Kelley Kronenberg Practice Partner Zachary Schiffman and Partner/Business Unit Leader Jake Huxtable secured dismissal with prejudice for First Protective Insurance Company d/b/a Frontline Insurance in St. Lucie County, eliminating exposure of approximately $40,000.00 plus attorney’s fees without any payment to the insureds. 

The case arose when the insureds filed a late-reported homeowners insurance claim for alleged wind damage to their property with a date of loss of October 17, 2022—the date Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida. The insurer acknowledged and investigated the claim in accordance with the policy terms and Florida law, ultimately denying coverage. The insureds then filed a breach of contract lawsuit. 

Zach and Jake immediately implemented a tactical and aggressive litigation strategy designed to expose weaknesses in the insureds’ case. Rather than proceeding defensively, they took control of the litigation through multiple offensive measures. 

First, they crafted strategic requests for admissions targeting fundamental elements of the insureds’ claim. Through carefully worded requests, they secured admissions from the insureds that they had never actually filed a Hurricane Ian claim with the insurer. This admission proved devastating to the insureds’ case, as it undermined the very foundation of their breach of contract claim regarding alleged Hurricane Ian damage. 

Second, they served a proposal for settlement, creating a cost-shifting mechanism under Florida’s proposal for settlement statute. This strategic move positioned the insurer to recover attorney’s fees and costs if the insureds rejected the proposal and failed to obtain a judgment at least 25% more favorable than the proposal amount. 

Third, they retained prominent experts in both engineering and meteorology. The engineering expert would evaluate whether any damage to the property was caused by wind from Hurricane Ian or resulted from other causes such as pre-existing conditions, wear and tear, or lack of maintenance. The meteorology expert would analyze wind speeds and conditions at the property location during Hurricane Ian to determine whether conditions existed that could have caused the claimed damage. 

Fourth, Zach and Jake conducted an aggressive deposition of one of the insureds. Through pointed questioning, they likely exposed inconsistencies in her testimony, lack of evidence supporting the claimed Hurricane Ian damage, and other weaknesses that would undermine the insureds’ ability to prove their case at trial. 

Fifth, they filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that the insureds could not establish the essential elements of their breach of contract claim. With the admissions that no Hurricane Ian claim had been filed, combined with expert opinions and deposition testimony, they likely demonstrated that no genuine issue of material fact existed regarding whether the insurer had breached the policy. 

Faced with this comprehensive defensive strategy—including damaging admissions, expert testimony contradicting their claims, unfavorable deposition testimony, an expired proposal for settlement creating fee exposure, and a pending summary judgment motion—the insureds chose to voluntarily dismiss their case with prejudice rather than proceed. 

The dismissal with prejudice means the insureds cannot refile the same claims, providing complete finality for the insurer. Most importantly, the insurer paid nothing to resolve the case, avoiding both the claimed damages and the substantial attorney’s fees the insureds had sought. 

This victory demonstrates the effectiveness of aggressive, multi-pronged litigation strategies in first-party property cases. For insurance carriers, this case shows that strategic requests for admissions can secure case-winning concessions, that retaining quality experts early creates leverage, and that combining multiple offensive tactics can force plaintiffs to abandon even seemingly viable claims when faced with the prospect of trial against a well-prepared defense. 

Learn more about the firm’s First-Party Property and Coverage Division; click here: https://kelleykronenberg.com/our-practices/first-party-insurance-defense-coverage-bad-faith/  

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