Why an Attorney is So Important When Filing a Bad Faith Insurance Claim

Texas law concerning bad faith by an insurance company is complicated. It’s not the kind of thing just any lawyer can do. Finding a lawyer on the internet, or hiring a personal injury lawyer whose billboard ads you’ve seen, is very risky. If they have not handled bad faith claims in a Texas court, they aren’t going to understand how the system works or the procedures they must follow. Just as you wouldn’t hire a recent graduate to handle your case, neither should you trust your case to someone who is not experienced with bad faith insurance cases.

Why Hire a Lawyer?

Your insurance company has an advantage over you because it understands how the system works and how to take advantage of you without getting in trouble. Insurance policies are so complicated that they can be difficult for non-specialists to understand. An insurance representative might explain why the company was unable to pay you what your claim deserved, or why it took so long to process, in a reasonable way that sounds reasonable to a non-specialist. Even a lawyer who is not experienced at handling bad faith insurance claims might be inclined to take what they say at face value.

Remember the 1990s comedy My Cousin Vinny? A young man gets arrested for murder in a state far away from his home. He can’t afford to hire a lawyer, so his cousin, a brand new lawyer, travels to defend him. Since it’s a movie, the cousin (with the aid of his smart girlfriend) was able to get the young man acquitted.

Unfortunately, things don’t work out that way in real life. People who hire inexperienced lawyers are sometimes sentenced to years in prison. The same sort of thing can happen in a bad faith insurance case: An inexperienced lawyer may truly believe they are getting you a good settlement when a lawyer with more experience, such as one from Manfred Sternberg, might have been able to get you two or three times as much.

How Bad Faith Insurance Law Works in Texas

The Texas legal system penalizes insurance companies that fail to live up to their responsibilities in two ways: through common law and through Texas legal statutes, also known as statutory law.

Under common law, your attorney can sue the insurer for violating the implied covenant of good faith, which requires insurance companies to treat their customers honestly and fairly.

In addition, Chapters 541 and 542 of the Texas Insurance Code punish insurance companies that engage in unfair methods of competition, including unfair or deceptive practices.

An experienced lawyer from Manfred Sternberg will understand which is most appropriate and will fight for you using whichever methods will work best for your case.

Contact a Texas Bad Faith Insurance Lawyer

If you’re having trouble getting your insurance company to handle your claim promptly, help is available. Contact the insurance-claim law firm Manfred Sternberg & Associates through our website or call 713-547-5460.