Hiriana Tuch (Hollywood, FL) (Property) obtained Summary Judgment in a windstorm loss for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation.
Plaintiff Sunshine Mold Solutions alleges that they entered into an assignment of benefits agreement with the insured Jaime Rendon following an alleged windstorm loss in June 2021. Plaintiff allegedly performed a mold assessment at the insured’s property after the loss. As part of their investigation, Citizens obtained an Examination Under Oath (“EUO”) of the insured. Mr. Rendon in his EUO stated that the alleged windstorm occurred in May 2022 (outside the policy period) and not in June 2021 as previously reported. He further acknowledged that there were no issues with the roof in June 2021 and he had no interior leaks or interior damage resulting from the alleged loss. The only reason a mold test was performed was to see if he had mold in the property.
The case proceeded to a hearing on Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment with the only defense being that since the insured saw tiles lifting and there was also a tarp on the roof that there must have been an interior leak. However, the Court granted the Defendant’s Motion for Summary based on the insured’s sworn testimony which showed that he was only claiming roof damages (outside the policy period) and there were no interior leaks or interior damage there to warrant a mold assessment.