Hawaii Supreme Court Rules Greenhouse Gases Excluded Under AIG Policies, Denies Coverage for Sunoco Climate Suit

Oct 12, 2024, 05:50 PM

The Hawaii Supreme Court has ruled that American International Group (AIG) units are not obligated to provide insurance coverage for a lawsuit accusing a Sunoco unit of contributing to climate change. The court determined that greenhouse gases fall under the pollution exclusions in several policies issued by AIG, effectively closing the door on insurance coverage for climate change-related claims against the gas company. This decision has been met with praise from insurance carrier attorneys, while policyholder attorneys have expressed satisfaction with the expanded view of covered occurrences.