Florida First District Court of Appeal Finds No Breach of Contract for Insurer After Actual Cash Value Payment in Hurricane Sally Damage Dispute

By Kelly M. Vogt

In Bailetti v. Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Co., No. 1D2024-1695 (Fla. 1st DCA Oct. 8, 2025), the homeowners submitted a claim to Universal Property and Casualty Insurance Company for Hurricane Sally’s damage to their Pensacola home in September 2020. Universal’s field adjuster estimated the damage, leading the insurer to pay $8,125.20 based on actual cash value after deductions for depreciation and the policy’s deductible. The plaintiffs’ public adjuster produced a much higher estimate, though it was not admitted at trial, and the plaintiffs filed suit in June 2021, alleging breach of contract for failure to pay the full loss amount.

At trial, evidence showed that as of the date of filing, the plaintiffs had not completed major repairs or provided any documentation of expenses incurred. Universal’s corporate representative testified that the company had fulfilled its payment obligations under the policy, which required payment of actual cash value followed by additional amounts as repairs were completed. The plaintiffs’ expert, who inspected the home two years later, produced a higher repair estimate, but this was created long after the lawsuit was filed and not shared with Universal until trial.

The trial court denied both sides’ motions for a directed verdict, submitting the breach question to the jury. The jury found no breach, concluding that Universal had paid in accordance with the policy. The First District Court of Appeal affirmed, holding that there was competent evidence supporting the jury’s verdict and that damages in a breach of contract case must be assessed as of the time of the alleged breach, not at trial.

The court emphasized that under Florida Statute §627.7011(3)(a), an insurer satisfies its initial duty by paying the actual cash value of the loss. Once payment is made, the burden shifts to the insured to show the payment was insufficient. Because the plaintiffs offered no contemporaneous evidence disputing Universal’s payment, no breach occurred.

The decision reinforces that in Florida property insurance cases, breach and damages are fixed at the time suit is filed, not at trial. Insureds must present timely, contemporaneous evidence that an insurer’s actual cash value payment was insufficient to establish breach. Later-developed repair estimates or post-suit evidence cannot retroactively create a breach where none existed when the claim was paid.