SANDRA MALU, APPELLANT,
v.
SECURITY NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEE
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Appellant sought personal injury protection (PIP) insurance benefits for transportation costs to obtain medical treatment at 34.5 cents per mile, claiming this rate was insufficient. The court affirmed dismissal of the class action, holding that the PIP statute does not cover auto transportation expenses to obtain medical treatment, despite covering ambulance transportation.
The PIP statute does not include automobile transportation expenses for obtaining medical treatment. The statute specifically authorizes only ambulance transportation, and under the principle of expressio unius est exclusio alterius, the mention of ambulance transportation implies exclusion of other transportation methods.
[1] The mention of one type of transportation in a statute implies the exclusion of other types of transportation.
[2] Personal injury protection benefits under Florida Statutes section 627.736(1)(a) do not include the cost of automobile transportation to obtain medical treatment.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Eighty percent of all reasonable expenses for medically necessary medical, surgical, X-ray, dental, and rehabilitative services, including prosthetic devices, and medically necessary ambulance, hospital, and nursing services.”
The statutory language of section 627.736(l)(a) showing that the statute specifically authorizes ambulance transportation but does not mention other forms of transportation.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant received PIP benefits that included a transportation allowance of 34.5 cents per mile for driving to obtain medical treatment. She filed a c…
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KLEIN, J.
Appellant received personal injury protection benefits which included transportation costs for obtaining medical treatment at the rate of 34.5 cents a mile. She claims in this class action that this amount is insufficient to compensate her for the cost of driving her car to obtain medical treatment. We affirm the dismissal for failure to state a cause of action.
The applicable provision of our PIP statute, section 627.736(l)(a), Florida Statutes (2001), includes as medical benefits:
Eighty percent of all reasonable expenses for medically necessary medical, surgical, X-ray, dental, and rehabilitative services, including prosthetic devices, and medically necessary ambulance, hospital, and nursing services.
As is apparent, the statute does not provide for the cost of driving to obtain medical treatment, although it does specifically authorize transport by ambulance.
In Hunter v. Allstate Insurance Co., 498 So. 2d 514 (Fla. 5th DCA 1986), the court held that “reasonable expenses” for medical services under the PIP statute included the cost of auto transportation. The court based its reasoning on the fact that the workers’ compensation statute, section 440.13(5), Florida Statutes (1985), included the “reasonable actual cost of transportation to and from the doctor’s office, hospital or other place of treatment.” The court also noted that even before the workers’ compensation statute included transportation expenses, our supreme court had interpreted that statute to include reasonable travel expenses. Mobley v. Jack & Son Plumbing, 170 So. 2d 41 (Fla.1964).
The trial court, which was bound to follow Hunter as the only authority on point, Pardo v. State, 596 So. 2d 665 (Fla.1992), did not consider whether the PIP statute included transportation costs. Rather the court relied on the fact that the workers’ compensation statute cited by the Hunter court presumed that the actual cost of transportation by automobile would be that allowed state employees for official travel. The court held that this complaint did not state a cause of action because the State of Florida presently reimburses 29 cents a mile to employees traveling by automobile, and 34.5 cents was therefore sufficient as a matter of law.
Appellant argues that, because this was before the court on a motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action, the trial court was not authorized to consider any facts which are extraneous to the complaint. Fish v. Post of Amvets No. 85, 560 So. 2d 337 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990); Lewis v. Barnett Bank of S. Fla., 604 So. 2d 937 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). We agree; however, we are still under a duty to affirm if an alternative theory would support affirmance. Applegate v. Barnett Bank of Tallahassee, 377 So. 2d 1150 (Fla.1979). We conclude that auto transportation expenses are not payable.
Our reasoning is based on the fact that the legislature specifically included transportation by ambulance, but did not mention any other type of transportation in the PIP statute. The mention of one type of transportation implies the exclusion of other types. Moonlit Waters Apartments, Inc. v. Cauley, 666 So. 2d 898, 900 (Fla.l996)(“Under the principle of statutory construction, expressio unius est exelu-sio alteráis, the mention of one thing implies the exclusion of another.”).
Our conclusion is supported by the fact that when the legislature has intended to provide for auto transportation expenses to obtain medical treatment, it has specifically made such expenses payable. In addition to so providing in our worker’s compensation statute, Hunter, it also did so in our statutes providing benefits for birth-related neurological injuries, section 766.31(l)(a), Florida Statutes.1
We therefore conclude that the PIP statute does not include the transportation expenses claimed in this case. We affirm and certify conflict with Hunter. GROSS and TAYLOR, JJ., concur. . The legislature specifically added transportation costs to our workers’ compensation statute, section 440.13(5), in 1977. Ch. 77-290, § 3, Laws of Florida. It later deleted them when it amended Chapter 440 in 1993, Ch. 93-415, § 17, Laws of Fla. In Sam’s Club v. Bair, 678 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 1st DCA 1996), the court held that even though transportation benefits were deleted they are still payable based on Mobley.
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Malu v. Sec. Nat'l Ins. Co., 898 So. 2d 69 (Fla. 2005)…PER CURIAM. We have for review the consolidated cases of Malu v. Security National Insurance Co., 848 So. 2d 373 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), and Padilla v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., 870 So. 2d 827 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003), in which the Fourth and Third District Courts of Appeal certified conflict with the decision of the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Hunter v. Alls…1 / 2
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Padilla v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. & Urban Ins. Co. of Pa., 870 So. 2d 827 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)…832 So. 2d at 920. This appeal was stayed pending the disposition of the First District case. We have now considered the positions of the various parties, as well as the recent decision of the Fourth District in Malu v. Security National Ins. Co., 848 So. 2d 373 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003) holding that automobile transportation expenses such as those sought here are not included in the PIP statute and certifying conflict with Hunter. In Malu, the court stated: Our reasoning is based on the fact that the legislatur…
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Gaetan v. GEICO Indem. Co., 854 So. 2d 214 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See Malu v. Security Nat’l Ins. Co., 848 So. 2d 373, 2003 WL 21180173 (Fla. 4th DCA May 21, 2003); Dade County Police Benev. Ass’n, Inc. v. Metropolitan Dade County, 452 So. 2d 6 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984).…
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Pitcher v. Schneider (Fla. 5th DCA 2018)
- Albert v. Applegate et ux., 377 So. 2d 1150 (Fla. 1979)
- Pardo v. State, 596 So. 2d 665 (Fla. 1992)
- Moonlit Waters Apts., Inc. v. Cauley, 666 So. 2d 898 (Fla. 1996)
- Bragdon v. Gen. Spray Co. OF S. Fla. & Iowa Nat'l Mut. Ins. Co. & Fla. Indus. Comm'n, 170 So. 2d 41 (Fla. 1964)
- Lewis v. Barnett Bank OF S. Fla., N.A., 604 So. 2d 937 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992)
- Hunter v. Allstate Ins. Co., 498 So. 2d 514 (Fla. 5th DCA 1986)
- Sam's Club & Claims Mgmt., Inc. v. Bair, 678 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 1st DCA 1996)
- P.P. Fish and Irene Fish v. Post OF Amvets # 85, 560 So. 2d 337 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990)