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Mealey's Insurance Bad Faith

  • February 11, 2026

    Question Of Fact Exists As To Whether Auto Insurer Acted In Bad Faith, Judge Says

    PHOENIX — An insured’s bad faith claim against an auto insurer can proceed, an Arizona federal judge said, after determining that a question of fact exists as to whether the insurer’s refusal to pay its policy limit until after an arbitration award was entered in favor of the insured constitutes bad faith.

  • February 11, 2026

    Panel Affirms Judgment In Insurer’s Favor In Bad Faith Suit Arising From Hurricane

    NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Feb. 10 affirmed a lower federal court’s judgment in favor of an insurer in Louisiana insureds’ breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit arising from Hurricane Ida damage, rejecting the insureds’ argument that the lower court reversibly erred in excluding both evidence of the insureds’ appraisal award amount and the appraiser’s position regarding the value of their damages.

  • February 11, 2026

    Extracontractual Claims Against Homeowners Insurer Are Not Supported, Judge Says

    GREENVILLE, Miss. — Extracontractual claims alleged against a homeowners insurer in a coverage dispute over water damage to the insureds’ home cannot proceed because the insureds failed to provide sufficient facts to support their claim for bad faith and failed to show that the insurer owed a duty of care independent of the insurance contract to support their claim for negligence, a Mississippi federal judge said in granting the insurer’s motion to dismiss.

  • February 10, 2026

    Disability Determination, Other Issues Briefed Before 6th Circuit In Benefits Case

    CINCINNATI — Arguing in part that the claimant’s “proven ability to work coupled with the improvement documented by her own treating providers” was sufficient to show that she was not totally disabled under the terms of the long-term disability (LTD) plan, appellants urged the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to affirm denial of benefits for a project director who stopped working because of symptoms she attributed to long COVID.

  • February 06, 2026

    Federal Jury: Insurer Acted In Bad Faith, Owes Church $2.8M In Additional Coverage

    NEW ORLEANS — A jury before a Louisiana federal judge on Feb. 5 held that an insurer acted in bad faith in its handling of the church insured’s claim arising from Hurricane Ida property damage, concluding that the insurer owes the insured $2,818,230.66 in additional coverage for its claim, $371,265 for the insurer’s bad faith and $371,265 for the insurer’s failure to timely pay.

  • February 06, 2026

    Owner Of Storm-Damaged Texas Buildings Files Complaint Alleging Insurer Underpaid

    DALLAS — The owner of Texas commercial buildings that were damaged during a 2024 winter storm sued its commercial property insurer in a state court alleging breach of contract and violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) for “significantly” underpaying its damages claim “based on the insufficient inspection with the intention of minimizing its liability.”

  • February 05, 2026

    5th Circuit Affirms Another Denial Of Insurers’ Bid To Arbitrate Hurricane Claims

    NEW ORLEANS — In the latest of multiple rulings in which the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has reversed course from its prior precedent and proceeded to bar arbitration of Louisiana hurricane insurance disputes following new Louisiana Supreme Court precedent, a panel on Feb. 4 issued a per curiam unpublished opinion affirming the vacatur of a previous order compelling arbitration of insurance and bad faith claims arising out of hurricane damage to a hotel.

  • February 05, 2026

    Insured Granted Summary Judgment On Interpretation Of Policy’s ‘But For’ Term

    DALLAS — On remand from the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, a Texas federal judge partially granted a motion for summary judgment filed by Southwest Airlines Co. in a dispute over excess coverage for income losses sustained by the airline as a result of a computer system failure in 2016, agreeing with a magistrate judge’s conclusion that the term “but for” as used in the excess policy’s definition of loss must be interpreted as meaning “except for.”

  • February 04, 2026

    Judge Refuses To Dismiss BSA Settlement Trustee’s Bad Faith Suit Against Insurers

    DALLAS — A federal judge in Texas denied insurers’ motion to dismiss the trustee of the Boy Scouts of America Settlement Trust’s bad faith lawsuit seeking a declaration that the insurers have breached or will breach their insurance policies by refusing to provide coverage for sexual abuse claims, rejecting the insurers’ argument that the lawsuit should be dismissed on forum non conveniens grounds or stayed under the Colorado River abstention doctrine.

  • February 04, 2026

    Split Kentucky Panel Orders New Damages Trial In STD Benefits Case

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — In an unpublished opinion, a split Kentucky appeals panel reversed and remanded a ruling against the third-party administrator of a short-term disability (STD) plan in a long-running case where a jury awarded the claimant $7,125,000 in emotional distress and punitive damages

  • January 30, 2026

    6th Circuit Grants Rehearing En Banc In Class Action Suit Against Auto Insurer

    CINCINNATI — The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Jan. 29 granted a petition for rehearing en banc and vacated a panel majority’s opinion that found that an insured met the necessary requirements to certify a class and had standing to bring a class action suit that alleges that an auto insurer breached its contract and acted in bad faith in determining a vehicle’s total loss value.

  • January 30, 2026

    Property Insurer’s Denial Of Coverage For Roof Damage Was Not Bad Faith, Judge Says

    JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — An insured’s bad faith claim against a commercial property insurer cannot proceed because the insurer’s denial of coverage for roof damage was not unreasonable, a federal circuit judge, sitting by designation in Pennsylvania federal court, said after determining that a question of fact exists over the cause of the roof damage.

  • January 29, 2026

    Questions Of Fact Exist As To Whether Auto Insurer Acted In Good Faith, Judge Says

    TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida federal judge denied an auto insurer’s motion for summary judgment after determining that questions of fact exist regarding whether the insurer acted in good faith throughout the entire claims process and whether the insurer caused an excess judgment to be entered against its insureds in a suit stemming from an auto accident.

  • January 29, 2026

    Punitive Damages Not Recoverable In Utah Insurance Dispute, Federal Judge Says

    SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah federal judge granted an auto insurer’s motion for partial judgment on the pleadings, agreeing with the insurer that the insureds’ punitive damages claim cannot proceed because the insureds’ breach of contract and bad faith claims sound in contract and punitive damages are not recoverable for contract claims under Utah law.

  • January 27, 2026

    Bad Faith Allegation Against Auto Insurer Fails To State Claim, Federal Judge Says

    SCRANTON, Pa. — A Pennsylvania federal judge dismissed an insured’s bad faith claim without prejudice after determining that the insured failed to allege sufficient allegations in support of a claim for bad faith under Pennsylvania law.

  • January 27, 2026

    Breach Of Contract, Bad Faith Claims Survive In Storm Damage Suit

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. — An insured’s claims for breach of contract and bad faith can proceed because the insured filed suit within the applicable 10-year statute of limitations, a West Virginia federal judge said in partially denying the insurer’s motion to dismiss.

  • January 26, 2026

    Auto Insurer’s Coverage Denial Was Not Unreasonable, 3rd Circuit Panel Affirms

    PHILADELPHIA — A district court properly entered summary judgment in favor of an auto insurer because the insurer met its burden of showing that the addition of a named driver exclusion was valid and enforceable under Pennsylvania law and the insured failed to show that the auto insurer’s denial of coverage based on the exclusion was unreasonable, the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said Jan. 23.

  • January 23, 2026

    Additional Insured Owed Coverage For Suits Over Gas Explosion, 7th Circuit Affirms

    CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Jan. 22 affirmed a lower federal court’s summary judgment ruling in a dispute over coverage for an additional insured for underlying lawsuits arising out of a gas explosion, holding that the primary insured’s “acts or omissions” caused the gas explosion in whole or in part and the plaintiff is an “additional insured” for the purposes of the umbrella insurance policy.

  • January 23, 2026

    Judge Dismisses Case After Settlement Reached in Microtunneling Defense Dispute

    SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington granted a subcontractor and its insurer’s stipulation and proposed order of dismissal after the parties had notified the court that they had reached a settlement in a case brought by the subcontractor alleging that the insurer failed to defend it against a counterclaim in an underlying suit arising out of the subcontractor’s microtunneling work for a water project in Seattle.

  • January 23, 2026

    Hurricane Coverage Suit To Proceed; Property Insurer’s Motion To Dismiss Denied

    VALDOSTA, Ga. — An insured’s breach of contract and bad faith claims alleged against a property insurer in a dispute over coverage owed for damages from Hurricane Helene can proceed because the insured’s complaint includes sufficient details to support the claims, a Georgia federal judge said in denying the insurer’s motion to dismiss.

  • January 23, 2026

    Coverage Denial For Mold Suits Was Bad Faith, Insureds Allege In Complaint

    PHILADELPHIA — Pollution liability and commercial general liability insurers of the owner and operator of military housing projects throughout the country acted in bad faith by denying coverage for underlying suits filed against the insureds by families who were injured by mold exposure in insured military housing units, the insureds say in a complaint filed in Pennsylvania federal court.

  • January 22, 2026

    Tort Of Bad Faith In Contract Disputes Not Recognized Under D.C. Law, Judge Says

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — A bad faith claim alleged against a homeowners insurer for refusing to replace all of the wiring in an insured home damaged by an electrical fire cannot proceed because the District of Columbia does not recognize the tort of bad faith in disputes over insurance contracts, a Washington federal judge said in partially granting the insurer’s motion to dismiss.

  • January 21, 2026

    Auto Insurer’s Motion To Dismiss Bad Faith Claim Fails, Federal Judge Says

    NEW ORLEANS — A bad faith claim alleged against an auto insurer can proceed because the allegations in the complaint sufficiently support a claim for bad faith and show that the insurer possessed a satisfactory proof of loss, a Louisiana federal judge said in denying the insurer’s motion to dismiss.

  • January 21, 2026

    Judge Dismisses Counterclaims Against Insurers In Sexual Abuse Coverage Dispute

    NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York granted insurers’ motion to dismiss an insured’s counterclaims for declaratory relief, reimbursement and violations of the duty of good faith and fair dealing and New York General Business Law Section 349, holding that the majority of the counterclaims are duplicative of the breach of contract claim.

  • January 20, 2026

    Request For Exemplary Damages In Water Damage Suit Dismissed Without Prejudice

    DENVER — A Colorado federal judge dismissed without prejudice an insured’s request for exemplary damages in a water damage coverage dispute, agreeing with a magistrate judge’s finding that the insured failed to show that a triable issue of fact exists that would entitle her to exemplary damages.