Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal Reverses Judgment for Insured After Trial Court Declines to Apply Hurricane Deductible Post-Verdict to Offset Jury Verdict
On March 27, 2024, in Citizens Property Insurance Corporation v. Marie Avril and Clifford Romain, No. 4D2022-0360, the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed a $1,000 final judgment entered in favor of the insureds in a Hurricane Irma damages case, ruling that the trial court should have applied a hurricane deductible post-verdict to offset the jury’s determination of damages.
An insurer issued a homeowners’ policy containing a $2,900 hurricane deductible to the insureds for a one-year term beginning in July 2017. After the insureds’ house was damaged by Hurricane Irma in September 2017, the insureds sued the insurer for breach of contract, alleging that it did not pay them all the damages owed under the policy.
The insurer argued that, because the company was entitled to credit for the $2,900 hurricane deductible, the final judgment should not be entered for the insureds. The trial court rejected this argument, entered judgment for the insureds for $1,000, and later denied the insurer’s motion to “alter or amend the Final Judgment to include a credit for the Hurricane Deductible.”
The insurer appealed the judgment, and the Fourth DCA ruled that the trial court erred by failing to apply the hurricane deductible post-verdict, as the jury was never tasked with determining its applicability.
The Fourth DCA accordingly reversed the final judgment and remanded the case to the circuit court for the entry of a final judgment in favor of the insurer.
Kelly M. Vogt