Insurance Bad Faith

People buy insurance for the peace of mind that comes with not worrying about an unexpected loss. Of course, an insurance company should investigate claims and only pay for losses covered under a policy. However, when an insurance company acts unreasonably or unfairly with the intent of denying a valid claim, it has acted in Bad Faith.People buy insurance for the peace of mind that comes with not worrying about an unexpected loss. Of course, an insurance company should investigate claims and only pay for losses covered under a policy. However, when an insurance company acts unreasonably or unfairly with the intent of denying a valid claim, it has acted in Bad Faith.

Insurance companies can act in Bad Faith in many different ways, such as:

• only paying partial benefits
• failing to defend an insured against a third-party claim
• denying coverage for a valid claim
• unreasonably refusing to settle with a third party
• failing to properly investigate a claim
• only offering an unreasonably low amount in settlement
• causing undue delay in claims processing
• accusing an insured of fraud as a pretext to refuse to pay a claim
• cancelling a policy in order to avoid honoring a claim.

Due to the natural imbalance of power between a huge insurance company and an individual policyholder, a policyholder stands little chance of prevailing against an insurance company. Fortunately, the law provides a remedy for a policyholder to help level the playing field, which is a cause of action for Bad Faith.

It is particularly difficult for a policyholder to fight an insurance company while simultaneously dealing with the underlying loss. The attorneys at Haffner & Morgan are here to help navigate the treacherous waters of fighting an insurance company that unreasonably refuses to honor a valid claim.