The 2023 Florida Statutes (including Special Session C)

Title XXXVII
INSURANCE

Chapter 627
INSURANCE RATES AND CONTRACTS

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F.S. 627.7073

627.7073 Sinkhole reports.—

(1) Upon completion of testing as provided in s. 627.7072, the professional engineer or professional geologist shall issue a report and certification to the insurer and the policyholder as provided in this section.

(a) Sinkhole loss is verified if, based upon tests performed in accordance with s. 627.7072, a professional engineer or a professional geologist issues a written report and certification stating:

1. That structural damage to the covered building has been identified within a reasonable professional probability.

2. That the cause of the structural damage is sinkhole activity within a reasonable professional probability.

3. That the analyses conducted were of sufficient scope to identify sinkhole activity as the cause of damage within a reasonable professional probability.

4. A description of the tests performed.

5. A recommendation by the professional engineer of methods for stabilizing the land and building and for making repairs to the foundation.

(b) If there is no structural damage or if sinkhole activity is eliminated as the cause of such damage to the covered building, the professional engineer or professional geologist shall issue a written report and certification to the policyholder and the insurer stating:

1. That there is no structural damage or the cause of such damage is not sinkhole activity within a reasonable professional probability.

2. That the analyses and tests conducted were of sufficient scope to eliminate sinkhole activity as the cause of the structural damage within a reasonable professional probability.

3. A statement of the cause of the structural damage within a reasonable professional probability.

4. A description of the tests performed.

(c) The respective findings, opinions, and recommendations of the insurer’s professional engineer or professional geologist as to the cause of distress to the property and the findings, opinions, and recommendations of the insurer’s professional engineer as to land and building stabilization and foundation repair set forth by s. 627.7072 shall be presumed correct.

(2) An insurer that has paid a claim for a sinkhole loss shall file a copy of the report and certification, prepared pursuant to subsection (1), including the legal description of the real property and the name of the property owner, the neutral evaluator’s report, if any, which indicates that sinkhole activity caused the damage claimed, a copy of the certification indicating that stabilization has been completed, if applicable, and the amount of the payment, with the county clerk of court, who shall record the report and certification. The insurer shall bear the cost of filing and recording one or more reports and certifications. There shall be no cause of action or liability against an insurer for compliance with this section.

(a) The recording of the report and certification does not:

1. Constitute a lien, encumbrance, or restriction on the title to the real property or constitute a defect in the title to the real property;

2. Create any cause of action or liability against any grantor of the real property for breach of any warranty of good title or warranty against encumbrances; or

3. Create any cause of action or liability against any title insurer that insures the title to the real property.

(b) As a precondition to accepting payment for a sinkhole loss, the policyholder must file a copy of any sinkhole report regarding the insured property which was prepared on behalf or at the request of the policyholder. The policyholder shall bear the cost of filing and recording the sinkhole report. The recording of the report does not:

1. Constitute a lien, encumbrance, or restriction on the title to the real property or constitute a defect in the title to the real property;

2. Create any cause of action or liability against any grantor of the real property for breach of any warranty of good title or warranty against encumbrances; or

3. Create any cause of action or liability against a title insurer that insures the title to the real property.

(c) The seller of real property upon which a sinkhole claim has been made by the seller and paid by the insurer must disclose to the buyer of such property, before the closing, that a claim has been paid and whether or not the full amount of the proceeds was used to repair the sinkhole damage.

(3) Upon completion of any building stabilization or foundation repairs for a verified sinkhole loss, the professional engineer responsible for monitoring the repairs shall issue a report to the property owner which specifies what repairs have been performed and certifies within a reasonable degree of professional probability that such repairs have been properly performed. The professional engineer issuing the report shall file a copy of the report and certification, which includes a legal description of the real property and the name of the property owner, with the county clerk of the court, who shall record the report and certification. This subsection does not create liability for an insurer based on any representation or certification by a professional engineer related to the stabilization or foundation repairs for the verified sinkhole loss.

History.—s. 21, ch. 2005-111; s. 28, ch. 2006-12; s. 26, ch. 2011-39.

F.S. 627.7073 on Google Scholar

F.S. 627.7073 on Casetext

Amendments to 627.7073

Arrestable Offenses / Crimes under Fla. Stat. 627.7073

Level: Degree
Misdemeanor/Felony: First/Second/Third

Current data shows no reason an arrest or criminal charge should have occurred directly under Florida Statute 627.7073.

Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases from cite.case.law:

SHEW, v. HORVATH,, 712 F. App'x 949 (11th Cir. 2017)

. . . filed with the Hernando County Clerk a document that stated, “Pursuant to Florida Statute [section] 627.7073 . . .

RINGELMAN, v. CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION,, 228 So. 3d 602 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2017)

. . . repairs in accordance with the recommendations set forth in the insurer’s report issued pursuant to s. 627.7073 . . .

JOHNSON, v. OMEGA INSURANCE COMPANY,, 200 So. 3d 1207 (Fla. 2016)

. . . . § 627.7073(1), Fla. Stat. . . . . § 627.7073(l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2015). . . . Relevant here, section- 627.7073(l)(c) had been amended to provide that the findings and recommendations . . . There, we examined both the plain language and legislative history of section 627.7073(l)(c). . . . However, no such explicit language exists in section 627.7073(l)(c). See id. . . . The court held that the statutory presumption of correctness in section 627.7073(l)(c), Florida Statutes . . . do not apply to the litigation context, the trial court’s application of section 90.804 to section 627.7073 . . .

CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION, v. NUNEZ, 194 So. 3d 1064 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2016)

. . . . § 627.7073(l)(a). The report is presumed correct. § 627.7073(l)(c). . . . property “in accordance with the recommendations of the professional engineer as provided under s. 627.7073 . . . We added that, in the litigation context, the insurer is not entitled to rely on section 627.7073(c)’ . . . repairs in accordance with the recommendations set forth in the insurer’s report issued pursuant to s. 627.7073 . . .

CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION, v. SALKEY, 190 So. 3d 1092 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2016)

. . . to deny a sinkhole claim is made after an expert issues a “sinkhole report” as described in section 627.7073 . . . See § 627.7073(l)(a), (b). . . .

CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION, v. ALVAREZ, 198 So. 3d 45 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015)

. . . See § 627.7073(l)(c),: Fla. Stat. (2010). . . .

U. S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, J. P. v. RIOS AI- LLC,, 166 So. 3d 202 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015)

. . . concluded that the failure to disclose the existence of the sinkhole activity in accordance with section 627.7073 . . . It asserted that Colfin’s reliance on section 627.7073 to establish fraud was misplaced. . . . Bank, Col-fin’s reliance on section 627.7073 to establish any sort of fraud or impropriety is misplaced . . . Section 627.7073(2)(a) provides in pertinent part that: Any insurer that has paid a claim for a sinkhole . . . Section 627.7073(2) further provides that (a) ... . . .

ROKER, v. TOWER HILL PREFERRED INSURANCE CO., 164 So. 3d 690 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015)

. . . foundation in accordance with the recommendations of the professional engineer as provided under s. 627.7073 . . . To the extent that Tower Hill is arguing that section 627.7073(l)(c) creates a presumption which justifies . . . at trial, that an insured could not overcome this presumption, would render any portion of section 627.7073 . . . Because Roker submitted evidence rebutting Tower Hill’s report, Tower Hill may not rely on section 627.7073 . . .

CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION, v. MUNOZ, 158 So. 3d 671 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2014)

. . . And section 627.7073(l)(c) does provide that this report “shall be presumed correct.” . . . The application of a specific provision within that scheme [such as the presumption in section 627.7073 . . .

HERRERA v. TOWER HILL PREFERRED INSURANCE COMPANY,, 161 So. 3d 565 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2014)

. . . .— (3)Following the receipt of the report provided under s. 627.7073 or the denial of a claim for a sinkhole . . .

OMEGA INSURANCE COMPANY, v. JOHNSON,, 207 So.3d 245 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2014)

. . . The report shall be in compliance with the requirements of section 627.7073, Florida Statutes, and shall . . . Id. § 627.7073(1). . . . Id. § 627.7073(l)(c). . . . If a report is issued pursuant to section 627.7073, an alternative procedure for resolution of disputed . . . Id. § 627.7073(l)(c). . . .

SEVILA v. FIRST LIBERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION,, 7 F. Supp. 3d 1226 (M.D. Fla. 2014)

. . . ”, which is a term not used in either the 2011 or prior versions of sections 627.707, 627.7072, and 627.7073 . . .

GONZALEZ v. LIBERTY MUTUAL FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY,, 981 F. Supp. 2d 1219 (M.D. Fla. 2013)

. . . Under Section 627.7073, Florida Statutes (2010), sinkhole loss is “verified” if the engineer determines . . . Section 627.7073, Florida Statutes (2010), requires the engineer to issue a written report, even if the . . . First, the adjoining use of “physical” and “structural” in Section 627.7073 (“actual physical and structural . . . Thus, neither Section 627.707(2) (“if there has been physical damage to the structure”) nor Section 627.7073 . . . an insurer must cover and the extent of damage on which an engineer must report appears in Section 627.7073 . . .

STATE FARM FLORIDA INSURANCE COMPANY, v. COLELLA,, 95 So. 3d 891 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2012)

. . . It obtained the sinkhole report described in section 627.7073. . . . See § 627.7073(l)(c); see also Warfel, 82 So.3d 47. . . .

UNIVERSAL INSURANCE COMPANY OF NORTH AMERICA, v. WARFEL,, 82 So. 3d 47 (Fla. 2012)

. . . Section 627.7073 governs those sinkhole reports, and subsection (l)(c) of that section provides: The . . . Section 627.7073(2), which immediately follows section 627.7073(l)(c), provides: Any insurer that has . . . See § 627.7073(2). . . . Plain Language of Section 627.7073(1) (c) Even if this Court were to hold that section 627.7073(l)(c) . . . Legislative History of Section 627.7073(l)(c) Universal asserts that section 627.7073(l)(c) is an expression . . .

WARFEL, v. UNIVERSAL INSURANCE COMPANY OF NORTH AMERICA,, 36 So. 3d 136 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2010)

. . . Universal posited that section 627.7073(l)(c) required Mr. . . . The 2005 version of section 627.7073(l)(c) provided as follows: The respective findings, opinions, and . . . Universal also contended that section 627.7073(l)(c) created a section 90.304 presumption because it . . . We must assume that the legislature was aware of this fact when it enacted section 627.7073(l)(c). . . . See §§ 627.7065, 627.7072, 627.7073. . . . dissent because I do not agree that the trial court erred in its jury instruction regarding section 627.7073 . . . See § 627.7073(l)(c). . . . Section 627.707(2) then requires that a report be issued as provided in section 627.7073. Id. . . . Section 627.7073 specifies what must be included in that report. . . . The experts then prepared a report as required by section 627.7073. . . .