How does an insurance company commit bad faith?

Insurance companies are not required to approve every claim that their customers make. But they must take claims seriously and treat their customers fairly.

This is more than good business — it’s contract law. Parties to a contract owe each other an implied covenant of “good faith and fair dealing.” This means that, even if it is not explicitly stated in the contract, the law presumes the parties will carry out their obligations in good faith.

An insurance policy is a type of contract, so your insurance company owes you a duty to act in good faith. If it fails, you will likely suffer significant harm, and may have to go to court to make yourself financially “whole” again.

So what does insurance bad faith look like? It can be when the insurer denies a claim without giving a just cause, or when it fails to make a thorough investigation. Or when the company approves a claim but drags its feet on actually paying. These are just a few examples of ways your insurance company might abuse your trust and unfairly deny you the money you deserve.

Taking on an insurance company is not easy. They have much higher financial resources than the average customer for legal disputes. But victims of bad faith can still fight back. The right bad faith insurance attorney will have the experience necessary to know where the evidence is, and how to build a case against the insurance company, so that you may get the funds the company agreed to pay you.