Generali-U.S. Branch v. Springel
Travel insurer Generali denied trip-cancellation coverage for a cruise the insureds canceled after the insured's spinal fusion surgery, arguing the 'Sickness' commenced before coverage, was foreseeable, and was a pre-existing condition. After a non-jury trial, the county court found for the insureds, and the Fourth District affirmed, holding competent substantial evidence supported findings that the disabling sickness (the urgent need for surgery and post-operative recovery) first commenced during coverage on the date the neurosurgeon advised immediate surgery, that it was unforeseeable, and that the exclusion did not apply because the prior back diagnoses were a separate and distinct condition.
Key facts
- Travel insurer Generali-U.S. Branch denied trip-cancellation coverage for a cruise when insureds Springel canceled after one insured underwent emergency spinal fusion surgery, claiming the sickness commenced before coverage, was foreseeable, and fell within the pre-existing condition exclusion.
- The county court conducted a non-jury trial and found for the insureds, determining that the disabling sickness first commenced during the coverage period when the neurosurgeon advised immediate surgery was necessary, that the condition was unforeseeable, and that prior back diagnoses constituted a separate and distinct condition not subject to the pre-existing condition exclusion.
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Why it matters
A rare published Florida decision construing travel-insurance trip-cancellation coverage, useful to first-party coverage counsel on when a 'Sickness' first commences, how the 'separate and distinct condition' analysis… — full analysis with a trial
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