3rd Cir. Finds for Insurer, Reinsurer in Coverage Dispute Involving 2014 Greenhouse Explosion

PHILADELPHIA — The 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld a ruling in favor of Florists’ Mutual Insurance Co. and its reinsurer, the Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Co., in a dispute over coverage for a June 2014 explosion and fire that destroyed a basil crop at a commercial greenhouse.

On Aug. 29, the appellate panel agreed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania that the defendants were entitled to summary judgment because the plaintiff, Three Rivers Hydrophonics LLC, was not a third-party beneficiary to the reinsurance agreement, and failed to prove through expert …