A Florida Supreme Court ruling means owners of property insurance policies dating to before July 1, 2021, can go straight to court without complying with a later-enacted pre-suit notice requirement, the Tampa Free Press reported.
Because the opinion was unanimous, it gives policyholders on older policies a clear victory in disputes over allegedly inadequate claim payments, including homeowner Rebecca Hughes' case against Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company.
Here's what to know
Hughes carried a policy running from April 24, 2019, through April 24, 2020, and the Supreme Court ultimately backed a Sixth District Court of Appeal decision that had restored her case.
Her fight with the insurer began with a water damage claim on May 29, 2019.
After Universal paid part of the claim, Hughes contended the amount was inadequate and requested more based on three contractor bids. She sued on Aug. 4, 2021, without first sending a pre-suit notice through the Florida Department of Financial Services.
Universal responded by seeking dismissal under section 627.70152 of the Florida Statutes, a provision that became effective July 1, 2021.
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It holds that a policyholder must provide written notice at least 10 business days before filing suit, giving the insurer time to review the claim or make an offer.
A case filed without that notice is subject to dismissal under the law.
More background
The dispute mattered beyond Hughes' claim because the Supreme Court used it to settle conflicting rulings from Florida's district courts of appeal.
One side of that split came in 2023, when the Fourth District Court of Appeal held in Cole v. Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Co. that the statute reached earlier policies because it referred to "all suits" arising under property insurance policies.
The justices disagreed with that interpretation.
Writing for the court, Chief Justice John Couriel found that the wording did not clearly show a legislative decision to extend the statute to older insurance contracts.
They likewise rejected the idea that silence about older policies could be treated as evidence that lawmakers intended for the statute to work retroactively.
The court also concluded that the notice requirement was more than a technical court procedure.
In the justices' view, it changed legal rights by delaying when an insured person could sue, creating safe harbors for insurers, and affecting how attorney fees could be recovered.
What's being done?
Statewide, the decision means the pre-suit notice rule cannot be used to stop lawsuits related to property policies executed before July 1, 2021.
Policies issued after that date, however, still must comply with the 10-business-day notice requirement.
By approving the Sixth District's ruling in Hughes' favor and disapproving the Fourth District's earlier Cole decision, the Supreme Court gave lower courts one rule to follow when older policies are involved.
That should reduce the chances that similar claims will be handled differently depending on where they are filed.
Justice Adam Tanenbaum also wrote separately, pointing to section 624.21, which provides that amendments to the insurance code apply prospectively unless the Legislature says otherwise.
In disputes over older policies, the policy date can determine whether a case proceeds or is dismissed on procedural grounds.
Ultimately, the ruling turned on whether lawmakers clearly said the 2021 notice rule should apply to older contracts.
"The fact that the Legislature used the phrase 'all suits' in this context does not transform this subsection into a clear command to apply section 627.70152 retroactively," Couriel wrote.
Where can I learn more?
Florida's property insurance battles don't stop with this ruling.
• Across Florida, premiums keep rising even after lawmakers promised insurance relief.
• After Hurricane Ian, a Florida family says insurance won't cover a collapsed seawall.
• Florida approved homeowners insurance cuts at four carriers covering 62,000 policies.
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