Generally, in Florida, an injured person is not allowed to sue a liability insurance company but must instead sue the insured (the person who bought the policy of insurance). Based on the liability policy, the insurance company will generally the insured a lawyer and will pay any judgment entered against the insured in court. This law is called the non joinder statute, meaning you must sue the person or entity that injured you and can only join the insurance company after a judgment is entered that is not paid. A copy of the non-joinder statute is pasted below. So for example, if someone injured you in a car accident but they are insured by Insurance Company, you generally cannot sue State Farm if they do not make a settlement offer you are happy with. You must sue the driver/owner of the other car. Once you get a judgment against them, and if Insurance company would not pay the judgment, then you can sue the insurance company to collect your monies. Similarly, if you are injured on someone’s property, you generally in Florida must sue the property owner or occupier if you are unhappy with the settlement offer, if any, from the property insurer. After judgment, then you can sue the insurance company to collect the judgment against their insured. Please note that in some settings, like when you are suing your own company for uninsured motorist benefits, then you can sue the insurance company directly.
If you have been in an accident, please call Drucker Law Offices at 561-483-9199 (Boca Raton Main office) or 954-755-2120 (Coral Springs satellite office) or 561-967-3840 (Lake Worth satellite office) or 305-981-1561 (Miami satellite office) for a free consultation. The law firm only charges fees and costs if it recovers money for you.
It is important to note that every case is unique and should be judged based on the specific facts of the case. The advice in this blog is intended to be general in nature and should not to be construed as specific advice for a case, as a minor difference in the facts of the case could change the result. Also, this blog is, as the web site suggests, based on Florida law and the laws of any other states or even another country could vary from Florida.
