AUGUST 2014 BAD FAITH CASES: FAILURE TO FOLLOW INVESTIGATIVE AND CLAIMS HANDLING STANDARDS IN INSURER’S OWN MANUAL, ADJUSTER’S FAILURE TO CONSULT WITH OTHERS AND GO BEYOND HER OWN CONCLUSIONS, AND FAILURE TO CONDUCT IME DEFEAT MOTION TO DENY BAD FAITH CLAIM (Western District)
Mineo v. Geico involved a UIM claim. The insured was a Vietnam War Veteran who had suffered significant combat injuries during the War. Years later he was in a motor vehicle accident and suffered a shoulder injury. After the accident, there was some record that he suffered a further shoulder injury.
The insurer offered a settlement sum that the insured rejected. The insured contended that the adjuster incorrectly placed too much emphasis on the post-accident injury in devaluing the extent of his injury from the accident.
In addressing the insurer’s motion for summary judgment on the bad faith claim, the court stated that in evaluating the insured’s bad faith claim it could consider insurer’s because bad faith can include a lack of good faith investigation into facts, and failure to communicate with the claimant.
The court stated that an “insurance company … is not required to show the process by which it reached its conclusion was flawless or that the investigatory methods it employed eliminated possibilities at odds with its conclusion.” However, it “must conduct a meaningful investigation, which may include an in-person interview, examination under oath, medical authorizations, and/or independent medical examinations.”
The adjuster relied on only one physical therapy record to justify her position that the injury was caused or aggravated by the post-accident fall. This was based on her review of the medical records, and her conclusion that no IME was needed. The court observed she was not a doctor, knew that the insured disputed the record, and the insured’s physical therapist had explained that there was a significant left shoulder dysfunction prior to the post-accident fall.
The court cited to the insurer’s claims manual which “admonishes its adjusters to avoid drawing conclusions based on assumption or speculation,” and which “underscores the importance of completeness….” The manual warned: “If the denial is unsound, the result may be a complaint or a lawsuit, either of which could have been avoided. Because some cases turn on very fine points, reports must be complete and accurate.”
The manual also included “a Sequence of Investigation, which ‘applies to the majority of cases,’ and sets forth that adjusters should: ‘Determine whether independent medical examinations are necessary, and if so, see your supervisor and then arrange for them. Determine whether medical peer review should be secured. If so, see your supervisor.’” The adjuster did neither, and the carrier only had an IME pursued post-litigation.
The court next addressed the issue of whether the insurer failed to meet its own standards of using a “90-Day Control” which is used to calculated and set reserves and to revisit these matters at 6, 12, and 18 months. Under the insured’s manual “Supervisors and managers review each summary and give direction, comments and instructions…. Each Summary and supervisor/manager review must be completed by the end of the month in which the 90th day falls.”
The court questioned whether this was created or produced to the insured.
In addressing stalled negotiations and the languishing nature of the process, the court stated that the insurer could have conducted an in-person interview, done an examination under oath, sought medical authorizations and/or an IME. The IME eventually conducted appeared to favor the insured’s version of events; and the court cited case law for the proposition that a failure to conduct an IME could be the basis for a bad faith claim.
In this regard, the court was “mindful” of the Unfair Insurance Practices Act.
The summary judgment motion was denied.
Date of Decision: July 15, 2014
Mineo v. Geico, Civil Action No. 12-1547, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 95686 (W.D. Pa. July 15, 2014) (Fischer, J.)
