What Is Additional Living Expense (ALE) Coverage?

Additional living expenses (ALE) insurance, also known as loss of use insurance, is a type of coverage that helps pay for the cost of temporary housing and other necessary living expenses if you are unable to live in your home due to a covered loss. Commonly, ALE includes expenses such as hotel stays, restaurant meals, […]
What to Do If A Water Pipe Bursts Due to Freezing

Frozen pipes can cause a tremendous amount of damage. Your ability to get financial support from your insurance company to make the needed repairs depends on the actions you take immediately after the discovery of the damage and how you report the claim to your insurance company. The following is a list of things that you […]
What Is a Proof of Loss?

Your insurance company may ask you for additional information and documents after you file a claim. One document that your insurance company may request that you complete is a proof of loss. Filing a Proof of Loss is required under most insurance policies, including homeowners insurance, business insurance, life insurance, and car insurance. Your duty […]
Liability for an Insurance company’s Investigator’s negligence

Insurance Company Investigators are not exempt from liability for negligence After a loss, insurance companies will frequently send out a variety of inspectors such as engineers, remediators, and contractors. Last month, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that an insurance company’s agent is not exempt from liability when the agent conducts a post-loss investigation. See, […]
New Public Adjuster Regulations

As of July 1, 2020, the State of Wisconsin will require non-resident public adjusters to register with the state. As part of the registration, public adjusters will need to pass a licensing test. Wisconsin residents who are public adjusters may choose to register but they are not obligated to do so. If Wisconsin residents do […]
What Is A Coinsurance Provision?

The first time that many hear the phrase “coinsurance” is in a letter from their insurance carrier after a loss. Many policyholders are shocked to learn that they will not receive the full value of their claim due to the policy’s coinsurance provision. Coinsurance provisions can be confusing for both the policyholder and the […]
What to do If your Home is Destroyed by Fire?

No matter where you live or the age and condition of your home, there is always the chance that a fire could occur at any time and for any number of reasons. Few homeowners are prepared for the consequences when a fire occurs, which can be financially devastating. you must act quickly to follow these […]
What to Expect When You Mediate

Every mediator brings a different style and approach to a mediation. Here’s what you can expect from your Murdock Law mediation. Discuss the Process When the parties agree to work with a Murdock Law mediator, the first step will be a discussion about the mediation process. Will the parties submit confidential mediation statements to the […]
Will insurance cover loss of business income due to Covid-19?

Wisconsin and other states temporarily shut down non-essential businesses to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. These shutdowns will cause devastating economic consequences for many industries and businesses. Many of our clients have asked us whether there might be coverage for business interruption. Overview of The Insurance Coverage Issues Many business insurance policies and […]
Frequently Asked Questions About Wisconsin Insurance Claims

Wisconsin Insurance Claims When your home or property is damaged it can be devastating and difficult to recover from. In most cases, people and businesses have insurance to help them recover after a loss. This article is intended to provide guidance to policyholders and answer frequently asked questions about Wisconsin Insurance Claims and how to […]
How To Read Your Wisconsin Homeowner’s Insurance Policy

Many homeowners never look at their policy until they have an Insurance Loss. At that point, the homeowner will locate their insurance policy and try to make sense out of a large document written in convoluted language that often appears (or is) contradictory. Although insurance policies are supposed to be written in plain language, they seldom are clear. Many lawyers cringe […]
What Is Insurance Bad Faith?

Bad faith is the refusal to timely pay a claim or without a reasonable basis and with knowledge of or disrespect even if the insurer has a reasonable basis for denial, failing to properly investigate the claim. Under Wisconsin law, bad faith claim is a tort claim. The tort cause of action for bad faith […]