NEW YORK MARINE AND GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY v. ROCKINGHAM INSURANCE COMPANY (2025)

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Nancy M. Bannon, J.), entered October 11, 2023, which granted plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment declaring that defendant was obligated to defend and indemnify plaintiffs Stateside Construction LLC and The Astra at Gates Avenue, LLC in an underlying personal injury action and to reimburse plaintiff New York Marine and General Insurance Company for its attorneys’ fees, costs, and disbursements incurred in defending plaintiffs, and denied defendant's cross-motion to dismiss the complaint against it, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

Supreme Court properly determined that plaintiffs Stateside and Astra, who qualify as additional insureds on a policy issued by defendant, established that they submitted a tender letter to defendant insurer, and that defendant failed to timely disclaim coverage as to plaintiffs, as required by Insurance Law § 3420(d) (see West 16th St. Tenants Corp. v. Public Serv. Mut. Ins. Co., 290 A.D.2d 278, 279, 736 N.Y.S.2d 34 [1st Dept. 2002], lv denied 98 N.Y.2d 605, 746 N.Y.S.2d 279, 773 N.E.2d 1017 [2002]).  Contrary to defendant's contention, the denial letter it sent to its named insured, disclaiming coverage solely as to that named insured, did not constitute notice to plaintiff additional insureds (see Endurance Am. Specialty Ins. Co. v. Utica First Ins. Co., 132 A.D.3d 434, 436, 17 N.Y.S.3d 401 [1st Dept. 2015], lv dismissed 27 N.Y.3d 1119, 36 N.Y.S.3d 874, 57 N.E.3d 66 [2016];  see also AVR–Powell C Dev. Corp. v. Utica First Ins. Co., 174 A.D.3d 772, 774, 106 N.Y.S.3d 320 [2d Dept. 2019]).  The notice was not sufficiently definite as to apprise plaintiffs that defendant was also denying them coverage based on certain policy exclusions (see Titan Indus. Servs. Corp. v. Navigators Ins. Co., 223 A.D.3d 426, 427–428, 203 N.Y.S.3d 267 [1st Dept. 2024];  Hartford Underwriting Ins. Co. v. Greenman–Pederson, Inc., 111 A.D.3d 562, 563, 975 N.Y.S.2d 736 [1st Dept. 2013];  cf.  Valiant Ins. Co. v. Utica First Ins. Co., 185 A.D.3d 435, 436, 124 N.Y.S.3d 783 [1st Dept. 2020]).

In opposition, defendant failed to raise a triable issue of fact to rebut plaintiffs’ showing that defendant failed to timely disclaim coverage.

We have considered defendant's remaining arguments, including that the court should not have imposed sanctions for discovery malfeasance, and find them unavailing.