Abe v. Ehrling
Docket: No. 3D99-2360
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; October 4, 2000; Florida; State Appellate Court
The appellate court reversed the trial court's order denying the plaintiffs, Shigeo Abe and others, interest on a late payment of settlement proceeds. Under section 627.4265, Florida Statutes (1997), an insurer must tender payment within 20 days of a written settlement agreement, and if not, interest accrues at 12% per year from the agreement date, unless payment is conditioned on an executed release. The plaintiffs argued that the insurer failed to pay within the statutory timeframe, thus interest was owed. The defendants contended that the settlement was contingent upon executed releases, claiming timely payment of $600,000 was made prior to such execution. The court found in favor of the plaintiffs, determining that the settlement agreement was not conditioned on release execution. Evidence from a letter dated November 25, 1998, confirmed that the settlement was reached on November 24, 1998, without provisions for executed releases. The first paragraph of the letter confirmed the acceptance of the settlement offer, while the second paragraph expressed the insurer's desire to obtain releases, indicating that the execution of releases was not a condition of the settlement. Consequently, the court concluded that interest on the late payment was warranted under section 627.4265. The case was reversed and remanded for further proceedings to address the payment of interest on the settlement proceeds, which were to be paid by National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA.