Well, that was exceedingly quick — and certainly in the best interests of the public and for those who have suffered immensely from the devastating Aug. 8, 2023, Maui wildfires.
In a unanimous ruling Monday, the Hawaii Supreme Court cleared the way for a proposed $4.04 billion “global settlement” for the wildfire lawsuits — for relatively swift payouts for injured parties’ recovery, and that’s good news. But in ruling against insurance companies that had sought to preserve their legal right to recover payment claims from at-fault parties, called subrogation, uncertainty has grown in a property insurance market that’s already hitting policyholders with higher premiums.
The $4.04 billion settlement is being pursued on behalf of more than 17,000 victims, including via more than 650 lawsuits filed in Maui. It now heads back to Maui Circuit Judge Peter Cahill for final approval, followed by terms of disbursement.
It’s true that no amount of money will ever replace the loss of at least 102 lives and an estimated $5.5 billion in property damage done to Upcountry and West Maui — including the incineration of Lahaina, an immeasurable historic and cultural loss. On Aug. 8, 2023, fast-moving walls of fire caused death and destruction, and harrowing tales of escape included cars abandoned along Front Street and people jumping into the ocean to flee the flames.
Investigations later revealed that the inferno was started when a Hawaiian Electric power line downed by high winds resparked, spread by overgrown vegetation that took the fire quickly through Lahaina.
The court’s support for the global deal brings massive relief for the entities being sued, most of them public entities or utilities that Hawaii relies upon to remain stable. Implosion of the settlement would have meant a firestorm of separate lawsuits slogging through the legal systems for untold years, and possible bankruptcies for Hawaiian Electric and Maui County.
The mediated settlement, then, will give survivors and plaintiffs quicker resolution and money to recover — hopes are high for checks by the August anniversary — while also providing critical fiscal clarity for the plaintiffs who must pay. That includes $1.99 billion from Hawaiian Electric and its subsidiaries, $872.5 million from landowner Kamehameha Schools, $800 million from the state of Hawaii, $10 million from Maui County, plus other sums from West Maui Land Co., Hawaiian Telcom and Spectrum/Charter Communications.
But resisting the global deal was a coalition of 192 insurance firms that called the ruling a troubling precedent that could disrupt Hawaii’s insurance industry.
Insurers have paid about $2.3 billion in claims so far to Maui fire victims and expect to pay some $1 billion more. They had sought to preserve their right to subrogation, an industry standard to recoup money from parties at fault — but now, due to the court ruling, can seek reimbursement only from policyholders for the compensation amount that exceeds the value of what policyholders lost.
Even before Monday’s ruling, insurers were stressing the role that subrogation plays in sustaining competitive rates in this state — so the loss of that right could lead to higher rates for consumers and fewer policy choices.
Let’s hope not; it cannot. And the state has a high obligation to find solutions that hedge against resultant increases.
“Going forward I will continue to work with all parties, including those who opposed the settlement, to expedite our critical recovery as a people and a state,” Gov. Josh Green said in a written statement hailing the court’s ruling. Indeed, Green had been a vocal advocate for the global settlement, calling out the insurance industry — particularly mainland lawyers representing State Farm — for demanding to keep its right to subrogration.
“They’ve been running roughshod over communities for decades,” a clearly frustrated Green said in August, about insurers being enriched over many years via premiums paid by Hawaii policyholders. Such feistiness in shepherding through the Maui settlement must come to bear once the state and the industry reposition for a possibly altered insurance landscape.
The Lahaina disaster will be a forever scar on Hawaii and its people — but Monday’s ruling dispelling many legal and financial uncertainties expedites the recovery process. And that in itself holds much value.
