Insurance bad faith is any sort of business practice or tactic an insurance company uses to
save themselves money while simultaneously breaking, violating, or otherwise
altering premade contracts with their customers. Sometimes it comes in
the form of
delaying the handling of your claim after a
hurricane smashes your storefront windows. Other times it can be found when an insurance
company knowingly
underpays your claim, offering far less than you need and deserve. No matter how
insurance bad faith looks, it is a big problem for you and needs to be
addressed readily.
Follow these three helpful steps if you are dealing with insurance bad faith:
-
Review your contract: First things first, you need to know if there has been a violation of your
contract, or if they are just acting uncooperative. Get a full version
of your contract that is dated
before you filed your claim for review. There have been cases where an insurance
company will alter policies after a claim has been filed to benefit themselves.
In the future, you should probably have your contract available before
you even file your claim.
-
Bolster your argument: If they are delaying or
denying your claim for any reason, they have either ignored the evidence you supplied or
believe it is inadequate. Take some time to get as much additional evidence
as you can, and look for things you may have not noticed initially. Could
a photograph from a different angle show how strong winds uprooted a tree
that hit your home? Was a neighbor around to see it happen that you didn’t
talk to before? It’s investigation time.
-
Call an attorney: Insurance bad faith might not be the most scandalous stories of litigation
out there but they
do call for legal action. Just like any other case, you should do all you
can to prepare it with a professional lawyer. From knowing the law inside-out
to anticipating an insurance carrier’s next moves, you will find
that having a legal advocate is the fastest way to gain an advantage in
the procedures to come.
If you live in Texas, a Houston insurance bad faith attorney from Dick
Law Firm can be the lawyer you need for your case. Our firm has been there
for 1000+ clients and we can be there for you, too! Just call
(844) HIRE-A-DICK and set up a
free case evaluation to begin.