Bad Faith Insurance Lawyers
A bad faith insurance lawyer helps consumers who have been subjected to insurance companies' bad faith practices. Disability insurance companies and providers of other types of insurance have been found guilty of such bad faith practices as:
- passing a policyholder's file around to multiple claims adjusters
- stalling at one or more steps of the claims resolution process
- using unreasonable interpretations of an insurance policy's language
- denying an insurance claim without a valid reason
- providing only part of the benefits to which the policyholder is entitled
Increase in Bad Faith Lawsuits
An insurance provider has a legal duty to act in good faith when determining whether to honor or deny their policyholders' claims. Some experts attribute the recent increase in the need for bad faith insurance lawyers to the trend in the 1970s and '80s whereby insurers grossly oversold insurance policies to young professionals. These policyholders are now beginning to submit claims for the benefits provided by their policies, and numerous insurance companies have begun to systematically deny these claims—in bad faith.
Objectionable Insurance Company Conduct
Bad faith insurance practices are a breach of the contract that exists between the insurer and the policyholder. Insurance companies have come up with all sorts of excuses as to why they are unable to fully honor a policyholder's claim. For example, an insurer might contend that:
- forms were received too late
- medical reports were never received
- the ailment in question is not a covered disability
Bad Faith: Breach of an Insurance Policy Contract
A breach of an insurance policy contract is valid grounds for the policyholder to file a civil legal action for compensation from the insurance company. A bad faith insurance lawyer is highly experienced in representing the victims of bad faith insurance dealings. Through a civil lawsuit, a bad faith insurance lawyer can help aggrieved consumers obtain the money they are entitled to from the denied claim, plus any additional losses.
Punitive Damages Too
A bad faith insurance lawyer can also help secure punitive damages from an insurance company, if the insurer's action was deliberate or malicious. Punitive damages are intended to punish a defendant is such a way as to deter that defendant and others from committing wrongdoing in the future.
For example, in late 2008 a federal appeals court upheld a verdict against the disability insurance provider UnumProvident and one of its subsidiaries, Provident Accident and Life, resulting in an award to the disabled claimant of $1.2 million for emotional distress and other harm and $3 million for punitive damages.
Consult a Bad Faith Insurance Lawyer
If you feel that your insurance company has not acted in good faith in some manner, it is in your best interest to contact a law firm in your area that represents victims of insurance bad faith. A lawyer with experience in this complex field of law can assess your case and explain your legal options to you. You may be eligible for a legal remedy that includes financial compensation for your losses. For more information or to schedule a private, no cost consultation, please .
Be assured your matters will be in experienced & caring hands.
