An insurance agency based in Taunton, MA has been ordered to pay the city $2 million in damages.
On August 17, 2010, a fire broke out at Taunton’s City Hall. While the flames were contained, firefighting efforts led to extensive water damage – water that was poured up into the attic began to saturate walls, flood and ceilings on the lower three floors. To avoid mold growth, the city chose to tear apart several walls. The rebuild plan, estimated to cost about $26 million, is expected to break ground before the end of 2018 - roughly two-thirds of the original City Hall has been torn down, along with a separate annex building behind it.
When the time came for the city to claim coverage for the damages, however, it was notified that it was entitled to just $1 million for code upgrades. The total insurance settlement was just $4.8 million.
Taunton initially filed a suit in 2012 against Farrell Backlund Insurance Agency (now known as FBinsure) and its president Russell Martorana, claiming the defendants were guilty of negligence and breach of contract. Another agency, Georgia-based Axis Insurance Company, was also named in the initial combined $6 million suit, but Taunton reached a settlement with that company before the trial. Axis agreed to settle the city’s claim by paying $600,000.
The city, however, believes that Martorana, who personally handled his agency’s contract for the city’s public-buildings policy, failed to properly advise the municipality. An additional $5,000 per year could have entitled the city to a code-upgrade reimbursement of up to $10 million, Solicitor Jason D. Buffington told
Taunton Gazette.
With the most recent lawsuit, Taunton has been awarded an additional $2 million, according to Buffington. He is hopeful that the city can collect an additional $1.5 million for accrued pre-judgement interest based on a statutory 12% annual interest rate. He also claims the defendants violated Chapter 93A – the state’s consumer protection statute.
The new claim will be brought to New Bedford court later this month, February 20. However, Buffington insists there is no personal animosity.
“There are no hard feelings. We still see them as our neighbors and important members of the business community,” Buffington said, as quoted by the
Taunton Gazette.
Martorana told the publication that “we’re disappointed in the verdict.”
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