A federal judge has denied the claims of a Buckhead property owner who wanted an insurer to pay for lost property value when his office building was allegedly damaged by a nearby construction project.
The judge’s ruling against the property owner contradicts a directive Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine issued last spring that would have favored the property owner, who with his associates had given more than $46,000 to Oxendine’s campaign.
Oxendine denied a link between his directive and the contributions when that was reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in July, just before the gubernatorial primary that Oxendine lost. The property owner, David Davoudpour, also denied any link between contributions and his request for a directive from the commissioner.
The case pitted Davoudpour, an owner of Royal Capital Development, against insurer Maryland Casualty Co.
Davoudpour sued Maryland Casualty, claiming his property, The Capital Building on East Paces Ferry Road, suffered both physical damages and damage to its reputation in 2008 after its foundation, including tile floors, was cracked due to construction on the now-stalled Streets of Buckhead project nearby.
Davoudpour submitted a claim for $2.7 million. Maryland Casualty paid $1.13 million for repairs, saying its policy only covered physical repairs and not any reduction in value.
Oxendine’s directive last spring, which advised insurers how to calculate payouts when commercial property was damaged, appeared to bolster Davoudpour’s position.
But Senior U.S. District Judge Robert L. Vining Jr. ruled for the insurance company, saying, “this matter boils down to simple policy interpretation.”
An attorney for Davoudpour said his client plans to appeal. An attorney with McKenna Long & Aldridge representing Maryland Casualty would not comment.
Chad Hoffecker, an attorney at the The Hoffecker Law Group in Atlanta, said he wasn’t surprised by the ruling. He said if insurers were held responsible for what “is essentially damage to a building’s reputation for what appears to be a correctable loss, it would make commercial property insurance incredibly expensive.”
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
