Helping Policyholders Resolve Insurance Coverage Matters In Illinois And Nationwide
At King & Jones, our insurance litigation lawyers represent individual and business policyholders in litigation against their insurance companies. We help clients obtain the insurance protection they paid for when the insurer delays or denies coverage.
Insurance policies are complicated, highly technical, and voluminous contracts that even sophisticated business owners and corporate executives can have trouble deciphering and navigating. As a result, most policyholders rely on the representations of insurance agents and brokers when purchasing the coverage they need for different situations.
When an insurance claim arises, particularly a high-dollar commercial claim, insurance companies may slowly respond, acknowledge coverage, or pay benefits. The dedicated insurance litigation attorneys at King & Jones have extensive experience helping business owners get the benefit of their bargain when it comes to insurance. In fact, we have a strong track record of successfully resolving cases against some of the nation’s largest insurance companies.
Our Chicago insurance litigation lawyers understand insurance terms and legal practices, so we can analyze an insurance contract and how it relates to the facts at hand. You can trust our team to help with a property damage claim, business interruption losses, title insurance violation, or other liability insurance litigation matters in Chicago or nationwide.
For help with a property damage claim, business interruption, title insurance, liability or other insurance litigation matter in Chicago or nationwide, call the law firm of King & Jones at 312-372-4142 to speak with an experienced and successful insurance litigation attorney.
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What Is Insurance Bad Faith?
Every contract, including insurance policies, includes an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing requiring the parties to act reasonably toward each other. This duty is codified in many state insurance codes. In the context of an insurance contract, this duty of good faith obligates insurers to pay valid claims without undue delay. On the one hand, it is reasonable to expect insurance companies to ensure that any claim is valid before paying benefits. A reasonable investigation into a claim could conceivably include:
- Making sure the policy is current and that premiums have been paid
- Requiring the policyholder to provide proof of loss with enough detail for the insurer to determine that the policy applies to the situation
- Requesting reasonable additional information from the insured to evaluate the claim
When requests for additional information are interminable, however, the question arises whether these requests are made not to evaluate the claim but to put off paying the claim, hoping the claimant will give up or fail to respond. Requests like these might be evidence of insurance bad faith. Other bad faith insurance tactics could be:
- A failure to respond or investigate a claim
- Denying coverage without providing a valid reason
- Failing to defend a claim against the policy holder
- Unreasonable delay in processing a claim
- Rescinding a policy to avoid paying a claim
- Making an unreasonably low offer of benefits/undervaluing the claim
What Insurance Claims Litigation Does King & Jones Handle?
King & Jones helps individuals and businesses in a wide range of insurance litigation. Our experience and capability include:
PROPERTY DAMAGE
Property damage claims can be considerable; they could involve repairing or replacing property, buildings, machinery and equipment, as well as costs to cover moving, rental and storage for temporary quarters while repairs are underway. In a large commercial claim, insurers sometimes make a business decision to dispute liability and litigate rather than pay the claim outright. The insurance giants are content to drag out litigation as long as possible; meanwhile, you need benefits to meet payroll, make repairs and go on with your business. We’ll work to resolve your claim as quickly and efficiently as possible, representing your interests in arbitration or courtroom litigation, or seeking a declaratory judgment or injunction establishing your rights under the policy.
BUSINESS INTERRUPTION
Many companies wisely include business interruption coverage under their property insurance policy. When property damage causes a company to shut down operations or lose business, business interruption coverage provides valuable benefits to make up for lost revenue. Even minor damage to property can be enough to keep customers away. Aside from property damage, business interruption coverage might also apply to government-mandated closures of a business or a region due to natural disaster, disease outbreak or other emergencies. Insurance companies face a lot of exposure in these instances and might first try issuing blanket denials of claims. We take a hard look at your policy, and if your business interruption claim should be covered, rest assured we’ll fight to get you the benefits you’ve paid for.
TITLE INSURANCE
Title insurance gives buyers of real property peace of mind that they are getting good title. If title defects exist due to a mistake in the deed, forgery, undisclosed heirs or other problems, the job of title insurance is to pay or defend claims against the property owner. Unfortunately, title insurance companies that don’t want to pay claims hide behind coverage exclusions, especially in complicated cases involving eminent domain, environmental regulations or other problems that impinge on property ownership.
LIABILITY INSURANCE
Under a liability insurance policy, the insurer has a duty to pay valid claims brought against the insured or defend the insured in court if sued. Our team litigates coverage disputes when the insurer refuses to settle or defend the policyholder. Insurers can also be liable when they undertake the defense but expose the insured to extra-CONTRACTUAL liability. This situation occurs when the insurance company rejects a reasonable settlement demand within policy limits, takes the case to court and loses at trial, subjecting the insured to a jury verdict in excess of what the policy covers. We fight to enforce our clients’ rights to liability coverage and defense of third-party claims, including holding insurance companies responsible for any extra-contractual liability their actions incur.