Carl Bober and Paulette Fouts (Hollywood, FL) (Property) obtained a Defense Verdict on behalf of their client, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, in a first-party property breach of contract action related to a windstorm claim brought by Plaintiffs against their homeowners’ insurance carrier in a jury trial that took place in Broward County Circuit Court.
Plaintiffs brought a breach of contract action regarding a residential property insurance claim to their home related to a reported windstorm loss. Plaintiffs sought the replacement of their roof and payment for damages to the interior of their home. After an inspection by an independent adjuster, Citizens denied their claim due to exclusions in the policy of insurance for wear, tear and deterioration to the roof, as well as the lack of a peril-created opening at the property. Plaintiffs subsequently filed suit and provided Citizens with the report of an engineer who testified at trial that the damages he observed to the Plaintiffs’ roof were clearly caused by the winds experienced during the reported wind event and that due to the extensive nature of the physical loss the shingle roof had to be replaced, as well as a newer flat roof that had been installed in 2012. He also correlated the interior damage to leaks caused by the windstorm. For the defense, an expert engineer testified on behalf of Citizens that there was no wind damage to the Plaintiffs’ property caused by the reported windstorm, and that the leaks the homeowners experienced were due to significant ponding which caused long-term deterioration of the flat roof portion of the roofing system. He also used nine years of aerial photographs of the Plaintiffs’ property preceding the reported date of loss to show the jury the progression of the deterioration due to the ponding.
The jury found in favor of Citizens finding that the damage to the Plaintiffs’ property was due to wear, tear and deterioration. Defendant’s motion seeking the recovery of Citizens’ attorney’s fees and costs is pending.
Plaintiff’s demand during trial was $125,000.00 inclusive of attorney’s fees and costs.