Insurance Bad Faith

AFTER YEARS OF PAYING INSURANCE PREMIUMS, INDIVIDUALS EXPECT THEIR CARRIERS TO PROVIDE TIMELY SERVICE FOLLOWING AN ACCIDENT.

Unfortunately, insurance companies often delay, devalue or deny a claim to protect their bottom line. When this happens, though, it is likely that the insurance company has acted in bad faith.

If you or a loved one feels mistreated by an insurance company, it is wise to seek the counsel of an experienced attorney. At Rieders, Travis, Dohrmann, Mowrey, Humphrey & Waters, we have the legal knowledge and experience to carefully evaluate a coverage policy and explain your rights. Your insurance company must fully investigate your accident before denying your claim. Contact our firm to discuss your unique situation in greater detail.

Holding Insurance Carriers Responsible for Their Actions

Insurance companies must act in good faith toward their insureds. When an insurance company acts in bad faith to somebody for whom it has written insurance, the insured may bring a bad faith action. There are certain legal requirements for this statutory remedy. Further, a body of case law has evolved that lawyers need to be familiar with when they bring bad faith cases. In some situations it may be possible for a party to receive an assignment of bad faith rights from the insured. For example, if someone is seriously injured in an automobile accident and the tortfeasor’s insurance company refuses to defend, there may be times where the injured party would take an assignment of bad faith rights. This is an unusual situation, but one which, depending upon the circumstances, may be appropriate. It is important that a lawyer have knowledge with respect to bad faith cases, the damage and remedies available. Bad faith cases are handled differently, in many respects, than ordinary litigation.

Contact a Skilled Bad Faith Insurance Law Firm

The law firm of Rieders, Travis, Dohrmann, Mowrey, Humphrey & Waters can be reached by calling 570-323-8711 or completing our convenient contact form. We can explain how Pennsylvania and federal law applies to your situation and help you understand your options for moving forward.

Attorney Cliff Rieders

Cliff Rieders is a Nationally Board Certified Trial Lawyer practicing personal injury law. A large part of his practice involves multi-district litigation, including cases related to pharmaceuticals, vitamin supplements and medical devices. He is admitted in several state and federal courts, as well as the Supreme Court of the United States. Rieders is the past regional president of the Federal Bar Association and is a life member of the distinguished American Law Institute, which promulgates proposed rules adopted by many state courts. He is a past president of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice, formerly Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association. As a founder of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, he served on the Board for 15 years.

Not only has Rieders held many highly esteemed, leadership positions, he authored legislation related to the Patient Safety Authority and the Mcare Act, which governs medical and hospital liability actions in Pennsylvania. He authored texts upon which both practitioners and judges rely, including Pennsylvania Malpractice Laws and Forms, and Financial Responsibility Law Issues in Pennsylvania, the latter governing auto and truck collisions in Pennsylvania. In addition, he wrote several books on the practice of law in Pennsylvania regarding wrongful death and survivor actions, insurance bad faith, legal malpractice claims and worker rights, among others. Rieders also serves as a resource to practitioners as a regular speaker for Celesq, an arm of the world’s largest legal publisher, Thomson Reuters West Publishing.

As recognition of his wide range of contribution to his profession and of his dedication to protecting the rights of his clients, he received numerous awards, among them the George F. Douglas Amicus Curiae Award, the Milton D. Rosenberg Award, the B’nai B’rith Justice Award, and awards of recognition from the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers. [ Attorney Bio ]