Florida’s largest private homeowners insurer, State Farm Florida, today informed the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) that it will stop selling homeowners and other property-related insurance policies in the state. The company’s withdrawal affects approximately 1.2 million customers who currently have State Farm Florida homeowners, renters, condominium unit owners, personal liability, boats, and/or personal articles insurance. It does not, however, affect State Farm Florida’s 2.8 million automobile insurance customers.
Read More State Farm — Florida’s Largest Provider of Homeowners and Property Related Insurance — Is Withdrawing from the Market
Florida Developments
Florida Court Finds Coverage for Faulty Subcontractor Work Under CGL Policy
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
EAPD’s Donna Greenspan of the firm’s West Palm Beach office recently authored an article titled “Florida Court Finds Coverage for Faulty Subcontractor Work Under CGL Policy,” published in National Underwriter Property & Casualty. …
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Florida District Court Finds Insurer Entitled To Rescind Policy Due To Insured’s Misrepresentations on Application and Grants Summary Judgment Despite Claim That Insurer Knew of Misrepresentations and Failed to Exercise Due Diligence
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
A Florida district court recently granted summary judgment in favor of an insurer, allowing it to rescind a general liability policy because the insured knowingly made misrepresentations on the insurance application. …
Read More Florida District Court Finds Insurer Entitled To Rescind Policy Due To Insured’s Misrepresentations on Application and Grants Summary Judgment Despite Claim That Insurer Knew of Misrepresentations and Failed to Exercise Due Diligence
Eleventh Circuit Finds Pozzi Insurer Waived Its Defective Component Defense By Not Raising Issue On Appeal
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
In Pozzi Window Co. v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., No. 05-10559 (11th Cir. Sept. 26, 2008), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the judgment against an insurer, finding that the general contractor’s commercial general liability (“CGL”) policy covered damages from water leakage around windows that a subcontractor had installed in a multimillion dollar home. …
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Eleventh Circuit Finds Release Of Insured Bars Excess Insurer’s Bad Faith Action Against Lower-Level Insurer
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
In Federal Ins. Co. v. National Union Ins. Co. of Pittsburg, P.A., No. 07-12274 (11th Cir. Oct. 30, 2008), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that an excess liability insurer could not maintain a bad faith action against a lower-level insurer that had settled the underlying tort claim and caused the injured parties to release the insured and all its insurers.
Eleventh Circuit Certifies Conflict-of-Law Question to Florida Supreme Court: Does Law of Place of Contracting or Law of Place of Insured’s Risk Govern Coverage Under CGL Policy?
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
In Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. Liberty Surplus Ins. Co., No. 08-10544 (11th Cir. Dec. 2, 2008), the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit certified to the Florida Supreme Court the question of whether the law of the place of contracting or the law of the place of the insured’s risk governs a coverage dispute arising from a commercial general liability (“CGL”) policy.
Florida Office of Insurance Regulation to Issue Final Order on State Farm Rate Request
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (“OIR”) recently announced that Administrative Law Judge Daniel Manry of the Division of Administrative Hearings issued a Recommended Order on December 12, 2008 denying State Farm’s statewide homeowner’s insurance rate request. …
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Florida District Court Refuses to Dismiss Claim for Breach of Implied Warranty of Good Faith, Holding that It Was Not a Bad Faith Claim in Disguise
A Florida district court recently denied two insurers’ motion to dismiss a count for breach of the implied warranty of good faith and fair dealing. Arlen House East Condo. v. QBE Int’l Ins. Ltd., No. 07-23199, 2008 WL 4500690 (S.D. Fla. Sept. 30, 2008). The court rejected the insurers’ argument that the breach of implied warranty count was merely a “disguised” first-party statutory bad faith claim.
Florida Supreme Court Holds that an Insured Can Assign its Causes of Action Against a Nonparty Insurance Broker and Obtain a Release, Consistent with the Court’s Decision in Cope
In Wachovia Ins. Serv., Inc. v. Toomey, No. 06-1110, 2008 WL 4379587 (Fla. Sept. 29, 2008), the Florida Supreme Court answered two interrelated, certified questions from the Eleventh Circuit.
Florida Supreme Court Holds Workers’ Compensation Attorney’s Fee Statute Ambiguous
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in Florida Developments, United States
In a recent decision, the Florida Supreme Court found that the statutory formula for calculating attorney’s fee awards for disputed workers’ compensation claims is ambiguous and held that the awards should be determined using a multi-factor reasonableness test. …
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