Insurance Bad Faith Expert Witnesses

Expert witness testimony in insurance bad faith cases is often necessary to support the plaintiff’s claims that an insurer acted in bad faith by failing to pay a claim or denying coverage. Expert witnesses are typically agents, brokers, and/or claims adjusters who can testify as to industry customs and standards regarding the investigation and handling of a claim under similar facts and circumstances. Agents, brokers, and adjusters are all integral components to ensuring fair treatment for policyholders facing a bad faith situation. Agents will be able to testify as experts about their obligations when dealing with customers in accordance with best practices within the industry. Brokers, on the other hand, may be able to provide insight into how they negotiated or otherwise attempted to obtain coverage for policyholder’s losses which were subsequently denied by insurers without justification. Claims adjusters have more specialized knowledge concerning acceptable practices for investigating claims under similar circumstances and whether they were strictly followed when reviewing an insured’s claim at question. The main goal of expert witness testimony in these cases is for clarity surrounding what reasonable expectations policyholders should expect from providers based on their respective contract language while simultaneously providing insights as to how insurer actions deviated from normal course of practice thereby resulting in punitive damages being levied against them through legal proceedings involving alleged insurance bad faith.