You Restorations LLC Plaintiff vs. Citizens Property Insurance Corporation Defendant

  • Court: Florida State, Broward County, County Court
  • Case number: COINX22010678
  • Filed: Feb. 22, 2022
  • Judge: Mardi Levey Cohen
  • Case type: Civil – * SC Prop Ins Claim >$5,000 – $8,000

Parties Involved

  • Plaintiff: You Restorations LLC
  • Defendant: Citizens Property Insurance Corporation
    • Counsel for Defendant: Simons, Pamela Denise | Reynolds, Samantha | Stein-McCarthy, Nancy I. | Alperstein, Ian M
    • Expert Witnesses for Defendant: Ruben Lores |Raul Paredes

Verdict Information

  • Verdict date: April 4, 2024
  • Total damages awarded to the Plaintiff: $0.00

About the Case

Cause

The Plaintiff, You Restorations LLC, was a Florida Limited Liability Company. Defendant, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, was an authorized insurance carrier in Florida. The Plaintiff, You Restorations LLC, as an assignee of the insured, Rafael and Dorys Ricoveri (Assignor), filed a breach of insurance contract lawsuit against Defendant for damages.

Assignor had purchased a homeowner’s insurance policy from Defendant, covering the property at 1277 Spring Circle Drive, Coral Springs, FL 3307 (the Property). In return for premium payments, Defendant had issued an insurance policy benefiting Rafael and Dorys Ricoveri (the Policy). Plaintiff did not have a copy of the insurance policy, which was in Defendant’s possession and would be obtained via discovery.

At all relevant times, the Policy had provided coverage for direct physical losses to the property. On or about November 9, 2020, Assignor had suffered a loss due to covered perils under the Policy and had reported the damage to Defendant promptly. Plaintiff had provided mold remediation services to the insured, related to the loss, in exchange for an assignment of benefits. Assignor had agreed to direct billing to Citizens Property Insurance Corporation and had assigned rights under the insurance policy. Authorized parties had properly executed a written assignment of benefits to memorialize the agreement.

In response to Assignor’s claim, Defendant had acknowledged the loss, assigned an adjuster, and issued the claim number 001-00-276528. Defendant had conducted and completed an investigation of the loss. Plaintiff had submitted reasonably priced bills for the services rendered but had not received full payment from Defendant. Defendant had committed insurance breach by denying coverage and failing or refusing to pay all due benefits. All conditions precedent and post-loss obligations for obtaining payment under the Policy had been met, complied with, or waived, and Defendant had suffered no prejudice.

Injury

As a direct and proximate result of the Defendant’s conduct, Plaintiff had alleged suffered monetary damages. Defendant had not paid all the benefits owed to Plaintiff under the insurance Policy.

Damages

As a direct and proximate result of Defendant’s conduct, Plaintiff had retained the undersigned attorney to bring this action. Plaintiff had become entitled to a reasonable attorney’s fee pursuant to Florida Statute 627.7152. Therefore, Plaintiff, You Restorations LLC, had demanded judgment against Defendant, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, for damages, attorney’s fees, prejudgment interest, and costs. Plaintiff had also requested all other relief deemed just and proper by this Court and respectfully requested a jury trial.

Jury Verdict

On April 4, 2024, a Florida jury found that Plaintiff had failed to prove that the damages to Ricoveri property had likely ocurred on November 9, 2020 during the policy period. Thus, the court held that there was no insurance breach. The jury awarded no damages to the Plaintiff, ruling in favor of the Defendant. Consequently, on April 20, 2024, the court passed a final judgment upholding the verdict, and the Plaintiff was to recover no damages under the present insurance breach lawsuit.

Court Documents:

Complaint

Verdict