Bad Faith

Simply put, bad faith insurance law keeps insurance companies honest. Since insurance companies can deny claims, they're both judge and jury of claims submitted to them. So, on the one hand, good faith represents a pool of resources an insurance company oversees. On the other hand, if an insurance company tries to withhold claim payments or cheat a policyholder, an attorney can help by filing a bad faith claim.

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Insurance companies have a legal duty to treat policyholders with good faith. In other words, an insurance company must investigate your claim. And according to insurance law, they are required to be timely, thorough, and objective.

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The insurance adjuster doesn't act in any one party's interest. Instead, when properly adjusting a claim, they stick to the facts. Once a loss occurs, the insurance adjuster must fairly evaluate the claim, not creating profit for the company.

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Bad faith typically involves insurance companies attempting to not pay or underpay on claims involving auto accidents, worker's compensation, homeowner's insurance, or disability insurance policies. For example, say you're in an accident and expect insurance reimbursement of $20,000. Your insurance company should immediately conduct a reasonable investigation and pay the benefit. If they block your claim in any way, that is bad faith.

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Additionally, the law requires insurance companies to pay attorney's fees if you have to enforce benefit payments. Have you been in a car accident? Perhaps you were injured on the job. Maybe you have damage on your property or to your home that your homeowner's insurance should cover but hasn't.

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Call Phillip L. Carey, Attorney at Law, today. We specialize in bad faith insurance law.