Insurance companies often complain when policyholders sue the independent adjustment firm for causing delay and failure to act in good faith. In an interesting twist to this topic, AmGuard Insurance Company sued its own engineering firm that allegedly acted in bad faith.
The lawsuit1 alleges that HAAG breached the following good faith duties:
Failing to timely conduct the inspection and estimate;
Failing to keep AmGuard informed of their progress with the inspection and estimate;
Failing to timely provide AmGuard with estimates after their initial inspection of the property;
Failing to timely address AmGuard’s requests to make corrections to their initial estimate;
Failing to timely respond to repeated requests by AmGuard and LaGrange to address discrepancies in its estimate;
Plasters falsely represented to LaGrange that he had completed a supplemental estimate;
Improperly managing its file, including but not limited to moving the file to a completed folder when it had, in fact, not been completed;
Failing to timely respond to AmGuard and LaGrange’s repeated requests for a supplemental estimate;
The truth is that third-party adjusting and professional firms doing work for insurance companies need to do their job timely. The insurance company’s customer depends on the insurance company performing its duties timely. The insurance company can do it or take a chance with a third party accomplishing the task. But these duties alleged by AmGuard have to be accomplished.
Thought For The Day
I never could have done what I have done without the habits of punctuality, order, and diligence, without the determination to concentrate myself on one subject at a time.
—Charles Dickens
