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The Trigger of Coverage/Property Damage   

The term "trigger of coverage" means "what event must occur for  potential coverage to commence under the terms of the insurance policy"  and "what must take place within the policy\'s effective dates for the  potential of coverage to be \'triggered.\'" [In Re Feature Realty Litig.,  468 F. Supp.2d 1287, 1295, n.2 (E.D. Wash. 2006)]

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In order for there to be coverage under these policies, the property  damage must have occurred during the policy period. The property damage  was the contamination (physical injury) to the property, which was  caused by previous owners and users of the site. GTL\\u2019s liability is  hinged upon its failure to detect the contamination. Even if the  property is not considered physically injured, property damage as  defined by the policy includes \\u201c[l]oss of use of tangible property that  is not physically injured.\\u201d However, that loss of use is deemed to occur  at the time of the occurrence that caused it. That occurrence predated  the policy by almost seven years. Accordingly, the property damage did  not occur during the policy period, and coverage is unambiguously  excluded. (Emphasis added.)  Whenever a claim is made for damage to property it is essential that  both the insurer and the party making the claim determine the date and  time when the property was actually physically damaged. Claims should  then be made only to the insurer on the risk (the one whose policy is in  force) at the time the physical damage occurred not the one whose  policy is in force at the time suit is filed.  \\u201cWhile the term \\u2019trigger of coverage\\u2019 is not a term used in an insurance  policy, it is, as the California Supreme Court said, a convenience used  to describe that which, under the specific terms of an insurance  policy, must happen in the policy period in order for the potential of  coverage to arise. The issue is largely one of timing \\u2014 what must take  place within the policy\'s effective dates for the potential of coverage  to be \'triggered\'?\\u201d [State v. Continental, 55 Cal. 4th 186, 281 P.3d  1000 (2012) (quoting Montrose Chemical Corp. v. Admiral Ins. Co., 10  Cal. 4th 645, 655 n.2 (1995).]    The word \\u201ctrigger\\u201d, as a term of art, means the event that activates  coverage under one or more insurance policies. The trigger of coverage  problem arises in determining exactly what must take place within the  policy\\u2019s effective dates to trigger coverage.   ZALMA OPINION  Every claims person must be aware of the the trigger of coverage so that  he or she can thoroughly investigate a property claim. Without  knowledge of the various triggers of coverage and how the trigger  applies to the fact of the loss being investigated the claims person  will fail in his or her obligation to thoroughly investigate a claim and  treat the insured fairly and in good faith.