ORKIN EXTERMINATING COMPANY, INC., A FOREIGN CORPORATION, APPELLANT,
v.
ALICE CULPEPPER, APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 1979-01-16
No. 77-1961
Before HENDRY and KEHOE, JJ., and PIERCE, WILLIAM C. (Ret.), Associate Judge.
367 So. 2d 1026 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1979) Positive Treatment
Cited by 6 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

Orkin Exterminating appeals a judgment for negligence after the plaintiff's home was burglarized while Orkin had tented it for fumigation. The court affirmed, holding that criminal acts of third parties do not insulate a defendant from negligence liability when the criminal act was foreseeable based on prior similar incidents.


Holding

The court held that Orkin was negligent in failing to warn Culpepper of previous break-in incidents and in failing to provide adequate security, because the criminal act was foreseeable based on knowledge of prior burglaries of other fumigated homes, making the intervening criminal act insufficient to insulate Orkin from liability.


Headnotes

[1] A fumigation company may be found negligent for failing to warn a customer of prior break-ins at other tented homes and for failing to provide adequate security.

[2] The foreseeability of a criminal act is a factual question that determines whether the act constitutes an intervening cause insulating a negligent party from liability.

Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Key Quotes

“the factual question of foreseeability would control the issue of whether a criminal act amounts to an intervening cause, insulating a negligent party from liability”

Establishes the legal test for whether third-party criminal acts shield a defendant from negligence liability

Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Facts & Procedural History

Orkin and Culpepper entered into a fumigation contract in February 1975. On August 5, 1975, Orkin tented Culpepper's home and inserted lethal gas to f…

The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.


Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

Appellant/defendant appeals the following final judgment rendered in favor of ap'pellee/plaintiff:

“This action was tried before the Court on July 13, 1977. The Plaintiff was present and represented by counsel, and the Defendant Corporation was present and represented by counsel. Upon the evidence adduced and exhibits admitted I find as follows:
“1. That the Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter and over the person of the Defendant.

“2. That on February 19, 1975 the Plaintiff and the Defendant entered into a Fumigation Agreement Contract whereby the Defendant would fumigate the Plaintiff’s residence located at 1991 N.W. 81st Terrace, in Miami, Florida.

“3. That on or about August 5, 1975 the Plaintiff relinquished control over her property to the Defendants at which time the Defendants placed a tent over the Plaintiff’s property and inserted a lethal gas into the tent.

“4. That during the time that the tent was placed over the Plaintiff’s home the Plaintiff was unable to go inside her home.

“5. That prior to the tenting the Defendants gave the Plaintiff a written set of instructions with which the Plaintiff complied and which required her to either unlock all exterior doors or to make the keys available.

“6. That while the Plaintiff’s home was covered by the Defendant’s tent this home was broken into by persons unknown and certain items of property belonging to the Plaintiff were taken.

“7. That the fair market value of this property was $450.00.

“8. That prior to the tenting of the Plaintiff’s home by the Defendants, other homes which have been tented by the Defendants have been broken into by persons unknown.

“9. That the Defendants failed to warn the Plaintiff of these other breaking-in incidents prior to the tenting of her home on August 6, 1975.

“10. That the Defendants were negligent in failing to provide adequate security for the Plaintiff’s home while it was being tented and in failure to warn her of the previous incidents involved in break-ins.

“ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that final judgment is hereby entered in favor of the Plaintiff, Alice Culpepper, and against the Defendant, Orkin Exterminating Company, Inc., and that the Plaintiff, Alice Culpepper, recover from the Defendant, Orkin Exterminating Company, Inc., the sum of $450.00; and it is further

“ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that the Plaintiff, Alice Culpepper shall have and recover her costs from the Defendant, Orkin Exterminating Company, Inc., to be hereinafter taxed on Motion and Notice at a later date.

“DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Miami, Dade County, Florida this 19th day of August, 1977.”

Needless to say, the above final judgment arrives in this court clothed with a presumption of correctness, with the burden upon appellant to make error clearly appear. Federated Department Stores, Inc. v. Planes, 305 So. 2d 248 (Fla. 3d DCA 1974). While appellant persuasively argues that the relationship of bailee-bailor was not created by the contracting parties, we note that appellee’s complaint travelled upon an alternate cause of action based upon negligence. It was this alternate theory that the trial judge relied upon in rendering the final judgment set forth above.

In addressing itself to appellant’s negligence cause of action, appellee contends that the criminal act of a third party (thief) is an intervening and/or superseding cause, absolving it of any liability in a negligence action. In addressing itself to this same point, our Supreme Court, in Vining v. Avis Rent-A-Car Systems, Inc., 354 So. 2d 54 (Fla.1977), opined that the factual question of foreseeability would control the issue of whether a criminal act amounts to an intervening cause, insulating a negligent party from liability. In paragraph nine of the above judgment, the trier of fact, in this case, the learned trial judge, impliedly found that, based upon knowledge of prior burglaries of the kind suffered by appellee, such an incident should have been foreseeable to appellant. Accordingly, it was not erroneous for the judge to conclude that appellant was negligent in both failing to warn appellee of previous break-ins and/or providing for adequate security.

All points raised by appellant having been considered by this court and, no error having been clearly shown, the final judgment is therefore affirmed.

Affirmed.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Agustin Fernandez v. Miami Jai-Alai, Inc., 386 So. 2d 4 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)
    …Car Systems, Inc., 354 So. 2d 54 (Fla.1977); Nicholas v. Miami Burglar Alarm Company, Inc., 339 So. 2d 175 (Fla.1976); Gulfstar, Inc. v. Advance Mortgage Corporation, 376 So. 2d 243 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979); Orkin Exterminating Company, Inc. v. Culpepper, 367 So. 2d 1026 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979); Angell v. F. Avanzini Lumber Company, 363 So. 2d 571 (Fla. 2d DCA 1978). Fernandez’s complaint alleged the requisite foreseeability.1 The danger which the defendants allegedly could foresee is the danger of robbery of a patron,…
  • Carmelo Rodriguez and Carmen Rodriguez v. Philip, 413 So. 2d 441 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982)
    …nal act was foreseeable. Indeed, the unrebutted testimony of Mr. Rodriguez was that he knew of no prior burglaries in the area and had never heard of anyone breaking in under a fumigation tent. Compare Orkin Exterminating Company, Inc. v. Culpepper, 367 So. 2d 1026 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979). However, the parties concede (although the incomplete record before us does not so reflect) that at the conclusion of the case and immediately prior to finding for the tenants, the trial court supplied the missing proof by, sua s…
  • …precautions and damages resulting from a third party’s criminal acts. See Vining v. Avis Rent-A-Car Systems, 354 So. 2d 54 (Fla.1978); Nicholas v. Miami Burglar Alarm Co., Inc., 339 So. 2d 175 (Fla.1976); Orkin Exterminating Co., Inc. v. Culpepper, 367 So. 2d 1026 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979). Hartford argues that in light of the statutes requiring a guardian to post a bond and the nature of the fiduciary relationship between the guardian and ward, that Dolan Title knew or should have known of the temptation which exis…

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw