In this Florida insurance law case, Great Lakes Reinsurance (U.K.) PLC v. Branham, 38 Fla. L. Weekly D524a (Fla. 3DCA 2013), the Florida Third District Court of Appeal held that a lien claimant against a boat that was damaged did not have authority to bring a claim for the damages and thus the insurer did not breach the insurance contract as it was not required to adjust the claim. Further, the 90-day requirement to investigate, adjust and otherwise settle insurance claims pursuant to Florida Statute 627.70131(5)(a) only applied to residential insurance claims and not property damages such as this involving a boat.
Florida Investigation Adjustment and Settlement of Insurance Claims
Pursuant to Florida law, for residential insurance claims an insurance company is obligated to investigate and settle claims in good faith within 90-days. In this case, a boat was damaged during a hijacking and its owner was killed. A lienor for the boat sought to bring a claim for damages against the insurance company and when that claim was not resolved within 90-days, the lien claimant brought a lawsuit for breach of contract and damages. The lien claimant was not a party to the insurance contract and the rights of the deceased had not been yet assigned to the lien claimant. The trial court ruled in favor of the lien claimant and found that the insurance company had failed to properly adjust the claim and breached the contract by not paying the damages. The Third District Court of Appeal reversed the trial court judgment first determining that the lien claimant had no legal basis to bring the claim as he was not a party to the insurance contract and the rights of the deceased had not yet been assigned to him by the personal representative for the deceased. It then follows that if the lien claimant did not have the authority to bring the insurance claim then the insurance company did not have an obligation to adjust or settle the claim. Further, the 90-day period to investigate, adjust and settle a claim only applies to homeowner residential claims as the Florida Statute specifically refers to insurer to mean residential property insurer and not marine insurer.
Florida Insurance Claim Best Practices
In order to bring an insurance claim and to force the insurer to investigate, adjust and settle the claim, make sure that you have proper standing under the insurance policy to bring the claim. This means you either need to be a party to the insurance policy, a specifically named beneficiary, or have a proper and valid assignment of rights from the policy holder.
Related Topics: Miami Insurance Lawyer, Florida Insurance Claims, Florida Insurance Law
