Florida Courts Clarify Role of Appraisal in Coverage Claim Disputes By Kimberly K. Berman | December 10, 2020
For first party property claims, lengthy and costly litigation is not always the only mechanism for resolving a dispute. Most homeowner’s policies include detailed terms and conditions for parties to undergo appraisal when there is a dispute over the amount of loss.
Appraisal is mandatory when properly demanded by an insured or the insurer. Yet, parties in Florida are often confused as to whether all coverage issues need to be resolved by a trial court before compelling appraisal or if they can proceed straight to appraisal while preserving any challenges to coverage. Part of this confusion may stem from Florida appellate courts’ competing approaches on whether a trial court must always resolve coverage issues before compelling appraisal where the insurer denies coverage.