Bad Faith Insurance Claims Keep Insurance Companies Honest

  • news

Everyone has insurance, whether it’s automobile, homeowners, or life insurance. Insurance policies provide benefits, but are often complicated and the “small print” in those policies sometimes take away the very benefits you thought you were paying for.   If you have, as a policyholder, a claim under an insurance policy that is not being handled fairly, you should be aware that you have legal rights of which you may not be aware.

The Supreme Court of South Carolina has held on numerous occasions that if an insurance company refuses to pay benefits under an insurance policy and such refusal was because of the insurance company’s “bad faith” or unreasonable actions, the insurance company can  be held liable for the policy amount and additionally for damages to the insured person for emotional distress and other consequential damages, plus potential punitive damages.

The firm of Pope & Hudgens has handled many bad faith insurance cases in recent years, including actions involving cancer insurance policies, automobile liability policies, and occupational accident policies.  In these cases, Pope & Hudgens has been successful in establishing that these insurance carriers breached their duty of good faith and fair dealings to their insureds.  Although each case is different and past results do not guarantee similar results in your case, Pope & Hudgens has been able to secure settlements and/or verdicts in excess of the amount owed under the policy.

If you feel an insurance company is not treating you properly, you should check with a competent lawyer to assess any potential legal action and to determine if you are entitled to damages far in excess of the policy benefits by virtue of bad faith insurance practices.

The law in South Carolina on bad faith refusal is designed to protect an insured who has every right to expect that his or her insurance company will perform as required.  Make sure your rights are protected by contacting competent, local attorneys with experience in handling bad faith claims.