D.R. Patti & Associates are no strangers to insurance companies acting in bad faith. With over 30 years of experience in Las Vegas personal injury cases and litigation, we know what to look for and how to hold insurance companies responsible. An insurance company is considered to be acting in bad faith if it denies or mishandles an insurance claim in such a way that it is considered unreasonable. In car accidents, an innocent victim may be entitled to compensation from their own automobile insurance policy if they have uninsured (UM) or underinsured (UIM) coverage. A UM policy covers an insured who is struck by a car with no insurance or by a hit-and-run driver, while UIM policy covers an insured who sustains damages more than what the at-fault driver’s insurance policy can cover. Also, there are times when accidents happen that are not caused by the negligence of other citizens. In these cases, a person will likely have to have their own insurance company pay for their medical expenses. When an insurance company acts in bad faith on these claims it can cause an unnecessary burden upon the victim.
Denied By Your Insurance Company After an Accident?
There is no national standard for bad faith insurance laws. In Nevada, bad faith insurance cases, the insurer can be held liable for damages sustained by the insured, which includes the necessity of hiring a lawyer in such cases. The insurance company entered into a contract with the person who bought the insurance who is called the insured and owes its insured a duty to act in good faith to protect their insured’s interest. When an insurance company acts unreasonably, it acts in bad faith and may be liable to pay its insured the benefits of the policy to which they are entitled and damages incurred by the insured because of the insurance company’s unreasonable actions (i.e., hiring an attorney), as well as punitive damages. Punitive damages are intended to penalize the insurance company and deter it from continuing its unreasonable conduct.
Unfair Insurance Claim Practices
Bad faith insurance practices can occur after any accident. Whether the insured was in a car accident, boating accident or even injured as a pedestrian, the insurer has a duty to act in good faith. There are several things an insurance company can do that are considered bad faith practices.
- Unreasonable delay of payment.
- Unreasonable denial of benefits.
- Not thoroughly and promptly conducting an investigation into the claim.
- Making an unreasonable interpretation of the policy language.
- Refusing to pay for a legitimate claim.
What Are An Insured’s Options When An Insurance Carrier Commits Bad Faith?
If you are having problems caused by an insurance company’s bad faith practices, you should retain a lawyer immediately. If the company is shown to have acted in bad faith, the courts will award damages to cover the victim’s attorney fees.
You should gather your insurance policy, all correspondence you have had with the company and other documentation that you feel may be pertinent to the case. The experienced Las Vegas insurance bad faith attorneys of D.R. Patti & Associates can use all of this information to get you the benefits you deserve.
During this process we will help draft letters to send to the director of claims at your insurance company and also to the commissioner at the Nevada Division of Insurance. Insurance companies are always looking to save money, and if they know you have a lawyer, they may likely settle right away to save money in the long run.
If you think your insurance company is acting in bad faith, call the Las Vegas personal injury attorneys of D.R. Patti & Associates at 702-331-3391. We have extensive experience with bad faith insurance practices, and sometimes simply having a lawyer can make insurance companies change their practices.