Our insured hired a billing service to bill the claimant. The claimant filed a lawsuit because he is alleging that our insured breached a Florida statute that notes that if a person is represented by an attorney, the service cannot contact the person. The lawsuit states that the claimant sent our insured a letter informing it that the claimant did indeed retain an attorney, but the insured denies ever receiving such a letter.

We are wondering if the actions of our insured in contacting the claimant qualify as an invasion of privacy and the claim then be covered under the personal and advertising injury section of the CGL form. What is your opinion?

Florida Subscriber

The right of privacy part of the personal and advertising injury definition in the CGL form refers to an oral or written publication of material that violates a person's right of privacy. So, hiring a billing service and then having that service contact someone who owes money to the insured is not the same as publication to the general public concerning the financial status of the claimant. There has to be some publication to the general public and this does not seem to have occurred as you describe the facts of the incident.

It may be that the insured violated Florida law and we cannot address that issue, but a lawsuit against the insured based on a claim of invasion of the right of privacy in this instance is not going to be covered by the CGL form.