Who pays attorney fees if my insurer refuses to settle a valid claim and I have to personally defend or sue to enforce their insurance contract?

Florida law, under F.S. 627.428 has allowed for attorney fees to be awarded to an insured or a named beneficiary on a judgment against an insurer in favor of the insured (this basccially applies when you sue your own insurance company). The intent of this law is to prevent insurance companies from contesting valid claims and to reimburse successful insureds that have to resort to either personally defend or sue their insurance company to enforce the contract.

Considering that insurance companies’ only goal in mind is maximizing their “Bottom Line”, do not allow these insurance companies to deter you from pursuing your valid claim when it is within their power to resolve the claim. Contacting a knowledgeable Palm Beach County accident attorney prior to contacting your insurance company when you have been involved in an accident will level the playing field between you and these cut-throat insurance companies. The Supreme Court of Florida, in Pepper’s Steel & Alloys, Inc v. United States, 850 So.2d 462 (Fla. 2003), has even gone as far as to allow the payment of a settlement claim to serve as the equivalent of a confession of judgment or a verdict in favor of the insured triggering the payment of attorney fees. This means that if you file suit against your insurance company because the settlement they proposed was not fair to you and obtain a judgment against the insurer under a policy or contract executed by the insurer then you will be entitled to get your attorney’s fees paid by the insurer.

Insurance companies know when a claim is not represented by an attorney; they can play games with you and offer you a very low settlement amount. The awarding of attorney fees is only available to the contracting insured, the insureds estate, and parties who have been assigned the rights of coverage. Therefore, an injured third-party beneficiary does not have the ability to recover attorney fees in a suit against the insured for damages arising out of a car accident unless the contracting insured has assigned their rights to the third party beneficiary. This means that if you are hit by another vehicle and the insurance company of the person that caused injury to you refuses to settle a valid claim with you, you will not be entitled to attorney fees if you have to bring suit and obtain a judgment against the insurance company because you are merely a third party beneficiary of the insured’s contract. However, fee awards are available to insureds that were not the “contracting insureds.” Roberts v. Carter, 350 So.2d 78 (Fla. 1977).