If you suspect you’re dealing with an unscrupulous insurance provider, don’t hesitate to involve our bad faith insurance law firm in Reno to hold a corrupt company accountable. When you need justice, Leverty & Associates Law can help. Schedule a free consultation today by calling (775) 322-6636.
Identifying Bad Faith Practices
Our Bad Faith Insurance Lawyers in Reno Can Help You Fight for Justice
Insurance companies have an obligation to their customers to operate in good faith. Good faith insurance practices include:
- Prompt payments of reasonable claims
- Sufficient payouts for claims
- Prompt and thorough investigations
- Timely communication
- Valid reasons presented when claims are denied.
When an insurance company fails to abide by these basic tenets, it may be acting in bad faith. Some of the most common signs of bad faith insurance tactics to watch for include:
- Delayed payments
- Low payout offers
- Delayed or insufficient investigations
- Lack of timely communication
- Unfounded denials
- Agent errors in handling the claim
- Cancellation of policy when a claim is filed.
Bad faith insurance practices take many forms. Sometimes they can be caused by mistakes and agent errors, but these bad faith practices are often undertaken intentionally.
Insurance companies are businesses that want to keep their money to themselves. At some companies, insurance agents even receive a commission based on the amount of money they can save the company on payouts for claims.
Bad faith practices often happen because corporate profits take precedence over the needs of paying policyholders. When you choose an insurance company, you have a right to expect that your insurer will satisfy its obligations when a covered loss occurs. If you’re the victim of bad faith insurance practices, our Reno bad faith insurance lawyers can help.
How Our Reno Bad Faith Insurance Lawyers Can Fight for Your Rights
What Policyholders Don’t Know Could Hurt Them
It’s always best to consult with bad faith insurance lawyers in Reno before beginning the claims process. Oftentimes, people don’t realize that with every conversation the goal of an insurance adjuster is to use their words against them to reduce the payout amount they might qualify for.
When you consult with a lawyer first, you can rest assured that your best interests are protected from the start of the claims process until the very end.
People choose their insurance company with care, pay their premiums, and expect that the company will come through in their hour of need. Unfortunately, insurance companies use underhanded tactics to delay, deny, and minimize valid claims from their policyholders every day.
Assessing a Bad Faith Situation
If you’ve initiated the claims process without legal representation and begin to suspect that something is wrong with your insurance company’s conduct, it’s not too late to seek out legal support.
Denied claims, low payout offers, and delayed communication are all reasons to contact our Reno bad faith insurance lawyer. Our lawyers will assess your situation to develop a clear picture of the issues you’re experiencing. Not every delay or denial is necessarily a bad faith practice, but it’s still a good idea to explore your options before walking away from money that you may be entitled to.
If it looks like bad faith practices are occurring, a bad faith insurance lawyer will devise a strategy for holding your insurance company accountable. This might include taking over communication with the insurance company on your behalf, pursuing legal action against the company, and gathering evidence to support your claim on an appeal.
How to Take Action Against Bad Faith Insurance Companies
Taking action against cunning insurance practices requires the aid of an experienced bad faith insurance attorney. Once your attorney reviews your case and agrees that you’ve been the victim of bad faith insurance practices, you can pursue a bad faith claim against your insurance company.
If your insurance company is found guilty of bad faith practices, you stand to gain from their attempts to take advantage of you. In addition to compensation for your original insurance claim, you might walk away from a bad faith claim with additional compensation, including:
- Punitive damages
- Statutory penalties
- Damages for emotional distress.
It’s typical for bad faith consequences to match the damages, so when an insurance company tries to withhold a large compensation amount, a judge or jury is more likely to award damages in relation to the harm suffered.
Proving Bad Faith Insurance Companies
Standing Up to Big Insurance Bullies
Proving bad faith is a matter of proving that the insurance company breached its duty of good faith. Your insurance lawyer will need to build a case showing that the company did not have adequate cause to refuse to pay appropriate compensation for an issue covered under the terms of the insurance policy.
In theory, this is simple; but in practice, it can get very complicated. Insurance policy coverage often falls into the realm of interpretation. Insurance policies are often drafted to be somewhat vague. Deciding whether a policy should apply to your specific situation can come down to a matter of opinion.
This is the area in which an insurance company can seek to disqualify its policyholders from coverage by asking leading questions. For example, a claims adjuster may say that you need to provide a recorded statement about your accident. Insurance adjusters often start a call for a recorded statement by asking a simple question like, “How are you today?” They hope for a response of “I’m fine.” With this simple statement, they can seek to downplay your injuries.
When you have an experienced bad faith insurance claim lawyer on your side, you can overcome underhanded tactics to delay or deny your claim.
FAQs About Bad Faith Insurance Claims
If you’re thinking about contacting a bad faith insurance law firm in Reno, you probably have some questions. Bad faith insurance can be a particularly confusing subject for policyholders because it can be hard to tell when your insurer is acting in bad faith.
Here are a few of the most common questions that we hear.
Proving that bad faith practices have taken place is primarily the job of your bad faith insurance lawyers in Reno. However, there are some necessary steps you can take to help provide your attorney with the evidence they may need.
If you believe that you have been a victim of bad faith insurance practices, keep all paperwork and document all interactions with your insurance company. You can help influence a positive outcome by:
- Retaining copies of your policy
- Retaining copies of any denials or offers
- Saving all emails and correspondence
- Recording phone calls
- Maintaining copies of all bills and expenses related to your claim
- Keeping detailed notes with any other relevant information.
The more documentation you can provide to your bad faith insurance attorney, the more support you’ll have for your case.
Bad faith claims in Nevada are subject to specific laws. These laws can be confusing because the time frame for legal action will depend on a few different factors.
The statute of limitations in Nevada is three years if filed under statutory grounds and four years if filed under common law. Your bad faith insurance lawyer will help you understand which guidelines apply to your situation.
The time frame is further complicated for another reason. A statute of limitations time window begins at the time at which the bad faith practice occurs. It can be difficult to put a date on this when it comes to the claims process.
The complications surrounding the Nevada statute of limitations for bad faith insurance mean that acting promptly is imperative for a successful outcome. If you’re considering taking legal action over bad faith insurance, don’t delay.
Our team of Reno bad faith insurance attorneys can help you navigate these complicated time frames and understand the best ways to proceed to pursue compensation before your time runs out.
Depending on the location of the insurance company, you may need to file a federal case. Filing in a state court might be possible if there’s a strong enough link between the insurance company and the state of Nevada.
Your Reno bad faith insurance lawyer will do the research on this and inform you about your best options for filing the case.
When they go to file the case, your attorney will likely need to specify the type of illegal activity your insurance provider has engaged in. Common accusations in a bad faith insurance claim include:
- Breach of contract
- Violations of Nevada’s Unfair Claim Practices Act
- Breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing
- Deceptive Trade Practices
- Fraud
The type of claim you file will depend on the specific bad faith practices your insurer engaged in.
Reasons an insurance company can deny a claim include:
- Fraudulent claims
- Claims that aren’t covered under the policy
- Policyholder actions violated the contract.
When you’re unsure whether you have a valid complaint against an insurer for failing to provide coverage, you need to contact a bad faith insurance law firm in Reno. Our experienced attorneys will review your policy and help you understand whether valid grounds for a claim exist.
As long as you’re not attempting to make a fraudulent claim, the other points are open to interpretation. If your attorney thinks building an argument is possible, they’ll likely agree to work with you.
Still have questions about bad faith insurance claims in Reno? Schedule a free consultation with Leverty & Associates Law by calling (775) 322-6636 today. We’ll explore the facts of your case and help you to understand your legal options to move forward.
Client Testimonial
”Attorney Bill Ginn was very helpful and considerate in clarifying some questions I had regarding a situation with my health insurance. He took the time to review my documents and provide advice in a very timely manner. Personable and professional. Highly recommended.” – L.V. (Google Review)
Attorney Patrick Leverty
With his master’s in insurance law, Patrick routinely helps individuals and businesses who are having issues with their insurance company. He also has extensive experience with personal injury actions, complex tort actions, product liability matters, and class actions. Patrick Leverty is rated AV by Martindale Hubbell (the highest rating) and has been granted membership in the Million Dollar Advocate Forum, and Multi-Million Dollar Advocate Forum. Patrick Leverty has been certified as a Personal Injury Specialist by the State Bar of Nevada. [ Attorney Bio ]
Insurance companies are part of a trillion-dollar for-profit industry. Health insurance, homeowners’ insurance, auto insurance, life insurance, and business insurance are unavoidable costs of everyday life. When you’ve upheld your end of the contract by paying your premiums on time, you shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get the coverage you deserve. Our experienced attorneys can work for your best interests, pressing insurance providers to meet their obligations for coverage.
