Author Archives: Anthony Martin
Evidence Suggesting Substandard Claims Handling Supports South Dakota Statutory Vexatious Awards
Summary: Cindy Tripp and Andrea Bjornestad suffered injuries in separate car accidents. Each settled with the at-fault driver and then sought underinsured motorist benefits from their own insurance companies each of which offered to settle for less than the UIM … Continue reading
Tagged "Best Settlement", Bad Faith, Claim Value, Evaluation Range, Section 58-12-3, Set Off, South Dakota, UIM Claim, Vexatious
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One Reasonable Basis for Denying Coverage Defeats Bad Faith in Iowa
Summary: Pella Corporation, an Iowa company, was a defendant in two class action cases in Illinois. Those cases alleged that Pella’s windows were defectively designed and manufactured. Liberty Mutual filed a declaratory judgment action in Iowa federal court contending it … Continue reading
Tagged Accident, CGL Policies, Class Action, Defense Costs, Iowa, Occurrence, Property Damage, Third Party
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California State Pleading Rules Don’t Govern in California Federal Court, but What About Twombly and Iqbal?
Summary: Bruce Rodgers was driving a company car when he was involved in an accident which injured his passenger. After his passenger sued him, the defense was tendered to Greenwich which defended under a reservation of rights before filing a … Continue reading
Tagged Bad Faith, Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing, California, Iqbal, Malice, Necessary Party, Punitive Damages, Twombly
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Nevada Mother Lies and Loses
Summary: A Nevada mother applied for health insurance coverage on behalf of her four-year-old daughter. About two weeks later, the daughter was seen by a doctor who diagnosed sexual precocity, made a referral to a specialist, and ordered tests and … Continue reading
Almost Getting It Right Does Not Foreclose a Bad Faith Suit in Colorado
Summary: American Family insured the Dunns who had sewer and water backup flooding in their basement. That flooding led to a mold build up and them vacating the house. The vacant and unheated house during a Colorado winter resulted in … Continue reading
Tagged Colorado, Implied Duty of Good Faith and Fair Dealing, Mold, Remediation, Sewer Backup, Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
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Wow! Wisconsin Supreme Court “Needlessly Alters the Well Established [Bad Faith] Law and Creates… New Pleading Requirements and Uncertain Procedures That are Unnecessary and Confusing.” (Bradley, J.)
Summary: Allstate insured Wanda Brethorst was injured while a passenger in the car her husband was driving. The Allstate policy provided both medpay and uninsured motorist coverages. Allstate paid her medical expenses up to the $5,000.00 medpay limit and offered … Continue reading
Tagged Fairly Debatable, First Party Bad Faith, Intentional Tort, MIST Injuries, Third Party Bad Faith, Wisconsin
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Scottsdale Insurance Has No Coverage or Bad Faith Exposure for Painless Steel’s Painful Body Piercing Activity
Summary: A Painless Steel customer was injured due to a body piercing. The co-owners of Painless Steel had foregone the expense of insuring it so the commercial liability insurer for one of the individual owners had no duty to defend … Continue reading
Tagged Bad Faith, Duty to Defend, Duty to Indemnify, Infection, Washington, Washington Consumer Protection Act.
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Treat ‘Em Right to Win the Fight
Summary: Safeco had reviewed the facts, carefully evaluated the value of the Plaintiff’s uninsured motorist case, round tabled the case when challenged that its offers were too low, and documented well its offers and the reasons for those offers. Although … Continue reading
California Courts Require Airlines to Strictly Comply with Pilot Warranty or Lose Coverage and the Right to Seek a Bad Faith Recovery
Summary: The insured’s failure to strictly comply with the aviation insurance pilot warranty negated coverage and defeated the insured’s bad faith claims. Trishan Air, Inc. v. Federal Insurance Company, 635 F.3d 422 (9th Cir. 2011) Federal Insurance issued an aviation … Continue reading
Insurer Wins! Supreme Court of Louisiana Rules that Hurricane Katrina Property Damage Claimants, Can’t Get No Class Action Satisfaction (For Statutory Bad Faith or on Other Claims)
Summary: The fact intensive nature of bad faith/extra-contractual damages claims make them unsuitable for class action treatment. Dupree v. Lafayette Insurance Co. 51 So.3d 673, 2009-2602 (La. 11/30/10) Natural disasters spawn death and destruction along with pain and agony as … Continue reading