PER CURIAM.
Appellant, Angelina Losicco, appeals the denial of attorney's fees where appellee, Aetna Casualty, an insurer, settled a lawsuit to recover medical payments. We reverse and remand.
When an insurance company has agreed to settle a disputed case, it has in effect, declined to defend its position in the pending suit. Thus, payment of the claim is, indeed, the functional equivalent of a confession of judgment or a verdict in favor of the insured. Amador v. Latin American Property Casualty Insurance Company, 552 So.2d 1132 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989); see also Wollard v. Lloyd's Companies of Lloyd's, 439 So.2d 217 (Fla. 1983).
The trial court has no discretion to deny a reasonable attorney's fee to the prevailing plaintiff where the insurance company first disputes the claim and then settles the case after a lawsuit is filed. Amador v. Latin American Property Casualty Insurance Company, 552 So.2d at 1133.
Accordingly, we reverse and remand for a determination of the attorney's fees.
Reversed and remanded.