11 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 588a
Insurance — Personal injury protection — Service of demand letter on insurer is condition precedent to amending statement of claim to include bill that insurer did not reduce or deny, but for which insurer issued payment to wrong medical provider
SHIRLEY RUIZ, Plaintiff, vs. METROPOLITAN CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant. County Court, 20th Judicial Circuit in and for Lee County. Small Claims Division. Case No. 02-6259-SP-EJV. March 24, 2004. Edward J. Volz, Jr., Judge. Counsel: Daniel Dalesandro. Andrew D. Reeder, Reynolds & Stowell, St. Petersburg.
ORDER ON PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE AN AMENDED STATEMENT OF CLAIM
THIS CAUSE having come on for hearing on March 8, 2004, on Plaintiff’s Motion for Leave to File an Amended Statement of Claim, and the Court being fully advised in the premises, it is hereby,
ORDERED and ADJUDGED that Plaintiff’s Motion is DENIED without prejudice. During the course of discovery, the parties realized that Metropolitan inadvertently issued a payment to a different medical provider for the services rendered to Plaintiff at Southwest Florida Neurodiagnostics on March 4, 2002. Plaintiff subsequently filed a Motion for leave to amend her Statement of Claim to include the bill for services provided to the Plaintiff at Southwest Florida Neurodiagnostics. Based on an Affidavit from the adjuster assigned to handle this claim at Metropolitan, no payment or correspondence was ever sent to Southwest Florida Neurodiagnostics for services rendered to the Plaintiff on March 4, 2002. Plaintiff did not serve a demand letter on Metropolitan pursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 627.736(11), which is a condition precedent to filing suit for any bill that is neither reduced, nor denied. As a result, Plaintiff must first serve a demand letter on Metropolitan before requesting leave to amend her Statement of Claim to include the bill for services rendered to her at Southwest Florida Neurodiagnostics.
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