Accidents and Incidents
The whole purpose of an insurance policy is to cover the policyholder if an unfortunate event occurs. Unfortunately, not all insurance companies always uphold their contractual obligations to their policyholders; they may reject or indeterminately delay a claim for unjust reasons. This can cause policyholders no end of stress and financial worry—and that’s when you should call a bad faith insurance attorney.
Let’s say you’ve been in an automobile accident. You’ve filed a claim, but your insurance company has refused to pay out the full sum owed to you by the terms of your contract. Because of your injuries, you either can’t work at your previous capacity, or you may find yourself unable to work altogether. Whatever the case, you rely on your insurance company to deliver on their end of the policy agreement, but they have refused to pay you out the monies owed to you. Your bills are piling up, and the settlement they’ve offered is unsatisfactory and inadequate, not to mention it doesn’t comply with your policy. A bad faith insurance attorney can help.
What can you do?
In cases like this, you may be able to file a suit against your insurance company because they are potentially acting in “bad faith.” Suing health insurance companies for bad faith isn’t as uncommon as some people may think. Insurance companies are legally obligated to act in good faith towards their policyholders; however, sometimes this simply isn’t the case. Whatever your circumstances, if you feel that your insurance company isn’t complying with the guidelines of your policy, or if you feel it has misled you in any way regarding the terms of your contract, you can take legal action to recover your losses, and a bad faith insurance attorney can help.
What is Bad Faith?
Bad faith refers to “the fraudulent deception of another person; the intentional or malicious refusal to perform some duty or contractual obligation.” Depending on the state you reside in and the particulars of your case, you may be able to sue your insurance company on the grounds that they have acted in bad faith. It is in your best interest, however, to do so with the help of a bad faith insurance attorney. Instances of bad faith include:
- When an insurance company denies a claim without a valid reason
- When an insurance company deliberately misleads or fails to disclose the full terms of a policy contract to the policyholder
- When an insurance company fails to properly investigate a claim in a timely and thorough manner
- When an insurance company refuses to pay out a claim in full even when that claim is legitimate
- When an insurance company inappropriately delays payment of a claim
Suing insurance company for bad faith is one way to keep insurance companies accountable to their policyholders. The term “bad faith” is frequently used in contract law and other commercial dealings. It is the opposite of Good Faith, which refers to the “observance of reasonable standards of fair dealings in trade” and other contract-based agreements. By suing an insurance company for bad faith with the help of a bad faith insurance attorney, you may be able to recover the full economic losses you incurred as a result of their actions or negligence. You can sue for the recovery of all attorney fees, legal fees, medical expenses, property damage, lost or reduced wages, etc.
Why Sue?
Very few people take out insurance policies with the hope of making a claim. A claim usually means that something disastrous has occurred: an accident, a home fire, a break-in, an illness, an injury, even a death. But as we all know, life is full of twist and turns, some of them nasty and unforeseen. People take insurance policies out to protect themselves and their loved ones in the event that something goes awry, and they need to be able to trust that their insurance companies will act in good faith and honor the terms of the policy contract. If they don’t, a bad faith insurance attorney can help to restore that contract.
Suing insurance companies for bad faith is a way to hold insurance companies responsible if they have in any way deceived or abused their policyholders. The failure to investigate a claim in a timely manner, for example, can leave a policyholder with more than just financial stress: it can cause worry, stress, and can create tensions in a household as bills pile up. No one needs to add insult to injury after they’ve suffered a traumatic event, and they should be able to rely on the integrity and honor of their insurance company to act in good faith. If you can’t, call a bad faith insurance attorney.