Background
Universal X Rays, Corp. sued as the assignee of insured Alejandro Botero Cano, seeking personal injury protection (PIP) benefits from Infinity Auto Insurance Company.
The Miami-Dade Circuit Court considered cross-motions for summary judgment and entered judgment for Infinity. Universal X Rays appealed.
The Court’s Holding
The Third District affirmed. Reviewing the summary judgment ruling de novo, the court held that the record established Infinity had exhausted the insured’s PIP policy limits by sequentially paying valid claims in good faith.
Once valid PIP claims exhaust available benefits, an insurer has no further liability for unresolved pending claims unless it acted in bad faith in handling the claim. The court found no error in the trial court’s application of that rule.
Key Takeaways
- An insurer may exhaust PIP benefits by paying valid claims sequentially and in good faith.
- Exhaustion of PIP limits bars further liability on pending claims absent bad faith.
- Summary judgment was proper because the evidence established exhaustion and no material factual dispute remained.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that providers pursuing assigned PIP claims cannot recover after benefits have been validly exhausted, unless they can establish bad-faith claim handling. It also confirms that insurers need not reserve PIP funds for unresolved provider claims when they have paid other valid claims in good faith.