sharminlaw

Florida 3rd Party Bad Faith and the Out-of -State Insurer

What if a driver causes injury to a Florida resident and the insurer is an out-of-state insurance company?  Does 3rd party bad faith still apply?  In Government Employees Insurance Company v. A.C. Grounds, 311, So 2d. 164, the Court held that while usually the law of the state where the contract was made would apply, a bad faith case is more like a tort action stemming from a contract case.

An excess judgment action bears some contract aspects, but it is strictly speaking not one and therefore, Florida law would apply to the the out-of-state insurance contract in a 3rd party bad faith case.  The statute of limitations for a bad faith claim is four years as a tort as opposed to 5 years as a contract.  Also keep in mind, that wrd party bad faith claims are not limited to auto accidents but can be applied to other personal injuries such as slip and falls and traumatic brain injuries.