A UIM claimant alleged bad faith based upon: “misstatement of … coverage limits, alleged delay in claims processing, insistence upon a sworn statement under oath …, persistence in collecting medical records and failure to comply with insurances regulations regarding periodic status notices to insureds as evidence of bad faith.”
The insurer wanted summary judgment on the bad faith claim, which the court granted, stating: “that, while both parties indulged in occasional missteps in the process of reviewing and litigating this claim, the essentially uncontested evidence does not meet the demanding, precise and exacting legal standards prescribed under Pennsylvania law for a bad faith insurance processing claim.”
The court observed the “well-established” principle “that it is not bad faith for an insurance company to ‘conduct a thorough investigation into a questionable claim.’” Insurers can be successful in defending against bad faith claim by showing that there were “red flags” warranting further investigation.
Thus, delay alone does not equate to bad faith: “the mere passage of time does not define bad faith. Rather, an inference of bad faith only arises when time passes as part of a pattern of knowing or reckless delay in processing a meritorious insurance claim.”
The court observed that insurers in UIM cases need to deal with the claim against the underlying tortfeasor, which in this case went on for a number of years. Further, the insured did not place the insurer on notice of the UIM claim until nearly 5 years after the accident. Once the claim was made, the parties engaged in an ongoing process to attempt to resolve the dispute.
Further, though the carrier did originally misstate the scope of coverage, this was an understandable mistake and was corrected, resulting only in a brief delay.
In addition, there was nothing untoward in seeking a sworn statement in light of multiple circumstances, including, e.g., incomplete medical information. The court did not accept the argument that no sworn statement was needed because the insured had been deposed two years earlier in the underlying litigation. Further, as stated, each party engaged in some missteps in exchanging medical information, and the insurer was justified in seeking further medical information after having obtained some records.
Next, in evaluating the claim the underlying tortfeasor only settled years after the accident, and for a sum less than policy limits; a factor going to the UIM insurer’s ability to evaluate the claim. The insured had originally demanded over double the UIM policy limits to settle, and then policy limits.
The final argument involved alleged violations of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act and the Unfair Insurance Practices Act, specifically concerning the regulatory requirement to provide 45 day updates on the status of insurance claims.
The court recognized that a “violation of these insurance rules can be considered when examining a bad faith claim under §8371.” The court then went on: “However, it is also clear beyond peradventure ‘that a violation of the UIPA or the UCSP is not a per se violation of the bad faith standard.’”
Applying these principles, the court concluded: “This case aptly illustrates why technical violations of these state insurance regulations cannot be equated with bad faith. The record before us amply reveals active, extensive and on-going communications …. Our review of the substance of these multiple communications … reveals that even when the communications are viewed in a light most favorable to [the insured], these communications do not support a claim of bad faith shown by clear and convincing evidence.”
The court then observed: “Given that the communications, in their substance, do not allow for a finding of bad faith here, it would be anomalous to conclude that the fact that the communications did not meet the technical frequency requirements mandated by insurance regulations, standing alone, established a bad faith claim in this case.”
Date of Decision: April 10, 2017
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