In the case of Alberta Ellison v. Randy Willoughby, Case Number 2D19-1961 (Fla. 2d DCA June 11, 2021), Florida’s Second DCA held that a tortfeasor does not get a setoff for bad faith on the part of the injured person’s insurance company. Facts of the...
In the case of Basner v. Bergdoll, Case Number 1D19-562 (Fla. 1st DCA October 23, 2019), Florida’s First DCA held that a handwritten modification to an insurance release was a counteroffer and that a settlement was not made. Facts This case arose out of a 2017 car...
In the case of Fleurimond Barthelemy v. Safeco Insurance Company of Illinois, Case Number 4D17-1254 and 4D17-1543 (Fla. 4th DCA October 24, 2018), Florida’s Fourth DCA held that an insurance company could not deny coverage for “failure to cooperate” when the insured...
In the case of GEICO Indemnity Company v. Ricardo Perez, Case Numbers 3D17-2317, 2407, and 2514 (Fla. 3rd DCA September 20, 2018), Florida’s Third DCA held that a $1.7 million jury verdict in a UM case needed retrial on the issue of whether the insured’s rejection of UM...
In the case of Suzanne Harvey v. GEICO General Insurance Company, Case Number SC17-85 (Fla. September 20, 2018) the Florida Supreme Court held that GEICO’s failure to comply with a request to take a statement of the insured was bad faith. The Underlying Liability Case In 2006,...
In the case of 21st Century Centennial Insurance Company v. Dwayne Walker, Case Number 4D17-2937 (Fla. 4th DCA August 29, 2018), Florida’s Fourth DCA held that the “preferable approach” to awarding attorney fees in a UM case is to wait until the plaintiff has...
The Tampa Bay Times reports that Ricky Melendez feels “betrayed” by GEICO, his own insurance company, after GEICO paid policy limits to the families of teenage boys who stole a Ford Explorer before crashing into him at over 100 mph. Melendez is quoted as saying that...
In GEICO v. Macedo (Case No.: SC16-935), the insurance company was ordered to pay the plaintiff’s attorney fees and costs after the insurance company chose to defend a car accident case through trial rather than settle. Facts Of The Case GEICO’s insured caused a car...
A total of $51,813.591 was awarded among six family members involved in a 2013 car accident in Marion County. They were struck from behind while at a red light at the intersection of SE Maricamp Road and 31st Street in Ocala, Florida when Nathan Pyles failed to stop. The...
In the case of Welford v. Liberty Insurance Corporation, No.: 3:15-cv-333/RV-CJK, 2016 WL 3360431 (N.D. Fla. June 2, 2016), the court considered the issue of whether an insurance company has an obligation to initiate settlement discussions or negotiations. In this case, a driver hit...
Florida Supreme Court holds that a confession of judgment does not prevent a plaintiff from obtaining a trial on damages in Adrian Fridman v. Safeco Insurance Company of Illinois, Case No: SC13-1607 (February 25, 2016). This puts an end to a practice discussed in GEICO v....
