather encompasses all ‘wear and tear’. See Lovell v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 466 F.3d 893, 902 (10th Cir.2006) Applying Colorado law and holding that when the language used in an insurance contract is plain and its meaning is clear, the agreement must be enforced as written. The policy at issue unambiguously excludes losses caused, “directly or indirectly,” by ‘wear and tear, marring, scratching, deterioration.

Deterioration, depletion, inherent vice or latent defect, rust or corrosion, mold, wet or dry rot, erosion

The plain meaning of the exclusion is the insurer will not cover slow-moving disintegration or corrosion of the concrete foundation because of external forces. Whether deterioration be termed corrosion, decay, or any one of several other synonyms, damage caused by contact between the soil and foundation of the house is precisely the type of loss the exclusion was meant to cover.

Water Damage

For water damage to be covered in most residential properties there must first be damage to the roof by wind.

© 2021 – Barry Zalma

Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, now limits his practice to service as an insurance consultant specializing in insurance coverage, insurance claims handling, insurance bad faith and insurance fraud almost equally for insurers and policyholders. He also serves as an arbitrator or mediator for insurance related disputes. He practiced law in California for more than 44 years as an insurance coverage and claims handling lawyer and more than 52 years in the insurance business. He is available at http://www.zalma.com and zalma@zalma.com.

Mr. Zalma is the first recipient of the first annual Claims Magazine/ACE Legend Award.

Over the last 53 years Barry Zalma has dedicated his life to insurance, insurance claims and the need to defeat insurance fraud. He has created the following library of books and other materials to make it possible for insurers and their claims staff to become insurance claims professionals.

Go to the podcast Zalma On Insurance at https://anchor.fm/barry-zalma;  Follow Mr. Zalma on Twitter at https://twitter.com/bzalma; Go to Barry Zalma videos at Rumble.com at https://rumble.com/c/c-262921; Go to Barry Zalma on YouTube- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCysiZklEtxZsSF9DfC0Expg; Go to the Insurance Claims Library – https://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library/ Read posts from Barry Zalma at https://parler.com/profile/Zalma/posts; and the last two issues of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/  podcast now available at https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/zalma-on-insurance/id1509583809?uo=4