Most people have heard the terms, “Good faith”, “Bad faith”, “The duty of good faith and fair dealing”, and “Statutory bad faith”. The question would be: What do these terms mean and why do we care? In Texas, as in many other states, the duty of an insurance company to…
Texas insurance companies are regulated by the Texas Department of Insurance. The written laws for most insurance companies are found in the Texas Insurance Code. These laws and regulations apply to all insurance companies in Texas. So whether the company is located or does business in Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington,…
The recourse that a Texas insurance policy holder has against their insurance company depends on exactly what it is that the insurance company does that is wrong or illegal. The types of wrong that can be committed by insurance companies are too numerous to mention all of them here. However,…
An insurance company in Texas has a duty or responsibility to people who purchase insurance. When dealing with one its customers / insureds it has a duty to that person. This is referred to as the “duty of good faith and fair dealing”. When an insurance company violates its duty…
It is easy to say “you know when you know”. Most people will sense something isn’t right. Often times the insurance company sends you a letter saying your claim for benefits is being denied and state as a reason, something you absolutely know is wrong. Let’s look at what the…
The Texas Department of Insurance has the authority to punish insurance companies and agents who commit wrongs. The punishment can be fines or in some cases “cease and desist” orders are issued. When an insurance company or one of their agents commits a violation of the Texas Insurance Code, the…
A United States Federal District Court in Texas recently discussed the above in a case. The life insurance policy was for $200,000. The policy was provided through a voluntary plan the beneficiary of the policy had with his employer and was an ERISA plan. ERISA stands for Employee Retirement Income…
An accident happens. A loss is incurred. A lawsuit is filed. You say “no problem I got insurance to protect me”. Well, do you? The Texas Court of Appeals in Houston recently discussed this question in the case, Accufleet, Inc. v. Hartford Fire Insurance Company. This case involved a discussion…
Before discussing the topic of this writing, a little side note. When suing insurance companies, they of course do not want to be sued, but when that happens they prefer to fight their battles in Federal Court rather than State Court. The Plaintiffs, who are the people usually suing the…
The above title is a good question. Here is my good answer. See an attorney who handles Insurance Law issues. A Dallas County case decided in 2008, confronted this issue when trying to decide what “replacement” meant in an insurance policy issued by three underwriters on some apartments. On July…