Bad Faith Lawsuits: Making Sure Your Claim is a Strong One

Fri Mar 23rd, 2018 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

In Florida, insurers have a duty of good faith that they must adhere to.  Simply put, insurers must act fairly, honestly, and with due regard towards the interests of their policyholders.  If they fail to do so — for example, by wrongfully denying a claim, unreasonably delaying the handling of a claim, or otherwise interfering with the policyholder’s ability to recover the damages to which they are entitled — then they may be held liable […]

Your Insurer’s Delay Can Give Rise to a Bad Faith Claim

Fri Mar 9th, 2018 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

As a general rule, insurers will act to avoid or otherwise minimize their liabilities under their insurance contract with a policyholder.  Sometimes, however, the actions taken by an insurer clearly violate their duty of good faith, and thus give the policyholder an opportunity to sue and recover damages pursuant to a bad faith claim.  Actions giving rise to bad faith claims include those that involve unreasonable delays in handling, resolving, and processing an insurance claim […]

A Look at Commercial General Liability Insurance and Bad Faith Issues

Wed Feb 28th, 2018 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

As a business owner, CGL insurance coverage is fundamental to effectively running your business in a highly-litigious society.  When a improperly mopped floor can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars, or even millions, in potential liability to injured third-parties, the value of CGL insurance skyrockets — CGL insurance provides the “peace of mind” necessary for a business to successfully operate. This reliance on CGL insurance can lead to challenging situations when the insurer wrongfully […]

First Party and Third Party Bad Faith — What’s the Difference?

Fri Nov 24th, 2017 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

If you believe that you have been wronged by your insurer in Florida, you may be entitled to bring a bad faith insurance claim against them and thus recover compensation for the losses you suffered.  In Florida, insurers have a duty to their policyholders to act in good faith in settling claims, and to act fairly and honestly (with due regard for the policyholder’s interests) when doing so. Bad faith insurance claims can be either […]

Insurers Must Settle When They Have The Chance

Fri Nov 10th, 2017 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

In Florida, if an insurer does not settle a claim within the insured’s policy limits (whether the claim is first-party or third-party), the insurer may be exposed to liability in excess of the policy limits on the basis of having violated their duty of good faith.  This mechanism lies at the center of some controversy in the state of Florida, as legislators have actively debated whether allowing claimants to bring a bad faith action against […]

Insurers Have a Duty to Act in Good Faith

Fri Oct 20th, 2017 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

In Florida, insurers owe their policyholders a duty of good faith to refrain from acting on exclusively on the basis of their own self-interest in handling a claim and in their decision-making surrounding a settlement.  The insurer is required by Florida law to handle claims brought against their policyholders with the degree of care and diligence that would have been exercised by a reasonably prudent person in managing their own business. If you are a […]

Understanding the protection provided by D&O insurance – II

Mon Apr 17th, 2017 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

Last time, our blog began discussing how many businesses make the strategic decision to purchase directors and officers liability insurance, otherwise known as D&O insurance, to insulate their corporate leaders from liability for claims made against them while serving in this official capacity.

Specifically, we examined how the D&O insurance purchased by everyone from privately held firms and for-profit businesses to non-profit organizations and educational institutions is comprised of elements known as “Sides.” We’ll continue our examination of this topic in today’s post.

Understanding the protection provided by D&O insurance

Mon Apr 10th, 2017 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

It goes without saying that for any business, the primary objective is always improving the bottom line, meaning its net earnings. While this, of course, can be accomplished by simultaneously growing revenue and cutting costs, it can also be realized to a certain extent through defensive measures like securing the necessary business insurance policies.

While these business insurance policies safeguard the enterprise itself, it’s important to understand that this coverage does not extend to individual company officers, meaning they may be left personally exposed to financial losses stemming from a lawsuit.

Understanding insurance bad faith and other important issues – II

Fri Dec 9th, 2016 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

In a previous post, we discussed how the failure on the part of an insurance company to fulfill its duties to defend and indemnify may be grounds for an insurance bad faith lawsuit. Specifically, we discussed how aggrieved policyholders can pursue either first-party claims — failing to settle claims in good faith — or third-party claims — failing to settle third-party claims within policy limits in good faith.

Rejection of benefits leads to bad faith insurance lawsuit

Fri Dec 2nd, 2016 on     Bad Faith Insurance,    

Many people in Florida and elsewhere do not question an insurer when it issues a denial of benefits. In many instances, however, insurers will interpret language in the policy to their own benefit. When they do that blindly and ignore their plain responsibilities to their insured customer, the company may be liable to the insured under the principles of bad faith insurance law.

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