Valer v. Citizens Property Insurance Corp.
Citizens denied a homeowner's water-damage claim under the policy's constant/repeated seepage exclusion and won summary judgment after the trial court denied the insured's motion to continue the hearing pending depositions of the insured and Citizens' engineering expert. The Third DCA reversed, holding the continuance denial was an abuse of discretion where key depositions were noticed and pending and no prejudice was shown, and that the trial court misallocated the burden of proof by requiring the insured to disprove an exclusion under an all-risk policy.
Key facts
- Homeowner Valer sought coverage under a Citizens Property Insurance Corp. all-risk homeowners policy for water damage to the property.
- Citizens denied the claim based on the policy's constant/repeated seepage exclusion; Citizens moved for summary judgment.
- +2 more key facts with a free trial
Why it matters
Useful ammunition for first-party property plaintiffs facing summary judgment on exclusion-based defenses: it reaffirms that an insurer that has itself noticed depositions cannot obtain summary judgment before that… — full analysis with a trial
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