One form of insurance bad faith is the use of unreasonable delays. In some cases, insurance companies will purposefully drag out the claims process in hopes that the claimant will decide to drop the claim. They simply try to drag their feet and make the process take longer than it should.
In this situation, it is important to remember that insurance companies are generally required to act relatively quickly. For instance, many insurance claims need to be paid within 30 days or they are considered overdue under Wisconsin law. There may be cases in which further investigation has to be carried out to determine exactly how much is due, but this still generally shows that insurance companies need to act promptly and cannot unnecessarily delay the process.
What would an unnecessary delay look like?
Often, it becomes a communication issue. For instance, a homeowner submits a claim due to damage on their property. The insurance company never responds. The homeowner contacts the insurance company to see if the claim was received. They are told that someone will contact them shortly, but then no one ever does.
There can also be issues with the investigation itself. Maybe the insurance company says it cannot authorize a payout until it has an adjuster inspect the property. But weeks and then months go by, and no one actually shows up to conduct the examination. This puts the homeowner in a difficult situation because they need to have repairs made, and they need the insurance payout to cover the costs.
Do you believe that your insurance company has been creating unreasonable delays or otherwise acting in bad faith? If so, you need to know what legal steps to take to best protect your interests.