California Bad Faith Insurance & Claim Denial Lawyers

California law imposes an implied duty of good faith and fair dealing on every insurance policy, based on fundamental principles of fairness. This duty requires insurers to act in a fair and reasonable manner and prohibits them from acting or failing to act in any way that would deprive policyholders of their owed insurance benefits.

When an insurance company does not meet its legal obligations to a policyholder or an accident victim, that victim may have grounds to pursue an insurance bad faith lawsuit with help from a California insurance claims attorney at the McKennon Law Group.

If an insurance company has acted in bad faith, a policyholder can file a lawsuit for the benefits owed under the policy, in addition to significant damages such as emotional distress damages, consequential damages, attorneys’ fees, pre-judgment interest, and punitive damages. If the insurer acted in bad faith concerning a long-term disability insurance claim, a policyholder can obtain “future damages,” which are defined as all future disability benefits to which they would be entitled.

The bad faith insurance attorneys at McKennon Law Group in California have the skills and experience to assist policyholders and injury victims with denied insurance claims. Since 1986, our insurance litigation attorneys have negotiated and litigated hundreds of insurance bad faith matters. Our team of bad faith lawyers is nationally recognized for handling insurance bad faith litigation.

If an insurance company denies, delays, or underpays a claim, a policyholder does not have to accept the decision. McKennon Law Group is ready to stand up for your rights and hold insurers accountable.

What Constitutes Insurance Bad Faith in California?

Everyone who files an insurance claim expects that claim to be handled in good faith. To establish insurance bad faith in first-party cases (such as those involving disability insurance, life insurance, health insurance, and accidental death insurance), a policyholder must show that an insurer’s delay in or withholding of benefits under the policy was unreasonable or without proper cause.

An insurer acts in bad faith when it makes “lowball” offers, unreasonably delays the payment of policy benefits, fails to conduct an adequate investigation, or avoids paying a claim that should be covered. An insurer also acts in bad faith if it conducts a biased investigation of a claim.

Your claim may be being mishandled when the insurer:

Offers a payout or settlement that is much less than your claim’s actual value (a “lowball” offer).
Provides weak, disingenuous, or blatantly false reasons for the denial of your claim.
Fails to conduct a fair investigation, or the investigation never seems to end while you receive no compensation.
Ignores you, gives you the brush-off, or endlessly requests additional information hoping you get tired of waiting or just go away.
Claims a check is in the mail—and it isn’t—or provides no payout with no explanation.

Note: A mere disagreement with an insurance claims adjuster over the dollar value of a claim does not—by itself—necessarily constitute insurance bad faith. However, if an insurance company does not treat you fairly, has not negotiated in good faith, or engages in the actions listed above, you may have legal standing to file a bad faith lawsuit.

The Advantage of Retaining a Bad Faith Attorney

Insurance companies almost always try to keep a lawyer out of the claims process, but the right California insurance lawyer will almost always be able to hold an insurance company accountable for bad faith and recover the compensation that the company owes you.

In some cases, simply retaining an attorney will be enough to compel an insurance company to treat you right. If your lawsuit succeeds, the company could be ordered by the court to pay you for additional damages—especially if the company’s bad faith was egregious.

The insurance claims attorneys at the McKennon Law Group fight on behalf of policyholders and injury victims throughout the State of California—and we’ve done that effectively for more than seven decades.

For specific discussions, please see:

Bad Faith in Disability Claims
Bad Faith in Life Insurance Claims
ERISA Insurance Claims Denials

For more information, please see our Insurance Bad Faith FAQs.

Contact Our Nationally Recognized Bad Faith & Disability Claim Denial Lawyers Today!

We have been litigating ERISA insurance, disability insurance, life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, health insurance, bad faith, and other insurance matters since 1986. Our bad faith lawyers are nationally recognized experts in insurance bad faith litigation. Our insurance attorneys are top-rated by all major peer-review rating agencies and have been honored to receive numerous prestigious awards and recognitions. See About Us.

No lawyers in California or anywhere in the United States are better suited to litigate your bad faith or ERISA insurance claims. Our law firm is not afraid to fight the big insurance companies and we have extensive experience fighting them.

Contact us now for a consultation and take the first step toward recovering the benefits you deserve. For a free initial consultation, please fill out this free consultation form or call us at 1-800-682-4137. Our law offices are located in San Diego, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.