California Insurance Bad Faith Claims
As an insurance consumer, you have rights. Walkup Melodia lawyers know those rights and regularly bring suit to enforce them and protect you as a consumer. Under California insurance statutes, your auto insurance company has numerous duties and obligations to you, its policyholder:
- Your insurance company should give your interests the same consideration that it gives its own interests.
- Your insurance company should deal with you fairly and in good faith (with honest intentions).
- Your insurer should advise you of all benefits you could receive and the time limits and other conditions that may apply to your claim.
- It should inform you of what you need to do to protect your rights to recovery.
- When you bring a claim, it should thoroughly investigate it with an eye toward paying your claim, not denying it.
- Your insurer should keep you informed of progress on your claim and acknowledge communications it receives from you.
- It should pay legitimate claims in full and without unreasonable delay.
If you have had problems with your car insurance company, this list may surprise you. All too often, we hear policyholders complain that:
- The insurance company delayed payment for so long that the policyholder suffered serious financial hardship.
- The insurance company engaged “medical experts” with the intention of disallowing medical care and minimizing payments rather than understanding clients’ medical needs.
California Car Insurance Bad Faith Attorney
If your insurance company has acted unreasonably when denying or delaying payment on your uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) claim, the uninsured and underinsured bad faith lawyers at Walkup Melodia may be able to bring a case to court for insurance bad faith.
Walkup, Melodia, Kelly & Schoenberger can help. We are one of California’s premier personal injury law firms, tackling some of the most difficult injury cases in the state. Our attorneys have extensive experience in arbitration and litigation against insurance companies such as State Farm, Allstate, Geico, Mercury, USAA, Progressive, CSAA and others for California underinsured motorist insurance claims.
If you have questions about your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, contact our San Francisco law office. Schedule a free consultation to discuss your case by calling us at (415) 981-7210 or contact us online.
Were You Treated Unfairly By Your California Car Insurer?
To prove insurance bad faith, your lawyer will need to show that the delay in payment was unreasonable, that the insurance company failed to properly investigate the claim, or that the denial was outrageous or malicious.
The worse the insurance company’s conduct, the more likely it is that you, the policyholder, can recover punitive damages in court. Punitive damages go above and beyond your actual monetary losses. They are intended to penalize the insurance company for its bad behavior.
Get The Compensation You Deserve From Your Bay Area Uninsured Driver Insurance Claim
At Walkup, Melodia, Kelly & Schoenberger, our focus is on helping injured people get the compensation they need and deserve. If you were hurt by an uninsured or underinsured motorist, contact our Bay Area uninsured motorist attorneys.
Our legal team handles insurance bad faith claims throughout the Bay Area, including San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, Fremont and Santa Rosa.
If you or a loved one has been unfairly denied car insurance coverage, call us at (415) 981-7210 or contact us online. Our consultations are free.