A divided federal appeals court rejected class-action lawsuits filed by Florida homeowners who said they were charged too much for property insurance after leaving it to mortgage companies to buy coverage.

The ruling by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit dealt with what is known as “force-placed insurance,” which occurs when people with mortgages do not buy property-insurance coverage. Lenders then buy coverage and pass along the costs to the borrowers.