SAFECO INSURANCE COMPANY OF AMERICA, A FOREIGN INSURANCE CORPORATION LICENSED TO DO BUSINESS IN FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
IRMINA DOMINGUEZ ALBRIZA AND SILVINO ALBRIZA, HER HUSBAND, RAMON ACOSTA, RAMON ACOSTA AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF MARGARITA ACOSTA, AND OFELIA SOTA, APPELLEES

Fla. 4th DCA | 1978-12-27
Nos. 76-1595, 76-1596, 76-1617 and 76-1618
ANSTEAD and LETTS, JJ., and HASTINGS, ALCEE L., Associate Judge, concur.
365 So. 2d 804 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fourth District (1978) Positive Treatment
Cited by 8 cases

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Synopsis

This case involves an appeal by Safeco Insurance Company from a judgment holding it liable for judgments against its insured that exceeded the policy limits. The appellate court affirmed the judgment holding Safeco liable for the excess but reversed the award of attorney's fees to the claimants.


Holding

1. The trial court's jury instruction was substantially the same as Safeco's requested instruction and was not in error. 2. The trial court did not err in excluding the letter as the relevant facts were established by other evidence. 3. The trial court erred in awarding attorney's fees to the claimants' attorneys, as they were third parties without a valid assignment.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court's jury instruction is not erroneous if it is substantially the same as the instruction requested by a party, even if not in the exact language.

[2] A party who requests and receives a jury instruction on a particular legal standard cannot later argue that a different standard should have been applied.

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Key Quotes

“In order for Safeco Insurance Company to be liable for the excess amount of the judgments against its insured, the Albri-zas, Safeco Insurance Company must have been given an opportunity by the injured parties to settle all claims within the limits of its insured’s policy.”

Safeco's requested jury instruction.

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Facts & Procedural History

Safeco's insureds, the Albrizas, were involved in an accident, leading to personal injury claims. Safeco filed a declaratory judgment action, and the …

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

This is an appeal by a liability insurance carrier from a judgment holding it liable for judgments against its insured which were in excess of the policy limits.

The Albrizas, insured by Safeco, were involved in an automobile accident, which resulted in personal injury claims by claimants, Sotas and Acostas. Safeco then filed a declaratory judgment action to determine its liability. The Albrizas counterclaimed to recover the amount of the judgments entered against them. The Sotas and Acos-tas filed a separate action against Safeco to collect the judgments secured against the Albrizas. These actions were tried together and resulted in a judgment against Safeco for the full amounts of the judgments originally awarded the claimants against Safe-co’s insureds, the Albrizas. The Sotas and Acostas were also awarded attorneys’ fees for prosecution of the action against Safeco. The Albrizas were awarded attorney’s fees also, and their claim against Safeco was settled during the pendency of this appeal.

Initially, Safeco claims error in the trial court’s failure to give the following requested instruction:

In order for Safeco Insurance Company to be liable for the excess amount of the judgments against its insured, the Albri-zas, Safeco Insurance Company must have been given an opportunity by the injured parties to settle all claims within the limits of its insured’s policy.

Instead, the trial court gave this instruction:

In order for Safeco to be guilty of bad faith, there must have been an opportunity for settlement within the policy limits. While we agree there is some difference between-the two instructions, we conclude that the instruction given was substantially the same as the instruction requested and we find no error in the failure of the trial court to instruct the jury in the exact language requested by Safeco. Indeed, at trial, contrary to Safeco’s argument on appeal, Safeco’s counsel substantially agreed to the trial court’s revision of the instruction and stated:
We. would request it be given as you amended it, in order for Safeco Insurance Company to be guilty of bad faith, Safeco Insurance Company must have been given an opportunity by the injured parties to settle all claims within the limits of its insured policy. You might want to delete “by injured parties” but they must have been given an opportunity to settle all claims within the limits of its insurance policy.

Safeco also asserts that an “offer” to settle, rather than an “opportunity” is required before liability could be imposed upon it for an excess judgment. However, since Safe-co requested and received an instruction on “opportunity”, rather than “offer”, we need not decide that issue. The instruction given was in substantial accord with appellant’s request, and we find no error therein.

Secondly, we find no error in the failure of the trial court to admit into evidence a letter from claimants’ original personal attorney to claimants’ own insurance carrier’s attorney, in regard to representation of the claimants and the carrier’s sub-rogation rights following an uninsured motorist recovery. Safeco asserts that the letter would establish the fact that claimants were represented by other counsel at a time when an alleged settlement offer was made. However, the identities of counsel and dates of representation were established by other evidence. In addition, Safeco claims the letter would show that claimants would not themselves recover anything if Safeco had paid its policy limits to the claimants’ uninsured motorist carrier. That fact too was established by other evidence. All of these matters were in evidence and argued to the jury.

Finally, Safeco asserts that the trial court erred in awarding attorneys’ fees to the claimants’ attorneys. The Supreme Court has held in Roberts v. Carter, 350 So. 2d 78 (Fla.1977):

To eliminate any remaining confusion, we now reaffirm Wilder [Wilder v. Wright, 278 So. 2d 1 (Fla.1973)] and hold that an award of attorney’s fees under Section 627.428(1) is available only to the contracting insured, the insured’s estate, specifically named policy beneficiaries, and third parties who claim policy coverage by assignment from the insured. (Id. at 79)

The claimants here are third parties without . a valid assignment and hence, under Roberts, are not entitled to attorneys’ fees.

Accordingly, the judgment for attorneys’ fees awarded to counsel for the Acostas and Sotas is reversed; and the judgment in all other respects is affirmed.

AFFIRMED IN PART AND REVERSED IN PART.

ANSTEAD and LETTS, JJ., and HASTINGS, ALCEE L., Associate Judge, concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Baker v. Baker, 394 So. 2d 465 (Fla. 4th DCA 1981)
    …ions, but we have not considered these matters for trial counsel either failed to object, or in one instance, expressly acquiesced in the instruction. Thus, appellate review of these matters is foreclosed. Safeco Insurance Co. of America v. Albriza, 365 So. 2d 804 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978); Schwab v. Tolley, 345 So. 2d 747 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977). Our approach to this case has been guided by the principle set forth in Miller v. Miller, 149 Fla. 722, 7 So. 2d 9 (Fla.1942), Underwood v. Underwood, 64 So. 2d 281 (Fla.1953…
  • E. S.S. Lines, Inc. v. Lamy Martial, 380 So. 2d 1070 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)
    …ht of the record, we see that it was merely cumulative of other evidence introduced by the defense at trial. Little v. Bankers National Life Insurance Company, 369 So. 2d 637 (Fla.3d DCA 1979); Safeco Insurance Company of America v. [*1072] Albriza, 365 So. 2d 804 (Fla.4th DCA 1978); Walker v. City of Miami, 337 So. 2d 1002 (Fla.3d DCA 1976); Hughes v. Canal Insurance Company, 308 So. 2d 552 (Fla.3d DCA 1975). Eastern Steamship Lines and Ares Shipping have also raised the point that their motion for mistrial…
  • Allstate Ins. Co. v. Regar, 942 So. 2d 969 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)
    …a similar vein, we are not persuaded by Allstate’s reliance on cases holding that third parties who bring common law bad faith suits without/an assignment are not entitled to fees under section 627.428. See, e.g., Safeco Ins. Co. of Am. v. Albriza, 365 So. 2d 804, 806 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978). Obviously a third party in such cases is not a “named or omnibus insured or the named beneficiary,” and without an assignment, the third party does not stand in the shoes of the insured. We are not unsympathetic to Allstat…

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