There are lots of different types of insurance available to consumers today. These protect a person's property, motor vehicles, and insure health and life. The consumer buys the insurance policy, and at that moment, the insurance company agrees to perform various legal obligations. For instance, when you buy automobile insurance, if you are in an accident that is your fault, the insurance company has an obligation to defend you and to pay the damages that might be proven against you up to the limits of the policy. If the insurance company does not do that, it can be liable for what is called "bad faith". Racine Olson has helped protect people and their assets in Idaho Falls, Pocatello, and other places around the state.
Bad Faith Insurance ActionsA person buys liability insurance on their motor vehicle because, if they are in an accident, they want to make sure that their assets are protected from a judgment that could be entered by the injured person. For instance, let's assume that a driver negligently hits a person who is walking across the street in a crosswalk. Although it is just an accident, the driver of the motor vehicle is at fault and, depending on the injuries suffered by the pedestrian, there could be a large judgment entered against the driver. For our example, let's assume that the driver of the motor vehicle had $250,000 in liability insurance. This means that the insurance company could settle the case for anything below $250,000 and protect all of the driver's assets. As our example continues, the pedestrian goes to a personal injury attorney, and that attorney makes a claim for damages against the insurance company for $250,000 even though the pedestrian was injured and has hospital bills for more than $500,000. It would be in the driver's best interests if the insurance company immediately paid the $250,000 to the injured party. This would release the driver from being liable further to the injured party and would protect the driver's assets. If the insurance company decides not to pay the $250,000, then this puts the personal assets of the driver at risk.
Obviously, the driver would want the insurance company to immediately pay the $250,000 and spare or protect his or her assets. The Idaho Supreme Court has stated that an insurance company must communicate with its insured and inform it of any offers of compromise by the injured party. If the insurance company does not do that, or does not protect the driver's assets, then the tort of bad faith can be used by the driver against the insurance company.
The Insurance Bad Faith attorneys at Racine Olson understand the tort of bad faith and how to protect your assets in the situation of an unfortunate accident. We have been there for others and would be happy to stand by you to help protect you and those things that you have worked hard for.
Insurance Company IntimidationInsurance companies often just say "no". It's easy to be intimidated by this because they are large, and one immediately assumes that because the insurance company says "no" that there is nothing else to be done. This is not the case. Although insurance bad faith cases are often complicated, insurance companies can be held responsible for the failure to treat their insureds fairly. Furthermore, when you get to court, it doesn't matter how big the insurance company is; only one attorney can stand up at a time, and we are up to the challenge.
The Insurance Bad Faith attorneys at Racine Olson would be happy to help you solve problems of this nature. We've been there before and have the experience and resources necessary to protect you. Problem Solved.