Florida: Insurance Cancellation Effective in Spite of Insurance Certification

An insurer’s cancellation of coverage related to a workers’ compensation insurance policy was effective in spite of the fact that, prior to the injury in dispute, the carrier’s agent had sent the general contractor a certification that insurance was in force, held a Florida appellate court. The general contractor was, therefore, liable for the injured employee’s workers’ compensation benefits. The general contractor’s argument that the insurance company should be estopped to deny coverage was found unconvincing. It had failed to prove that it relied “reasonably” upon the Certificate of Insurance. The Certificate indicated that it was for “information only.” The Certificate’s disclaimers put the general contractor on notice that it needed to look further to assure itself that all subcontractor’s employees were covered by appropriate insurance.

Thomas A. Robinson, J.D., the co-Editor-in-Chief and Feature National Columnist for the LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter, is co-author of Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law(LexisNexis).

LexisNexis Online Subscribers: Citations below link to Lexis Advance.

See Scott v. James A. Jones Constr. Co., 2021 Fla. App. LEXIS 3736 (1st DCA, Mar. 16, 2021)

See generally Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 150.03.

Source: Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, the nation’s leading authority on workers’ compensation law

For a more detailed discussion of the case, see

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