Trilogy of Decisions Finds Insurers in Bad Faith

Insurance companies, even at their best, can be slow to respond to claims and to place what the insured regards as obstacles in the way of coverage. At their worst, as set forth in the cases discussed below, insurers can ignore their policyholders and violate their policy obligations. In all of these cases, policyholders are prone to shout "bad faith." However, bad faith law differs dramatically from state to state, and is often unavailable as a remedy. The cases discussed below demonstrate a new willingness by the courts to hold insurers to their contractual obligations and to impose meaningful extra contractual damages for their failure to do so.