An excess carrier disclaimed coverage entirely on an $8.14 million restaurant liability judgment - now the underlying insurer is suing for nearly $3.9 million.
Trisura Specialty Insurance Company filed the action against Navigators Specialty Insurance Company on April 8, 2026, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Case No. 0:26-cv-61016). The case traces back to a slip-and-fall at a Sunshine Restaurant Holdings location in Broward County, Florida - a single incident that ballooned into a multimillion-dollar fight between two insurers over who should have paid.
Sunshine, a Florida-based restaurant operator, carried a layered insurance program: $6 million in combined primary and excess coverage through Trisura, with an additional $5 million excess umbrella policy through Navigators. That Navigators policy expressly identified the Trisura coverage as underlying insurance.
On June 9, 2021, the slip-and-fall occurred. The injured party, Melissa Melvin, sued. On September 19, 2023, a verdict of $8,299,916.53 was returned against a Sunshine affiliate. According to the court filing, neither Sunshine nor Trisura had reasonably expected the liability to breach the $6 million ceiling of Trisura's coverage.
Navigators was notified shortly after the verdict and confirmed receipt. Then, on November 9, 2023, the company disclaimed coverage entirely. According to the filing, Navigators refused to contribute to either the defense or settlement of the case, despite multiple settlement negotiations.
That left Trisura holding the full bill.
After agreed-upon setoffs reduced the final judgment to $8,140,107.56, Sunshine appealed. Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's judgment on June 5, 2025. On July 31, 2025, Trisura paid the full judgment plus post-judgment interest — $9,176,983.70. It also paid an additional $700,000 to resolve claims for attorneys' fees and costs.
Trisura now seeks $3,876,983.70 from Navigators — the excess above its own $6 million in policy limits. It is pursuing recovery through equitable subrogation and breach of contract, the latter as assignee of Sunshine's rights, which were transferred to Trisura on July 28, 2025.
Central to the breach of contract claim is Navigators' own policy language, which states: "We will pay on behalf of the insured and in excess of 'underlying limits' those sums the insured becomes legally obligated to pay as damages for 'loss' to which this insurance applies." Trisura contends all conditions for coverage were met and that there was "no justification or exclusion" for Navigators' refusal to pay.
Navigators has not yet responded, and no determination has been made on the merits of the case.
Still, the dispute raises a question that hits close to home for claims professionals and excess liability underwriters: what happens when a layer in a carefully structured coverage tower disappears — and who gets stuck with the tab?
