National Water Restoration a/a/o Marie St. Fort v. Citizens Property Insurance Corporation

John Daly and Michael Ferral (Miami, FL) (First-Party Property) obtained a Defense Verdict following a jury trial in Miami, FL in the case of National Water Restoration a/a/o Marie St. Fort v. Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. The Plaintiff in the case, National Water Restoration, performed water dryout services for a homeowner insured by Citizens Property Insurance Corporation in 2016. National Water Restoration charged Citizens $4,572.26 for its services. A dispute arose whether the services performed by National Water Restoration were reasonably priced and whether those services were necessary to protect the homeowner’s property from additional damage. After its investigation, Citizens determined that the reasonable cost for the necessary services was $1,418.88, which it paid to the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff then sued over the difference between its invoice and the amount Citizens paid. For the defense, Citizens’ industry expert, Raul Paredes, testified that Citizens had overvalued and overpaid on the claim. Ultimately, the jury found in favor of Citizens, finding that $1,418.88 was the reasonable cost for the services it performed. Our motion to seek the recovery of Citizens’ taxable costs is pending.