You buy insurance to protect your assets and to provide peace of mind. Sometimes insurance companies do not honor their obligations even when they should. When your claim is wrongfully denied, Lacy & Snyder LLP can help you protect your rights. Georgia, as well as most other states, enacted a “bad faith” law to protect consumers from unscrupulous insurers. Under this law, if you have had your claim denied in “bad faith,” you can recover the value of your claim as well as a penalty and your attorneys’ fees if successful.
After collecting your premium dollars and promising to protect you from financial loss, insurance companies have very specific and defined obligations when one of their policyholders makes a claim. The law requires the insurance company to handle a claim fairly, honestly, and in a timely fashion. After a loss has occurred, whether it be related to a person's home, auto, or health, the insured is almost always extremely vulnerable due to the emotional and mental stress that naturally arises when an accident or illness has occurred. For that reason, courts require insurance companies to fully honor their written commitment to respond appropriately when a claim is presented.
You may have selected your insurance company based upon representations of honesty and integrity, such as that you’ll be treated “like a good neighbor,” or that you’re placing your financial and emotional security in “good hands.” Because of this special relationship of trust that exists between the policyholder and the insurance company, the law imposes significant duties and obligations on an insurance company that are not present in a normal contractual relationship. These higher obligations are, in part, based upon the fact that the insurance company writes the insurance contract, establishes the specific terms of the agreement without any negotiation or bargaining with the insured, sets the price to be paid for coverage, etc. In essence, those insures who have suffered a loss are literally "at the mercy" of their insurance company which, of course, is a very sophisticated organization that has far superior financial resources and negotiation skills as compared to its insured individuals.
Contact Lacy & Snyder LLP today at 770-486-8445 for all of your Insurance Law needs.
