‘Interior Rain Damage’ Exclusion Bars Coverage for Tropical Storm Damage to Hotel, 11th Cir. Affirms

ATLANTA — Damage to a motel caused by rains from Tropical Storm Debby fall within a policy’s “interior rain damage” exclusion and are therefore not covered, a federal appeals court has affirmed, finding the evidence proffered by the policyholder did not show that an exception to that exclusion applied.

In a July 19 opinion, the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a trial court’s award of summary judgment to the insurer, finding that no covered cause of loss created a hole in the buildings’ roof or walls before the rainwater entered.

On June 20, 2012, Divine Motel Group purchased …