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Insurance Litigation
Florida Insurance Litigation – Trial Lawyer Alan Sackrin, Esq.
Insurance Policies | Insurance Bad Faith | Insurance Claims Disputes | Insurance Lawsuits
Insurance is really just a specific kind of contract: the insurance company, or “carrier,” agrees to cover certain, defined losses for its customer, or “policyholder,” over a certain time period if the customer pays the company a certain amount of money, or “premium.”
Insurance is a Regulated Industry in the State of Florida
Insurance companies doing business in the State of Florida must be registered with the Florida state government in order to do business legally in the state. Insurance agents, insurance adjusters, and insurance advisors must all be professionally licensed by the State of Florida Division of Insurance, as well.
Some of the biggest and most profitable corporations in America are insurance companies that cover people living and working and having fun in Florida today. Many Floridians are covered by companies whose names are familiar to most:
- Travelers
- Allstate
- GEICO
- State Farm
- USAA
- Liberty Mutual
- Nationwide
- Progressive
- Farmers
- Hartford
Insurance Bad Faith Actions: Bad Faith and Breach of Contract Lawsuits against Insurance Companies
There are two kinds of Florida insurance bad faith claims: first-party and third-party. Florida lawsuits can be based upon either kind of insurance claim.
First-Party Insurance Bad Faith Lawsuits
First-party bad faith cases happen when insurance claims or lawsuits are filed by policyholders after they have filed a claim with their insurance carrier when losses arise that are covered by the policy. The customer sues their own insurance company for not doing the right thing.
In first-party bad faith cases, the insurance company is there to protect the policyholder as agreed upon in the policy itself. That can mean money and more. For example, if the policyholder is sued, then the insurance company or carrier may provide an attorney to help the policyholder defend against the claims made against the policyholder for causing the incident or accident. This is often the case in car crashes and other motor vehicle accidents.
Third-Party Insurance Bad Faith Lawsuits
In third-party bad faith cases, the lawsuit is filed against another person’s insurance company because the policy between that person and the company legally covered the situation but that company still refused to pay the claim and cover the injuries. For example, in a rear-end collision where the driver of the second car is clearly at fault but his insurance company doesn’t honor the claim, then the person who was hurt when his vehicle was rear-ended can file a lawsuit against that carrier as a third party bad faith insurance lawsuit recognized under Florida law.
Florida law requires that the insurance company resolve the claim in a reasonable time and manner, with a reasonable claims payment being made to the injury victim. Fail to do that, and Florida law allows the injury victim to sue the company for dragging its heels.
What is Insurance Bad Faith?
When insurance companies fail to do as they agree to do under their contract with their customer, or policyholder, then this is one form of insurance litigation. It is usually called “insurance bad faith” and the plaintiff sues or threatens to sue the insurance carrier for not doing as it should have done.
Insurance bad faith can be based upon traffic accident cases, but that is not the only type of insurance bad faith lawsuit. Florida insurance bad faith claims have been made in Dade County, Broward County, and elsewhere based upon many other kinds of insurance policies, including:
- health insurance
- homeowners’ insurance
- motorcycle insurance
- life insurance
- property insurance (for example, damage to a car, van, or motorcycle)
- dental insurance
- renters’ insurance (tenant policy)
- hurricane insurance
- flood insurance
- travel insurance (cruise line, airline).
Insurance policyholders may need to file a lawsuit against their insurance company in a number of situations, all of which are various ways that the carrier has breached the contract it made with their customer. Lawsuits against insurance companies are filed for things like:
- Insurance company fails to pay the claim
- Insurance company denies the claim as being covered under the policy
- Insurance company does not pay enough of the claim
- Insurance company denies payment
- Insurance company procrastinates on payment
- Insurance company delays making a decision on a claim
- Insurance company keeps asking for more paperwork or information but never makes a decision or a payment.
Alan Sackrin adds value to his clients because he will go to trial when the insurance company denies coverage or doesn’t make a settlement offer that he believes is fair. Alan won’t send his client to a different lawyer to file a lawsuit, he’s the lawyer that other lawyers send their cases to when they are unable to obtain a reasonable settlement offer.
Florida Insurance Claims – Lawyer Alan Sackrin is a Board Certified Trial Specialist
As a Board Certified Civil Trial attorney, Alan Sackrin is one of only 1069 Lawyers recognized with this achievement as of January 2012 in the State of Florida. For over 40 years, many of which have been practicing in his own Hallandale, Florida law firm, Alan Sackrin has helped people who have been seriously injured by the actions of another to find justice – and that includes not only filing claims and lawsuits in various injury or negligence cases but it also means that Alan Sackrin, as a Florida insurance claims lawyer, has years of experience going after insurance companies that fail to do the right thing either in first-party bad faith or third-party bad faith cases.
“I’ve dedicated my life’s work to helping people who have been hurt by the actions of someone else, whether it’s another person or a big, unfeeling company – like an insurance carrier. Insurance companies are companies that run for profit and it’s sad but all too often true that insurance companies will try and pay less than justice requires, or even try and pay nothing at all, on a claim because paying the claim means money out of the company’s pockets. Insurance lawsuits against insurance companies sometimes have to be filed in order for justice to be done.”
Get a Free Case Evaluation by an Experienced Trial Lawyer
If you have questions about a Florida insurance company or an insurance policy, feel free to contact trial lawyer Alan Sackrin to find out how he can help you. You can contact him by phone at 954-458-8655 or by e-mail through this website to schedule an appointment and learn more about your rights from a South Florida insurance claims and coverage trial lawyer. He always offers a free initial consultation.
Also, See:
Representing the Uninsured in Florida
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