Florida Appellate Court Evaluates “Tear Out” Coverage in Homeowner’s Insurance Dispute Over Plumbing Repairs
By Kelly M. Vogt
In the case of State Farm Fla. Ins. Co. v. Feltes, Case No. 6D2023-0991, 2024 Fla. App. LEXIS 9247 (Fla. 6th DCA Nov. 27, 2024), the Sixth District Court of Appeal addressed a dispute over tear out insurance coverage for plumbing-related damages. In 2018, Adele Feltes experienced kitchen sink and bathroom toilet overflows, prompting her to hire a plumber. The plumber discovered deterioration in the home’s original cast iron drain line, necessitating extensive repairs involving the removal of portions of the floor and foundation. Feltes, holding a homeowner’s policy with State Farm, reported the issue, but State Farm denied coverage for the cost of accessing the cast iron drain line, commonly referred to as “tear out” coverage. Subsequently, Feltes filed a lawsuit against State Farm, leading to a trial where the jury awarded her nearly $60,000 in tear out costs. On appeal, State Farm contended that the repeated seepage or leakage exclusion of its policy bars Feltes’s claim. The appellate court agreed, finding that the resulting damage to the structural fill was excluded from coverage under the policy, reasoning that even if the leak was “periodic,” the subject policy does not require a “steady drip, just a repeated one” to fall within the exclusion. Accordingly, the Court determined Feltes was not entitled to coverage for the cost of accessing the leaking drain line beneath her home’s foundation.
Kelly M. Vogt