A $2 million marine insurance dispute has surfaced in federal court, with insurers seeking to void coverage after a yacht injury claim and alleged breaches of policy terms.
Accelerant Specialty Insurance Company, Texas Insurance Company, and Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s of London Subscribing to Cover Note B0507RN2300289 have filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida against policyholder Robert Sechan. The insurers are asking the court to declare that they owe no coverage, defense, or indemnity for a personal injury claim tied to an incident involving Sechan’s 2022 46-foot Riviera yacht.
According to the complaint, the dispute centers on an incident that occurred on December 31, 2023. The insurers allege that Carlos Henao was injured while pulling on a rope thrown from Sechan’s vessel as it was docking. At the time, the yacht was operated by Captain Derrick Morrell. The complaint states that Sechan did not witness the incident but was informed by others aboard the vessel that Henao had been hurt. Sechan transported Henao to an urgent care facility, which was closed, and Henao declined further transportation to an emergency room.
The insurers claim that Henao later contacted Sechan requesting money. On April 15, 2025, Henao filed a negligence lawsuit against Sechan and three other defendants in the Circuit Court of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in and for Broward County, Florida, Case No. CACE-25-005457. The complaint asserts that Sechan did not notify the insurers of the incident until April 30, 2025—sixteen months after it took place.
Sechan is seeking defense and indemnity coverage under a commercial yacht insurance policy issued by the insurers, policy number CSRYP/229801, effective from December 1, 2023, to December 1, 2024. The policy provides $2 million in third-party liability coverage, subject to a $500 deductible per claim.
Central to the complaint are several policy clauses. The insurers point to a requirement that any loss giving rise to a claim must be reported in writing within 30 days - a condition the insurers say is precedent to any liability. The policy also contains a named operator warranty, specifying that the vessel may only be operated by “Covered Persons.” According to the complaint, a “Covered Person” is either the insured or any individual listed on the application and approved in writing as an operator.
The insurers allege that Sechan breached both the notice requirement and the named operator warranty. The policy lists only Sechan as a named operator. The complaint claims that Sechan hired Captain Morrell to operate the vessel on multiple occasions and did not seek approval to add Morrell as a named operator, either before or after the incident. The insurers further assert that, under New York law - which they say governs the policy - breach of an express warranty in a marine insurance contract voids coverage, regardless of whether the breach is related to the loss.
The insurers are asking the court to declare that the policy does not provide coverage for the claims asserted by Henao, that the policy is void from inception, and that there is no duty to defend or indemnify Sechan in connection with the incident.
The case, newly filed in federal court, is built on the insurers’ account of events and policy terms; no judicial findings have been made at this stage.
