2010

35 Fla. L. Weekly D1894a
45 So. 3d 43

Insurance — Automobile collision — Market value of insured’s antique jeep, which was damaged beyond repair in collision — Evidence — Expert — Trial court erred in disregarding deposition testimony of one of insured’s experts because he was not licensed or trained as a professional appraiser — An expert is a person who is qualified in a subject matter by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, and witness qualified as an expert based on knowledge he obtained from occupation notwithstanding his lack of licensure or professional training — Trial court erred in disregarding deposition testimony of insured’s other expert, who was a professional appraiser, on ground that he relied upon hearsay in arriving at his opinion — An expert may rely upon hearsay in arriving at an opinion, provided the hearsay is of the type reasonably relied upon by experts in the field

35 Fla. L. Weekly D419a
28 So. 3d 943

Insurance — Automobile — Coverage — Payment of overdue premium before cancellation date of policy — Coverage was provided under policy where insurer’s bank received insured’s electronic payment file before cancellation date, although there was a delay in deposit of payment into insurer’s bank account due to processing delays by insurer’s bank

35 Fla. L. Weekly D1690a
41 So. 3d 378

Insurance — Automobile — Coverage — Cancellation of policy — Error to find that insurer’s post-accident deposit of plaintiff’s past-due premium reinstated policy, even though insurer promptly refunded the premium to plaintiff — Facts do not establish estoppel or waiver of right to cancel policy

35 Fla. L. Weekly D1866d
42 So. 3d 890

Attorney’s fees — Proposal for settlement — Trial court properly found that proposal for settlement was ambiguous and could not support award of attorney’s fees under offer of judgment statute — Where plaintiff filed two-count action against insurance company containing a personal injury protection claim and a count seeking uninsured motorist benefits, company hired one law firm to defend the PIP claim and a different attorney to defend the UM claim, a proposal for settlement filed by the attorney defending the UM claim, which provided for plaintiff to dismiss defendant from all claims, causes of action, and damages arising from incident giving rise to lawsuit was ambiguous — The proposal contained a latent ambiguity because it was ambiguous as to whether the offer covered just the UM claim or both the UM and PIP claims

35 Fla. L. Weekly D2869a
50 So. 3d 721

Attorney’s fees — Torts — Civil theft — Claim lacking substantial factual or legal support — Voluntary dismissal — Personal injury protection insurer’s action against medical providers seeking damages under various tort theories, including civil theft — Where, as in instant case, a plaintiff chooses to voluntarily dismiss suit at a point when no record evidence supports factual or legal basis for its civil theft claim, a defendant is entitled to recover attorney’s fees and costs expended in challenging the action — Error to deny defendants’ motion for fees and costs pursuant to section 772.11 — Insurance — Personal injury protection — No error in denying fees under chapter 627

35 Fla. L. Weekly D892a
35 So. 3d 944

Insurance — Personal injury protection — Trial court properly entered summary judgment for insurer in insured’s action to recover benefits for medical expenses and lost wages on the ground that insured committed fraud — Insured’s fraud related to claim for lost wages voided all coverage, including claim for medical expenses — Attorney’s fees — Trial court abused discretion in denying award of attorney’s fees to insurer under offer of judgment statute where there was no evidence that offer was not made in good faith

35 Fla. L. Weekly D2149a
44 So. 3d 1191

Insurance — Attorney’s fees — Insured prevailing in action against insurer — Insolvent insurers — Florida Insurance Guaranty Fund — Attorney’s fee award imposed pursuant to section 627.428 is not a “covered claim” under Florida Insurance Guaranty Association Act when such fees are not within the insurance policy’s coverage provisions — Fact that section 627.428 is an implicit part of an insurance policy does not mean that insured’s claim against the insurer for fees and costs is part of policy’s “coverage,” and parties did not point to any language in the insurance policy at issue that provided coverage for fees awarded under statute — Accordingly, FIGA was not liable to insured for fees incurred in litigation with insolvent insurer — Conflict certified

35 Fla. L. Weekly D364e
31 So. 3d 826

Insurance — Homeowners — Attorney’s fees — Error to enter summary judgment for insurer in insured’s action against insurer alleging that insurer had breached insurance contract by failing to pay the full amount necessary to repair hurricane damage to insured’s residence, where insurer paid appraisal award after suit had been filed, and there were disputed issues of material fact as to whether insured was forced to file suit to resolve dispute with insurer — Where insurer is aware of dispute before suit is filed and pays additional policy proceeds after suit is filed, payment of claim is functional equivalent of a confession of judgment — An insurer that is aware of a dispute with its insured cannot simply ignore the dispute, wait until the insured files suit to demand appraisal, pay any appraisal award, and then maintain that the payment does not constitute a confession of judgment — If insurer was not on notice of dispute before suit was filed, subsequent post-suit payment by insurer may not constitute a confession of judgment

35 Fla. L. Weekly D1348a
39 So. 3d 368

Attorney’s fees — Insurance — Consumer law — Section 627.428(1) authorizes award of attorney’s fees against a surety that has issued a motor vehicle dealer bond pursuant to section 320.27(1)

35 Fla. L. Weekly D2373b
50 So. 3d 628

Insurance — Homeowners — Hurricane damage to home — Attorney’s fees — Insurer’s post-suit payment of additional policy proceeds entitles insured to section 627.428 attorney’s fees where the insurer wrongfully caused its insured to resort to litigation in order to resolve a conflict with its insurer when it was within the company’s power to resolve it — Error to enter summary judgment for insurer in insured’s action against insurer where there were factual issues as to whether insured was forced to file suit to resolve claim under policy