The Alaska Supreme Court workers’ compensation ruling on June 27 placed Travelers fully liable after a key mailing certificate went missing. Travelers Property Casualty Company of America had issued Keluco and their insurance agent, Gretchen Santerre.
However, Keluco reported never receiving the notice and believed coverage ended. More importantly, travelers failed to obtain a USPS certificate of mailing, which Alaska law requires. According to state law, insurers must send written non-renewal notices through first-class mail and obtain a certificate confirming that mailing.
The original insurance policy included an endorsement that made these legal steps part of the contract. Without that certificate, the court treated the original policy as still active when a worker suffered injuries on September 20, 2017. Following the injury, the State of Alaska pursued penalties against Keluco for lacking valid workers’ compensation insurance at the time.
The injured employee also filed a claim seeking coverage for the workplace incident. Keluco sued its insurance agent, Gretchen Santeree, and later added travelers as a direct defendant. A lower court ruled that Travelers breached their contractual obligation due to the missing mailing certificate. On appeal, the Supreme Court workers’ compensation ruling upheld the decision, confirming that travelers remained liable for coverage under the still active policy.
However, the high court slightly modified the judgment by adjusting when prejudgment interest begins to the date of the injury, not the mailing failure. This ruling sends a strong message to insurers about the legal risks tied to administrative oversights.
