Do you remember the post, Church Mutual Found To Be Systematically Underpaying Claims By a Federal Judge and Engle Martin Grossly Underestimated the Loss? Guess who was found guilty of engaging in unfair insurance claims practices last week? Church Mutual.1 Why would any church subject its parishioners to such unholy claim delays, denial, and underpayment?
Continue Reading Church Mutual Is Not So Holy When It Comes to Good Faith Claims Practices
The insurance claims industry is in a constant battle to prevent policyholders and the public from knowing all the bad faith actions insurers do to delay, deny, and underpay claims. Like any bad actor, secrecy of the wrongful action is a core component to prevent accountability. We noted this motive for secrecy in Trade Secrets: Dynamite Discovery Decisions, Part 11.
I recently appeared on a Public Broadcasting Service show discussing the ongoing insurance crisis in Florida. During the segment, an insurance industry expert attributed insurance companies’ skyrocketing premiums, unresolved claims, and financial troubles to what they termed as ‘frivolous lawsuits’, along with the contingent fees of lawyers and public adjusters. As I listened, it struck me how there’s a glaring lack of accountability from the insurance industry’s side in this situation. The truth often seems obscured, with industry representatives habitually deflecting blame rather than engaging in honest self-reflection.
Continue Reading Frivolous Lawsuits, Poor Lawyering, or Lawsuits Which are Not Bad Faith?
A federal judge upheld a jury verdict yesterday1 in a case I reported on in Merlin Law Group Wins Bad Faith Jury Verdict. The court noted in part:
If an insurance company is unfairly or unreasonably handling your claim, be aware that there are strict deadlines, known as statutes of limitations, by which you must take legal action. In my previous post, Why Time Matters Differently in Colorado for Homeowners, Business Owners, and HOAs, I discussed deadlines for filing a contractual breach of insurance policy lawsuit. In this post, I review the statutory framework establishing the Colorado statute of limitations related to filing a legal action for common law bad faith and unreasonable delay/denial of insurance benefits.
Continue Reading Statute of Limitations in Colorado Insurance Bad Faith and Delay/Denial Cases
David Kim noted an Illinois case1 when commenting to a recent post, Are Texas Bad Faith Cases Now More Difficult to Prove? The case discusses what a bona fide dispute is between an insurer and policyholder. It also noted that insurance companies must evaluate damages and timely provide the policyholder an estimate of damage as a matter of “common sense” and good faith:
A ruling yesterday by a federal judge in Texas1 seems to indicate a trend where federal courts will prevent bad faith claims from going before a jury if the insurer has an expert opinion supporting the denial of a claim. The court dismissed the bad faith portion of the lawsuit with the following rationale:
Continue Reading Are Texas Bad Faith Cases Now More Difficult to Prove?
Insurance company adjusters and claims executives often receive bonus compensation. Ten years ago, we discussed this in a post, Carrier Bonus / Incentive Plans: Dynamite Discovery Decisions, where we observed:
Continue Reading Insurance Company Claims Adjuster Bonus Programs and Criteria
American federal trial judges are generally best of the breed lawyers. But even they are limited to where the balls are thrown and what batters swing at in competitive property insurance litigation. This post is a follow-up to yesterday’s, Does Colorado Require Matching? Is Matching a Coverage Issue or a Factual Issue For an Appraisal Panel?
Do insurance companies support training for their claims adjusters and managers to promote good faith and ethical claims handling? Barry Zalma recently stated in his September 1st insurance industry newsletter, Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter, the following: