RESTORATION 1 CFL, LLC A/A/O ALEX TCHEKMEIAN, APPELLANT,
v.
ASI PREFERRED INSURANCE CORPORATION, APPELLEE.

Fla. 5th DCA | 2018-02-09
No. Case No. 5D17–755
Wallis, J., Orfinger, J., Torpy, J.
239 So. 3d 747 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (2018) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

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Synopsis

Florida appellate court reversed dismissal of breach of contract action, holding that an insurance policy clause requiring mortgagee consent to assignment of post-loss claim benefits violates Florida law and is unenforceable.


Holding

An insurance policy provision requiring mortgagee consent to assignment of post-loss claim benefits is invalid under Florida law.


Headnotes

[1] An insurance policy clause requiring mortgagee consent to assignment of post-loss claim benefits is unenforceable under Florida law.

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Key Quotes

“No assignment of claim benefits, regardless of whether made before loss or after loss, shall be valid without the written consent of all 'insureds', all additional insureds and all mortgagee(s) named in this policy.”

The insurance policy provision at issue that the court found invalid.

Facts & Procedural History

After suffering a covered loss under a homeowner's insurance policy, the insured assigned his claim benefits to Appellant in exchange for emergency wa…

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Opinion of the Court
WALLIS, J.

WALLIS, J.

Restoration 1 CFL, LLC ("Appellant"), a/a/o Alex Tchekmeian ("the insured"), appeals the trial court's dismissal of its breach of contract action against the insured's homeowner's insurance provider, ASI Preferred Insurance Corp. ("ASI"). After suffering a covered loss, the insured assigned his claim benefits to Appellant in exchange for its provision of emergency water cleanup services. Wells Fargo, the insured's mortgagee, did not consent to the assignment. Appellant then filed suit against ASI for unpaid or underpaid invoices, asserting standing pursuant to the assignment. ASI moved to dismiss, arguing the following provision in its insurance policy rendered the assignment invalid: "No assignment of claim benefits, regardless of whether made before loss or after loss, shall be valid without the written consent of all 'insureds', all additional insureds and all mortgagee(s) named in this policy." The trial court granted the motion to dismiss, stating, "[I]t is not unlawful to require the mortgagee's consent to an assignment of benefits."

We recently affirmed the Office of Insurance Regulation's disapproval of identical anti-assignment language in an insurance policy. Sec. First Ins. Co. v. Fla. Office of Ins. Regulation, 232 So.3d 1157, ----, 2017 WL 5907449 (Fla. 5th DCA Dec. 1, 2017). Because here, as in that case, the clause improperly restricts the assignment of post-loss claim benefits, contrary *748to Florida law, we reverse the dismissal of Appellant's action and remand for further proceedings. See id.

REVERSED and REMANDED.

ORFINGER and TORPY, JJ., concur.


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