Colodny Fass Litigators Successfully Thwart Statewide Florida Class Action Threatening Insurer’s Option to Repair

Colodny Fass litigators Amy L. Koltnow and Maria Elena Abate successfully thwarted a statewide Florida putative class action challenging a property carrier’s option to repair damaged property.  

If successful, the lawsuit threatened to impact the way many Florida insurers resolve claims.  The proposed class representative insured suffered a covered loss, but refused to allow the insurer to repair the damaged property. The insurer then denied the claim based on the insured’s material breach of the policy.  The insured sued, seeking a declaratory judgment finding the policy provision that allowed the insurer the option to repair property—instead of paying monetary damages for the loss—violated Florida’s claims administration statute which requires an insurer “pay or deny” a claim within 90 days.  The plaintiff argued the “option to repair” provision conflicted with the statute and, therefore, rendered the provision “null and void.”  

Based on the strength of the legal arguments raised by the Colodny Fass team, the plaintiff agreed to resolve his individual claim, forgo pursuit of the class action and dismiss the entire action with prejudice. 

Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Ms. Koltnow (akoltnow@colodnyfass.com) or Ms. Abate (mabate@colodnyfass.com) at (954) 492-4010.

Click HERE to access the June 2015 edition of Florida Insurance Matters, a monthly newsletter by the Colodny Fass Insurance Litigation Division.