Delayed or Underpaid Insurance Claims in Nevada

Insurance should be a simple concept. A policyholder pays premiums to the insurance company.

If that policyholder incurs damage that is covered by the policy, the insurance company reimburses that policyholder for the damage. The benefits to the insurance company are that they can collect millions in premiums without having to pay benefits because not every policyholder will make a claim.

Insurance companies are obligated to provide their policyholders with prompt and full payment of an insurance claim. If an insurance company denies or reduces the amount of a claim, it must provide the policyholder with a reason for the claim denial.

The failure to do so could give rise to legal action against your insurance company. If you’re dealing with delayed or underpaid insurance claims in Nevada, contact the Law Office of Matthew L. Sharp for an initial consultation.

What Are Your Options for a Bad Faith Insurance Claim?

While many insurance companies treat their customers fairly and satisfy their obligations of good faith and fair dealing, some insurance companies do not. For instance, an insurance adjuster may not promptly return your phone calls, or the insurance company might delay payment of your insurance claim.

If this is the case, you should ask a Reno insurance bad faith lawyer about a possible bad faith insurance claim.

Reno insurance dispute attorney Matthew L. Sharp has focused on representing individuals and businesses in a variety of insurance disputes, including bad faith, delayed insurance claims, underpayment of claims, and other insurance disputes.

What Are the Common Types of Insurance Claim Disputes?

Insurance disputes are a unique area of the law since they combine aspects of tort law and contract law. If you are involved in an insurance dispute regarding a delay or underpayment of your claim, or if you suspect insurance bad faith, you should contact an insurance bad faith attorney as soon as possible.

The following are some examples of the common types of bad faith insurance claim disputes:

• Delayed insurance claim
• Underpayment of insurance claim
• A wrongful denial of an insurance claim
• Misrepresentation of the policy
• Failure to properly investigate
• Failure to provide justification for a denial of a claim
• Offering a settlement that is less than the true value of the claim
• Unreasonable demands for proof of loss

For more than 15 years, Reno insurance disputes attorney Matthew Sharp has successfully represented clients who have been the victims of an insurance company’s unlawful conduct. He has handled insurance disputes involving all types of insurance policies, including health insurance, auto insurance, life insurance, and disability insurance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Filing a claim of bad faith against your insurance company can be complex. What you might consider a delay, they can attribute to standard operational procedures. That is why it is important that you have a complete understanding of the challenges you might encounter before proceeding.

We can provide you with the information you need, beginning with the answers to these frequently asked questions:

Can I sue an at-fault party’s insurance company for bad faith?

If you get into a car accident with a negligent driver, you will most likely file a claim against the at-fault party’s insurance company. However, you can’t sue them for acting in bad faith because you are not the policyholder. On the other hand, you can file a civil complaint against them if you feel that they denied your claim in error or are offering you an unfair settlement.

What are valid reasons for a claim to be denied?

An insurance company is within its rights to deny a claim if there are certain reasons that would be a genuine breach of the policy. For example, your damages might not be caused by an insurable event. Many homeowners discover this after storms that they are covered for damages caused by winds, but not by flooding. A claim can also be legitimately denied if you failed to disclose information when you purchased or renewed a policy or if the policy was cancelled due to nonpayment.

How long will it take to resolve a bad faith insurance claim?

Every case is unique. When a bad faith claim is made, it will require a thorough review of all the pertinent documents. A formal request will be made for the insurance company to conduct an internal review. That can also take time. If there is no movement from the insurance company, we might advise you to file a civil complaint and enter into litigation against the insurance company. That process now becomes a matter of the court’s schedule. It is not uncommon for the entire process to take several months, if not years.

Finding the Right Legal Advice

Few lawyers have the trial experience that Matthew Sharp has. He will first seek to resolve an insurance dispute with an out-of-court settlement, but if a favorable settlement is not possible, he will fight for his clients’ rights in a court of law. Over the years, he’s been involved in numerous trials that have yielded positive results for his clients.

If your insurance company has delayed payment of your claim, or you are involved in some other insurance dispute, contact Matthew Sharp for an attorney consultation to learn more about insurance bad faith and your legal options.

Contact our law office today to schedule a free consultation to discuss your insurance dispute.