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What to Do About Insurance Bad Faith

Updated April 30, 2019 | By Wilson Kehoe Winingham staff

If you’ve had an accident, the last thing you need to deal with is getting treated poorly by your insurance company. After all, you pay premiums so that it will pay your claim. Unfortunately, there are times when insurance companies will put their bottom line ahead of your financial security in a way that goes beyond a denial. Those are times when you should consider hiring an insurance bad faith attorney.

What Bad Faith Looks Like

It can be difficult to know what constitutes bad faith. If your insurance provider doesn’t give you what you think you deserve or they outright deny your claim, this generally isn’t bad faith. However, the way they go about denying you compensation could be grounds for a bad faith lawsuit.

Look for these signs in your possible case, and remember to keep a record of everything if you suspect that you’re being dealt with in bad faith:

  • Unreasonably refusing to investigate a claim or delaying the investigation
  • Repeating requests for information or making requests that are unreasonable, like in cases where the provider already has the information or the information wouldn’t be relevant to the claim
  • Putting off making a settlement offer within a reasonable time frame
  • Not offering a settlement once liability is established
  • Misrepresenting information, including the facts of the case and the details of your policy
  • Canceling or threatening to cancel your policy if you refuse to accept a low offer
  • Refusing to provide any reasons for their decision
  • Apparently bullying you into going to court against them
  • Otherwise behaving in a dishonest, sneaky, or malicious way

Being dealt with in bad faith and feeling powerless can be overwhelming. Fortunately, if it’s possible to prove bad faith in your case, there are options that you can take that could get you to the settlement that you need to move forward with your life.

Your Options in a Bad Faith Claim: Contract and Tort Claims

Your bad faith insurance case could take two forms. In a contract claim, you would be seeking damages for a breach of the legal contract between you and your insurance provider. In this case, you could recover compensatory damages up to the value of the policy itself and nothing more. In a tort claim, you’re making a case based on acts that aren’t outlined in a contract and that you didn’t consent to. You are able to recover punitive and compensatory damages in cases like this, meaning that you could recover more than the value of your policy.

How you proceed depends on your individual case. It would likely be worth it to look into hiring an experienced attorney experienced if you suspect that your insurance company has been dealing with you in bad faith.

Contact an Insurance Attorney Today

Insurance is hard enough to navigate without the sweat of worrying about denials and complications after a claim. If you are struggling to receive compensation from an insurance company, contact the Indianapolis Insurance Attorneys of Wilson Kehoe Winingham. The lawyers at WKW can help you get the compensation you deserve.

Call 317.920.6400 or fill out an online contact form for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.

Contact Us

Let WKW put our experience to work for you. Contact us for your free case evaluation.

 

Or, call us today at (317) 920-6400

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