The law helps to protect you when it comes to dealings with insurance companies by making it imperative for these companies to deal with you in good faith. FindLaw explains a bad faith insurance situation may occur when an insurer does not follow standard protocols when investigating or paying your claim.
There are a few key elements you can look for to determine if you have a bad faith insurance claim.
Fairness
Your insurer should approach all claims in the same manner and use the same procedures to determine whether or not to pay a claim. If your insurer does not follow the normal protocol and has no reasonable explanation for the deviation, then you could have a bad faith claim.
Reasonableness
An insurer should complete the claims process as quickly as possible. If the insurer seems to be stalling, it could lead to an unreasonable amount of time elapsing between when you make the claim and when the insurer makes a decision on it.
It is important that in every aspect of the process the insurer acts reasonably to move the claim along. Your insurer should not make demands or requirements that are impossible or make no sense. It needs to ensure the process is something anyone should be able to do.
In addition, the final determination should be reasonable. It needs to align with your policy terms and conditions. It should offer evidence for the reason behind the decision.
Bad faith insurance claims are typically unfair and unreasonable. They rob you of a fair assessment of your claim and the right to collect on it.
