Do you know what it means when someone says you are the victim of “bad faith”? This is a common situation when it comes to insurance known as a bad faith insurance claim. At Your Insurance Attorney, we are here to make sure you know exactly what that means for you if you are ever in this situation. You cant trust our insurance claim lawyer in Miami Dade County.
What is Bad Faith?
An insurance policy is a contract that requires an insurance company (the insurer) to act in “good faith” toward you (the policyholder or insured). When an insurer refuses benefits to a policyholder who has a legitimate claim, it is considered “bad faith.” However, an insurance policy has a right to deny your claim if your claim does not fall within the scope of the contract you signed.
When an insurance company denies your legitimate claim for a trivial reason, gives you lots of unnecessary paperwork, ignores your doctor, or repeatedly asks for independent doctors to examine you, the insurance carrier is acting in “bad faith.”
What Happens If You Sue For a Bad Faith Insurance Claim?
Is it time to sue? Is suing the best choice for you? If you sue your insurance company and win then you will likely receive the benefits you are entitled to under your policy and you may be able to get additional money for losses or damages you have suffered. Some times a person who wins a suit against their insurance company for bad faith denial of their disability policy they will receive damages for the emotional distress they have suffered. The number of damages you can collect will vary depending on the injury you’ve suffered, the damages you can prove and the actions of the insurance company. Because this is a relatively complicated area of law, it is probably best to consult an attorney before filing suit against an insurance company.
Here are some examples of bad faith that are quite famous. Take a look:
- Aetna Insurance
- A jury awarded $4.5 million for medical expenses and $116 million in punitive damages to the widow of a deceased stomach cancer patient. She had sued Aetna for denying her husband coverage for cancer treatment that may have prolonged his survival. Aetna was found guilty of placing its own financial interests before the needs of a policyholder.
- Forklift Accident
- A Pennsylvania court awarded $12 million to a woman who had lost her leg in a forklift accident after finding the insurer’s practices to be in bad faith.
- Provident and Unum
- A woman in California had her claim approved, but the insurer was soon taken over by Provident (which later merged with Unum), which reviewed the doctor’s claim and terminated her benefits. She sued the insurer and was awarded past and future benefits, along with $5 million in punitive damages, for a total of $7.6 million.
- CUNA Mutual Insurance
- A federal jury in Iowa awarded $6.2 million to the estate of a woman who was repeatedly denied disability claims by her insurer, CUNA Mutual Insurance Society.
- Paul Revere Life Insurance Company – Unum Provident
- In Utah, a Las Vegas man received $50 million after his insurers, Paul Revere Life Insurance Company and its parent company, Unum Provident, were found by the court to have acted in bad faith when they denied his disability claim.
Call Us Today
We are experts when it comes to a bad faith insurance claim. If your insurance company wronged you, contact our experts today. Your Insurance Attorney is here for you. We take pride in being the residential claims adjuster. Call us today for the best public adjuster Miami.
