Court says insurer not liable for Alabama-based Great Southern Wood Preserving's lumber loss from Hurricane Katrina

Liling Tan

ATLANTA , August 22, 2008 (Associated Press) – A federal appeals court says an insurer was not responsible for an Alabama-based company's loss of tons of lumber in Hurricane Katrina.

Great Southern Wood Preserving Inc., whose YellaWood is promoted in television commercials by a pitchman in yellow cowboy garb, had two shiploads of lumber delivered to Gulfport, Miss., in August 2005. The wood was off-loaded and stored in a port warehouse for delivery to treatment facilities when the storm hit.

Great Southern sued American Home Assurance Co. after it refused to pay damages, saying the lumber was not "in transit" within the meaning of the insurance contract.

A federal judge in Alabama ruled in favor of the insurance company. An 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel affirmed that ruling Friday.

© 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.