A Fort Lauderdale property owner purchased title insurance 5 years ago and now discovers an old judgment lien that was missed during the original title search. The lien was recorded 10 years ago. What is the owner's recourse?

Correct Answer

A) File a claim with the title insurance company as the policy covers this defect

Correct: A - File a claim with the title insurance company as the policy covers this defect. The owner can file a claim with the title insurance company because owner's title insurance policies continue indefinitely for the insured owner and their heirs, and missed liens that existed at the time of policy issuance are covered defects. Why not B: This option is incorrect because "The owner must pay the judgment since it was recorded before purchase" does not match the rule tested by the question. The correct answer is "File a claim with the title insurance company as the policy covers this defect". The owner can file a claim with the title insurance company because owner's title insurance policies continue indefinitely for the insured owner and their heirs, and missed liens that existed at the time of policy issuance are covered defects. Why not C: This option is incorrect because "Only the original seller can be held liable for the missed lien" does not match the rule tested by the question. The correct answer is "File a claim with the title insurance company as the policy covers this defect". The owner can file a claim with the title insurance company because owner's title insurance policies continue indefinitely for the insured owner and their heirs, and missed liens that existed at the time of policy issuance are covered defects. Why not D: This option is incorrect because "No recourse since the policy expired after 5 years" does not match the rule tested by the question. The correct answer is "File a claim with the title insurance company as the policy covers this defect". The owner can file a claim with the title insurance company because owner's title insurance policies continue indefinitely for the insured owner and their heirs, and missed liens that existed at the time of policy issuance are covered defects.