N.J. Appeals Court Reinstates Lawsuit Against Mortgage Lender, Says Policyholder Suffered ‘Ascertainable Damages’

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — A New Jersey appellate court has reinstated a lawsuit accusing a mortgage lender of wrongfully withholding Superstorm Sandy-related insurance proceeds, ruling that the policyholder has suffered “ascertainable damages” even though the defendant has since released the funds to him.

On July 16, the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, explained that the $12,277.43 in insurance proceeds became the ascertainable loss the moment the funds were wrongly withheld and therefore the mortgage lender cannot escape liability.

On October 29, 2012, Superstorm Sandy damaged Medhat Abbas’s North Bergen, N.J., home. His homeowner's insurer, GEICO, together with and/or doing …