5 Types of Commercial Business Insurance Coverage Bad-Faith Insurance Applies To
Insurance bad faith means that an insurance provider is failing to fulfill its legal obligation to handle a claim reasonably, fairly and properly. Bad faith is a way for an insurance company to save money on a payout. If you need to file a claim under a commercial business insurance policy in Arizona, you could be at risk of insurance bad faith. This issue pervades all types of commercial business insurance coverages and could interfere with your ability to obtain a fair settlement.
General Liability Insurance
A general liability insurance policy for a business can pay for anyone who gets injured on the property due to something the business owner or an employee did or did not do. For example, it can pay for a customer’s medical bills after a slip and fall accident from a slippery surface in a store. A commercial liability insurance company may try to avoid a payout for the victim, however, by intentionally mishandling the claim, such as delaying an investigation or wrongfully denying benefits.
Property Insurance
Property insurance pays for a business’s property repairs, temporary relocation and any losses of revenue connected to a property damage event, such as a fire, natural disaster or vandalism. Commercial property insurance covers the building, landscape, parking lot and the contents of the building. An insurer could engage in bad-faith practices while handling a property insurance claim by failing to fully investigate the incident, requesting an unreasonable amount of proof of losses or failing to pay an adequate amount for property repairs.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
A workers’ compensation insurance claim seeks no-fault coverage for a worker who is injured or ill due to an accident at work or occupational hazard. Arizona’s workers’ compensation system allows injured workers to recover benefits for their lost wages, medical bills, and other losses without having to prove that the employer was at fault. Insurance bad faith, however, could interfere with a worker’s ability to recover. Common examples of workers’ comp bad faith are alleging employee misconduct, claiming a pre-existing condition or injury, or claiming that the employee missed the deadline to file.
Business Interruption Insurance
Business interruption insurance pays to replace any lost revenue if there is a problem or event that requires the business to take a hiatus while it recovers. Examples include a company getting hacked, having to close for physical shop repairs or being robbed. Business interruption insurance bad faith can refer to any unlawful or unreasonable practices by the insurance company in an attempt to avoid a payout, such as citing an exclusion on the policy that doesn’t exist or offering less than the business needs to pay for its losses.
Commercial Auto Insurance
If a business has commercial motor vehicles, such as trucks or delivery vans, commercial automobile insurance can pay for the injuries and losses associated with a traffic accident. Unfortunately, an insurance company can use many bad-faith tactics when processing a commercial auto insurance claim, such as blaming the other driver for the crash or refuting liability. You may need assistance from an Arizona car insurance claim attorney to protect you from insurance bad faith during a commercial auto accident claim.
Are You a Victim of Commercial Business Insurance Bad Faith? Get Help Today
If you encounter any problems or challenges during a commercial business insurance claim in Arizona, consult with an insurance bad faith attorney about your rights. An attorney can help you recognize insurance bad faith, communicate with the commercial insurance provider, negotiate with insurance claims adjusters and file a bad-faith lawsuit, if applicable.
A bad-faith lawsuit can hold a commercial insurance provider accountable for mishandling your claim and failing to pay you what you deserve. This type of lawsuit could result in financial compensation in addition to a fair payout for your original claim. Learn more about commercial business insurance bad faith by contacting the attorneys at Surrano Law Offices today.