Tag archives: insurance

Who Says the King Can Do No Wrong? Finding More Ways to Recover Losses
By Steven A. Blum   |   February 22, 2018

When I returned to Glen Oaks after the evacuation, I was still stunned by the physical and emotional devastation as neighbors mourn the loss of friends, relatives, their homes, and nature itself. Even as we begin to pick up the pieces, the weather forecast promised rain which turned out to be sprinkles not a storm. […]

Who Should Pay?
By Montecito Journal   |   February 15, 2018

Two videos on the 93108fund.org website were brought to my attention. Both ladies profiled currently work for Pierre Lafond, and they say in the video that they have missed up to 90 hours [of] work due to the fire/flood and are now receiving checks from the 93108fund.org to make up for lost hours. I’m wondering […]

Troubled Waters: Surface Water Law and the Montecito Floods
By Steven A. Blum   |   February 8, 2018

In last week’s issue of The Montecito Journal, I explained that if the facts show a fire, covered by a typical homeowners’ insurance policy, was the “efficient proximate cause” of a later mudslide, then mudslide damage could be covered under a homeowners’ insurance policy. On January 29, California insurance commissioner Dave Jones adopted the same […]

Business Interruption Insurance – Recovering it All
By Matthew Bourhis   |   February 8, 2018

Jeannine’s is my favorite breakfast spot in Montecito. Grab a coffee, have a seat outside, and do a little people-watching while you wait for pancakes. It makes for a delightful morning. That’s why it’s upsetting to me, and many others, that Jeannine’s may be facing some tough insurance challenges due to the recent debris flow. […]

Insurance Policies Cover the “Efficient Proximate Cause” of Property Damage
By Matthew Bourhis   |   February 1, 2018

A week ago, law professor Kenneth Klein wrote a Los Angeles Times op-ed saying that Montecito residents should not expect their homeowners insurance to cover flood and mudslide damage. He argued that policy exclusions likely preclude recovery. I challenged that assertion in a letter to the editor, arguing that where there are multiple, different causes […]

What’s Your Shoe Size? One Size Won’t Fit All Feet: Class Actions, Insurance, And Topography
By Steven A. Blum   |   February 1, 2018

Chris Wilkinson and his son, Kai, filled their truck with emergency supplies and radio equipment. They are members of the Montecito Emergency Response and Recovery Action Group known as MERRAG. It was January 8. KEYT had warned of heavy rainfall. As a third-generation Montecitoan who has lived in the same Glen Oaks home since 1963, […]

The Constitution Protects Private Property Owners
By Steven A. Blum   |   January 25, 2018

I live on Glen Oaks Drive, 200 yards from San Ysidro Creek. On January 9, a torrent of mud and giant boulders tore through my neighborhood and destroyed dozens of homes. Tragically, three of my immediate neighbors lost their lives, and after staying through the week my family and I followed the mandatory evacuation order. […]

Sansum & Blue Shield
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   November 30, 2017

Good news for nearly 7,000 Sansum Clinic patients from Santa Barbara and Montecito; this week, Sansum and Blue Shield of California announced a contract has been secured for individual health insurance plans offered through Covered California. As of January 1, 2018, Anthem Blue Cross will no longer offer individual health plans in Santa Barbara County […]