Insurance and ERISA Legal Issues Around Puget Sound
As we've often observed, insurance policy fine print matters. Insurers can only deny claims if the policy language excludes the claim from coverage. A recent decision from our local federal appeals court confirms insurers cannot re-write the policy after the fact to support denying coverage. On February 18, 2020, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, …
Following several weeks of storms and heavy flooding in Washington State, the state Insurance Commissioner released a list of tips for homeowners dealing with flood losses under their insurance policies. Flood insurance is challenging, so the Insurance Commissioner's advice should be helpful to policyholders affected by the flooding. The upshot is: Most homeowner's and renter's …
Washington's Insurance Fair Conduct Act (IFCA) protects policyholders from insurers' unreasonable refusal to pay covered losses or provide insurance policy benefits. Unfortunately, many insurers include fine print in the insurance policy contract that supposedly provides the policyholder cannot sue the insurer once certain time period has passed since the loss. These time periods are typically …
Continue reading Deadlines in Policy Fine Print Can’t Cut off IFCA Rights Says Court of Appeals
On December 11, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the federal appeals court with jurisdiction over Washington and other coastal and western states) decided Wagenstein v. Cigna Life Insurance Company. The decision is unpublished, meaning it is not binding on lower courts but may still be used as persuasive authority. Lea Wagenstein sued to challenge …
Continue reading ERISA Insurer’s Hiding Doctor’s Opinions Results in Appellate Win for Claimant
The Washington State Association for Justice recently published McKean Evans' article regarding insurers' duty to reasonably investigate claims. The article, entitled Insurance Company’s Duty to Reasonably Investigate Your Client’s Claim a Powerful Tool for Making Client Whole, discusses the legal basis for insurers' duty to reasonably investigate claims. Evans discusses how insurers' breach of this …
Continue reading Insurance Company’s Duty to Reasonably Investigate Claims Under Washington law
