Insurance
carriers insure homes, lives, businesses, health, ability to work, children,
professions, and means of transportation. An insurance dispute begins
with an incident that gives rise to a claim being filed.
The insurance company will review the claim and make a determination
as to whether the claim is legitimately covered under the policy. The
dispute arises when the insurance carrier make decisions that the claim is
not covered, which turn out to be incorrect.
At
the heart of these disputes are the insurance policies.
These policies are complex contracts that define the rights, duties,
and obligations of both the insurer and the insured. Further complicating
the issue is the legal and often confusing language of the policy.
This legal and confusing language is where the actual dispute is resolved
since both sides most determine what is actually meant by the language of
the contract.
Since
the dispute arise based on the language of the policy and that policy is a
contract the cause of action is a breach of contract action.
Additionally, the dispute includes action for unfair claim practice
and refusal to pay a valid claim. The
attorney will work with the adjusters and even the insurance company’s legal
counsel to try and resolve the claim without filing suit.
However, if resolution is not possible then a suit will be filed.
Insurance
disputes are not easily resolved and may take over a year to resolve.
The shortest time possible is approximately ninety days.
Most cases do not make it to actual trial since it is everyone’s best
interest to avoid the courtroom. However,
if an attorney determines that you have a case and that attorney takes your
case, the chances are very good that the claimant will received some recovery
for their claim.
