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Contact Us TodayIf you have paid an insurance company for coverage, you should be able to rely on that coverage when you need it. After a serious accident, that may mean medical bills, lost income, vehicle damage, uninsured motorist coverage, underinsured motorist coverage, or another claim tied to the policy you paid for.
Unfortunately, insurance companies do not always make the process easy. They may delay the claim, ask for the same documents again and again, make a low offer, question your medical treatment, blame you for the accident, or deny the claim without a clear explanation.
Maybe you were hurt in a crash near downtown Spartanburg and your own UIM carrier is disputing the seriousness of your injuries. Maybe the at-fault driver’s insurer says there is no coverage after a wreck in Boiling Springs. Maybe your vehicle was totaled near WestGate Mall, but the insurer is dragging out the property damage claim. Or maybe you were seriously hurt in a collision in Duncan, Inman, Gaffney, or Woodruff, and the insurance company is using delay as leverage.
At the Law Office of Tyler Rody, we help injured people in Spartanburg and across South Carolina deal with insurance companies after serious accidents. If an insurer is delaying, denying, undervaluing, or mishandling your claim, our office can help you understand what may come next.
Insurance bad faith generally refers to an insurance company failing to handle a valid claim fairly, honestly, and reasonably. Insurance policies are contracts. When an insurer accepts premiums, it also takes on duties under the policy and under South Carolina law.
Bad faith can involve more than a simple disagreement over value. A claim may raise bad faith concerns when an insurance company refuses to pay benefits that are owed, delays without a reasonable basis, fails to investigate properly, misrepresents coverage, or tries to avoid a valid claim.
Examples of potential bad faith conduct may include:
Not every denied claim is bad faith. Insurance companies are allowed to investigate claims and raise legitimate coverage questions. But when delay, denial, or underpayment becomes unreasonable, it may be time to speak with an attorney.
Bad faith issues can arise in several types of claims, especially after serious personal injury accidents. These may include:
For example, after a crash in Spartanburg County, the at-fault driver may not have enough insurance to cover the injuries. If your own UIM policy applies, your insurance company may still challenge the claim, even though you paid for that protection.
That can be frustrating. People often assume their own insurance company will be on their side. In reality, once a claim is made, the insurer may still look for ways to limit what it pays.
After an accident, insurance adjusters may sound friendly, patient, and helpful. Some are polite on the phone. Some say they just need “your side of the story.” Some send forms that look routine.
You should be careful.
The at-fault party’s insurance company is not there to protect you. Its job is to protect the company and its insured. Even your own insurance company may work to limit payment when you make a UM or UIM claim.
Insurance companies may try to:
A friendly phone call can become part of the insurance company’s file. Before giving a recorded statement, signing forms, or accepting money, it is worth getting legal advice.
A denied claim can be frustrating, especially when you believe the facts are clear. But insurance companies may point to several reasons for denial or delay.
Common arguments include:
The insurer may argue that you waited too long to seek medical care, so your injuries must not be serious or must not be connected to the accident. This can happen when a person tries to “tough it out” after a wreck near East Main Street, a fall at a business on W.O. Ezell Boulevard, or a collision on a rural road outside Woodruff before symptoms get worse.
Insurance companies often look for prior injuries, old medical records, or unrelated health issues. They may argue that your pain came from a pre-existing condition rather than the accident.
The insurer may argue that you caused the accident or were partly responsible. This can happen in intersection crashes, lane-change collisions, parking lot accidents, and crashes where the initial report does not tell the full story.
Insurance companies may deny or undervalue a claim when there are no photos, no witnesses, limited medical documentation, missing records, or unclear proof of damages.
The insurer may claim that the policy was canceled, excluded, limited, or does not apply. Coverage disputes can be especially important in serious injury and wrongful death cases.
Sometimes the issue is not whether the claim is valid, but whether the available insurance is enough. In those cases, UM or UIM coverage may become important.
An injury claim focuses on the accident itself. For example, who caused the crash, what injuries resulted, what treatment was needed, and what compensation should be paid.
A bad faith claim focuses on the insurance company’s conduct. The question becomes whether the insurer handled the claim fairly and reasonably under the policy and the law.
In some cases, the injury claim and insurance dispute are closely connected. For example, a person injured in a Spartanburg car accident may first need to prove the crash, injuries, and damages. If the insurer then unreasonably delays or denies benefits owed under the policy, bad faith issues may arise.
Because these claims can overlap, it is important to understand which insurance company is involved, what policy applies, what benefits are being requested, and why the insurer is refusing to pay.
Many people are surprised to learn that their own insurance company may still fight them. This can happen in uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist claims.
Uninsured motorist coverage may apply when the at-fault driver does not have insurance. Underinsured motorist coverage may apply when the at-fault driver does not have enough insurance to cover the harm caused.
For example, if you are injured in a serious crash in Spartanburg and the at-fault driver’s coverage is not enough, your own UIM policy may become part of the claim. But your insurer may still argue about liability, injuries, treatment, damages, or whether the full amount should be paid.
That does not necessarily mean the insurer has acted in bad faith. But it does mean you should treat the claim seriously and avoid assuming the company is protecting your interests.
Coverage denials can happen in serious cases. An insurer may claim that a policy was canceled, that premiums were not paid, that a driver was excluded, that a vehicle was not covered, or that the claim falls outside the policy.
These disputes can affect car accident, truck accident, wrongful death, premises liability, dog bite, and other injury claims. A family in Spartanburg may hear one answer from an adjuster after a fatal crash. A driver in Cherokee County may hear another after a serious collision. A homeowner’s policy may become part of a dog bite or premises claim in Boiling Springs, Duncan, or Inman.
A coverage denial is not always the final word. The policy language, payment history, cancellation notices, claim communications, and South Carolina insurance law may all matter. An attorney can review the denial and determine whether the insurance company’s position should be challenged.
If the insurance company is delaying, denying, or undervaluing your claim, do not assume there is nothing you can do.
Helpful steps may include:
Insurance companies build files. You should, too. The more organized the evidence is, the easier it may be to show what happened, what coverage applies, and why the claim should be paid.
Bad faith and insurance disputes often turn on details: what the policy says, what the insurance company knew, what evidence was available, and whether the insurer handled the claim fairly. While every case is different, the Law Office of Tyler Rody’s Notable Cases page shows examples of serious injury matters the firm has handled for clients in Spartanburg and across South Carolina.
Those results are specific to the facts of those cases. They do not guarantee or predict the outcome of any other case.
“Insurance companies know how to make a claim feel confusing. They may sound helpful while they are building a file against you. They may delay. They may ask for more and more information. They may argue the policy does not apply or that your injuries are worth less than they really are. My job is to make sure the facts, the coverage, and the full value of the claim are not ignored.”
If your insurance dispute is connected to an injury or accident, the Law Office of Tyler Rody may still be able to help. Explore our related practice areas:
If an insurance company is delaying, denying, or undervaluing your claim, you do not have to accept the first answer you receive. A denial letter, low offer, or coverage dispute may not tell the whole story.
The Law Office of Tyler Rody helps injured people in Spartanburg and across South Carolina deal with insurance companies after serious accidents. If you believe an insurer is refusing to handle your claim fairly, our office can help you understand your options.
Insurance bad faith generally means an insurance company failed to handle a valid claim fairly, honestly, or reasonably. This may involve unreasonable denial, delay, underpayment, failure to investigate, or refusal to pay benefits owed under the policy.
No. Insurance companies may deny claims when there is a legitimate coverage issue or reasonable dispute. Bad faith concerns arise when the denial, delay, or refusal to pay is unreasonable or not supported by the facts and policy.
Usually, bad faith claims are tied to the insurance company’s duties to its own insured. If you were injured by someone else, your direct claim is usually against the at-fault person or business, not their insurance company. However, the insurance company’s conduct may still affect how the injury claim is handled.
You should take that seriously. Your own insurance company may still dispute fault, injuries, damages, or coverage in an uninsured or underinsured motorist claim. A lawyer can review the policy and help determine whether the insurer’s position is reasonable.
Warning signs may include long delays, repeated requests for the same documents, refusal to explain a denial, ignoring evidence, misrepresenting coverage, pressuring you to settle quickly, or offering far less than the claim appears to be worth.
It is usually better to speak with an attorney first. Recorded statements can be used to challenge your injury claim, question your memory, argue fault, or minimize damages. This is especially true if you are still in pain or do not yet know the full extent of your injuries.
Insurance companies often use pre-existing conditions to reduce or deny claims. A prior condition does not automatically defeat your case. If an accident worsened or aggravated an existing condition, that harm may still matter.
A coverage denial should be reviewed carefully. The insurer’s position may depend on policy language, cancellation notices, payment history, exclusions, vehicle status, driver status, and other facts. A denial is not always the final answer.
Yes. Bad faith or unfair claim handling issues may arise after car accidents, especially when UM or UIM coverage applies, policy limits are disputed, liability is clear, or the insurer delays or denies benefits without a reasonable basis.
Bring the insurance policy if you have it, denial letters, claim numbers, adjuster contact information, emails, letters, settlement offers, medical bills, crash reports, photos, and notes about phone calls. If you do not have everything, you can still ask questions and learn what may be needed.
