Court Finds Insurance Policy Excludes Coverage for Benzene Defendant

HOUSTON -- A district court has awarded summary judgment to an insurance company, ruling that policies issued by the insurer to a benzene defendant do not cover completed products at issue in the underlying complaint. Mid-Continent Casualty Co., v. Hammonds Technical Services, No. 06-3451 (S.D. Texas).

In the Nov. 27 opinion, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas found that the "products-completed operation hazards" exclusion applied.

Mid-Continent Casualty Co. filed the declaratory action, seeking a determination that it does not owe Hammonds Technical Services a duty to defend or indemnify for underlying benzene litigation.

The insurance company …