I was in Cobh (fka Queenstown), Ireland, yesterday. Cobh was the last destination for the Titanic before its fateful collision with an iceberg sent it to Davey Jones Locker. The picture above is next to where the third-class passengers would have had to board on the tender America, which took them to the Titanic that was moored further out in the harbor.
Continue Reading Lloyd’s Pays Titanic Loss In 30 Days—Can Modern American Carriers Pay As Promptly?
In what I think is the first trial from Hurricane Laura involving bad faith allegations against an insurer, Scottsdale Insurance Company took a shellacking. I have been patiently waiting for one of the numerous Hurricane Laura cases to make its way to verdict, but they have all settled – until last week. Scottsdale argued that it paid on time and even overpaid. It is evident that the jury did not agree.
Continue Reading Hurricane Laura Bad Faith Verdict Against Scottsdale Insurance
Colorado, like most states, has imposed regulatory guidelines that govern insurance company claims handling procedures. Many of those regulations and statutes provide potential penalties that may be imposed when the adjustment process implemented by an insurer fails to comply with the standards enumerated. Title 3 of the Code of Colorado Regulations § 702-5-1-14 is a good example of the methods aimed at deterring such conduct. Due to the recent wildfires in Colorado leading to delayed payments and improper claims handling by numerous insurers, these regulations and the recourse they offer insureds are worth emphasizing.
Continue Reading Failure to Make Timely Decisions/Payments in Colorado will Lead to Penalties for Insurers Pursuant to Title 3 Colo. Code Regs. § 702-5-1-14
A recent post, Louisiana Policyholders Deserve Good Faith Claims Treatment—Understanding Louisiana Hurricane Claim Bad Faith Law, discussed fundamental Louisiana law requiring insurance companies to treat policyholders in good faith and properly interpret their insurance policies. What happens if insurance companies delay claims following the recent hurricanes in Louisiana?
Continue Reading Understanding Louisiana Bad Faith Law When Claims Payments Are Delayed or Paid Too Late
I was speaking with an attorney from Jefferson Parish in Louisiana about Hurricane Laura claims. He told me that the word that best fit insurance company payments for that storm is “putrid.” If that is the case, insurance companies that wrongfully delay payment of claims in Louisiana for greater than thirty days can be subject to an automatic penalty.
Continue Reading Insurance Companies Have 30 Days to Pay or Be Subject to Penalties in Louisiana
A Brief Statement of the Relevant Facts:
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Agredano v. State Farm Lloyds, No. 19-50656 (September 16, 2020), has reaffirmed that Texas Insurance Code §542.060, the Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act (“TPPCA”), is a strict liability statute. Here, Agredano sued State Farm Lloyds (“State Farm”) under their homeowner’s insurance policy for windstorm damages to their home. The district court granted a partial summary judgement to State Farm on all insured’s causes of action except for breach of contract. A jury found for the insured on the breach of contract claim.
Continue Reading The Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act Is Reaffirmed As a Strict Liability Statute
Recent trends of insurers revising the appraisal provisions in insurance policies have clouded the original effect of the appraisal process as an alternative dispute resolution process in lieu of litigation. For many years the insurers reaped a benefit of an appraisal award as a bar to the insured’s breach of contract case after payment of the award pursuant to the policy’s appraisal provision.
Continue Reading Clear Waters of Texas Appraisals – Prompt Payment Claim After Appraisal
Several weeks ago, the Texas Supreme Court issued a trilogy of per curiam opinions: TopDog Properties v. GuideOne National Insurance Company,1 Alvarez v. State Farm Lloyds,2 and Lazos v. State Farm Lloyds,3 and remanded these cases because the trial courts and appellate courts failed to follow the Texas Supreme Court’s opinions in Barbara Technologies Corp. v. State Farm Lloyds,4 and Ortiz v. State Farm Lloyds.5 Except for TopDog which has a unilateral appraisal clause in its policy, all three cases have nearly identical facts.
Continue Reading Policyholders Continue to Prevail As “Top Dogs” – Court Confirms Payment of Appraisal Award Not a Bar to Insurer’s Liability Under Prompt Payment of Claims Act
Insurance claims adjusting is not easy business. Quality adjustment which vets claims quickly and gets the money to policyholders fairly, promptly and fully is challenging work. I have repeatedly indicated this in numerous blogs.
Continue Reading Two Views Of Claims Management: Prompt and Full Payment vs. Overpayment Caused By Fraud
Last week, the Texas Second Court of Appeals issued Lambert v. State Farm Lloyds,1 which follows the Texas Supreme Court’s recent opinion in Barbara Technologies Corp. v. State Farm Lloyds.2
In a recent blog post, Payment of an Appraisal Award: Is There More, I reviewed Barbara Tech and its companion case, Ortiz v. State Farm Lloyds.3 These two landmark cases hold that an insurer’s full and timely payment of an appraisal award, bars an insured’s causes of action for breach of contract and any common law and statutory bad faith claims, to the extent the bad faith claims seek only actual damages that are considered lost policy benefits.
Continue Reading Invoking Appraisal – Be Careful What You Ask For