A divided Ohio Supreme Court recently held that in lawsuits brought against insurance agents for negligent failure to procure insurance, the statute of limitations in Ohio begins to run when the policy is issued.
In LGR Realty, Inc. v. Frank & London Ins. Agency, 2018-Ohio-334, 152 Ohio St. 3d 517, 98 N.E.3d 241, the insured brought a lawsuit against the insured’s insurance agent for negligence in procuring insurance coverage. Immediately the insurance agent filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that the lawsuit was barred by the Ohio statute of limitations, which the agent argued began to run when the insurance policy was issued. The insured, on the other hand, argued that the statute of limitations in Ohio did not begin to run on failure to procure cases until the insurer had denied coverage. A divided Ohio Supreme Court found that the Ohio statute of limitations governing the action began to run when the insurance policy was issued. Generally, in Ohio, the statutes of limitation begin to run at the time of the commission of the act that was the basis for the lawsuit. The general rule was subject to a discovery rule and a delayed-damage rule.