Strange and Funny Florida Insurance Claims

Although insurance is a subject that should always be taken very seriously, there are some Florida insurance claims that are laughable simply because they are so outrageous. Listed here are some of the funniest, most absurd and rib-splitting insurance claims in the history of the state.

The Insured Cigars

A notable Floridian lawyer, after having won his first big-money case, purchased a large box of very expensive cigars. After taking the time to insure them against flood, fire, theft and everything else imaginable, he proceeded to enjoy his investment for about three months. Afterward, he filed a claim with his insurance company touting that his cigars had been ruined by a “series of small fires.” Needless to say, the insurer refused to pay the claim since it was assumed that the cigars had simply been smoked. However, this is one of the most absurd Florida insurance claims because the judge inevitably ruled that the insurance company has not clearly defined what was considered an ‘unacceptable fire’!

Totalled by a House

A driver in the Tallahassee area was parked on the side of the road waiting for traffic to clear so he could head home from work. While waiting, a very large truck that was relocating a manufactured home essentially ‘dropped’ the home on his car. The driver of the car stated, “One minute I was in my car, and the next I was in a living room. It was strange!” The house moving company’s insurance company eventually paid, but it goes down as one of the funniest Florida insurance claims because the paperwork clearly stated that the man’s car had been totalled by a house.

The Intentional Hail Damage

Back in the 1990s, after a hailstorm that caused a huge influx of Florida insurance claims, an agent for a well-known company was contacted by a man who wanted to be reimbursed for hail damage. Upon examining the car, the agent was sure that the perfectly-round dents in the car could not have been caused by hail and supposed that they had been intentionally put there by what is known as a machinist’s hammer. When the car’s owner was called out on the folly, instead of dropping the claim out of sheer embarrassment, he went on to file a police report that someone had vandalized his car. In the end, the insurance agent was forced to pay the claim because he couldn’t prove that the damage was, in fact, intentional.

Last, but Not Least

Finally, a man who is a native of the Florida Keys was driving home from the grocery store one day when he had what is perhaps the strangest and unluckiest experience of all. As he was travelling down the street, he claims a child ran out in front of his car, causing him to step on the brake. He was lucky enough to avoid this accident, but he stated that an apple somehow came out of a bag, rolled underneath the driver’s seat, and became lodged under the brake pedal. This, he says, is exactly how he ended up parking his car in his living room rather than in his driveway.

There likely hundreds of other strange and funny Florida insurance claims out there, but these are the ones that really stand out from the crowd. It just goes to show you that you never know what could go wrong and why your insurance is so important in your everyday life!