Many millions of dollars are paid out each year by Americans for insurance. In some situations, we are legally required by the state or by a lender to get this insurance – such as with car ownership. But insurance can also help provide for our families and ourselves in the event of a major loss or disaster in our lives.

But the reassurance we feel by having such insurance can sometimes be an illusion. All too often, when a problem crops up and you are forced to file a claim with the insurance company, they will look for any possible excuse or loophole to deny your claim. Often, such denials are routine and automatic, despite the fact the company is legally obligated to fully investigate your claim and pay out if it is valid.

It’s easy to simply give up when your insurance company does this, but if you have been paying for insurance for years you shouldn’t quit that easily. Obviously, the insurance company will want you to just go away, but there is no reason why you should do this if you have a valid claim. An attorney experienced in dealing with insurance companies acting in bad faith can contest this denial. The insurer may even have to pay you more than your policy provides for.

Alleged Reasons for Denying Such Claims
Insurance companies frequently have a list of excuses they cite for denying claims.

• They might suggest your injury is excluded from your policy – often pointing to incredibly small print in the policy. However, in many instances these exclusions are not actually legal.
• They might employ a convoluted and distorted interpretation of a technicality in order to deny your claim.
• They may say you allowed your coverage to lapse. If this is true, you may be out of luck.
• Insurers frequently try the tactic of suggesting your claim form is incomplete or includes inaccurate information. This may be the result of a simple oversight on your part that could be quickly corrected.
• They may say you did not seek out medical treatment and file your claim quickly enough. However, it’s quite possible you could be seriously injured in an accident and not realize it until much later. For certain types of injuries, symptoms can take months to become evident.
• They may claim you have failed to provide necessary medical records or that the records you have provided are incomplete. An attorney can help you gather such records.
• If you have a pre-existing condition, the insurer may deny your claim by saying your injury itself was pre-existing. However, even if you have a pre-existing condition, it’s quite possible the accident exacerbated this problem.
• You failed to take reasonable steps to either avoid the injury or avoid making it worse. For instance, if you refused a surgical procedure, the insurer might use this to deny your claim.

When Your Claim Is Denied
The insurance company has an obligation to act in good faith when dealing with your claim. If the company fails to do this by not investigating your claim properly or by not negotiating a settlement, you may have sufficient cause to take legal action against them for acting in bad faith. This is particularly true if they gave you no good reason for their denial. At this point, you’ll want to contact an experienced attorney.

The Surrano Law Firm in Phoenix, Arizona, handles these kinds of cases regularly. They have a proven track record of successfully resolving bad faith disputes with insurance companies. When all of your attempts to get the insurance company to pay your claim have failed, Surrano Law can step in and take up the fight for you. Charles Surrano – the principal attorney at Surrano Law – is highly experienced, having in the past worked for insurance companies as a defense lawyer. He now brings all of this experience to the table to help those who are being unfairly treated by unscrupulous insurers.

Leveling the Playing Field
Insurance companies are often vast corporations with almost unlimited resources they can use to deny your claim and reduce the amount they have to pay out. This helps keep their stockholders happy by increasing their corporate profits. With the assistance of the Surrano Law Firm, you’ll have the resources you need to fight back against insurer and get the payment you deserve. Often, the insurer will be required to pay punitive damages to discourage such bad faith in the future. There’s also a good chance they will pay your legal fees.

So if you’re insurer has denied your claim, ignored you or delayed payment on your claim without providing any reasonable explanation, feel free to contact our firm today for a free consultation.