After a personal injury, you may be worried about reaching out to an insurance company. You want them to cover your financial losses as well as to cover your medical care and other needs. Unfortunately, an agent may try to offer a settlement that is well below what you need.
This is one good reason why it’s smart to talk to your attorney before you take a settlement. Additionally, if your insurance company does not want to fulfill its obligation to you or denies a claim without reason, you may be able to pursue a bad faith insurance claim against the company.
Ideally, an insurance company would always pay your claim out in full as soon as it receives the information it needs to see that you are being honest about your injuries and have met the terms of the policy. That doesn’t always happen, though. If your insurance company is:
- Not returning your calls
- Delaying discussions about a payment
- Making ridiculously low settlement offers
- Claiming that your injuries don’t meet the requirements of the policy,
then you may want to speak with your attorney about a bad faith insurance claim. Insurance companies receive monthly payments from people like you, and they should be held to their contracts. If you are able to prove that the company unreasonably denied or delayed your claim, then a judge may award you up to three times the initial claim, your attorney fees and other costs associated with your case.
If you get hurt, you deserve to be treated fairly. Our website has more on what to do if your insurance carrier is delaying your claim or refuses to pay out.