Insurance companies sell peace of mind, but they run on risk calculations and profit margins. When a claim threatens the bottom line, some carriers drift from hard bargaining into tactics that violate their duty of good faith. That duty sits at the heart of every liability policy: the insurer must treat the insured fairly, investigate promptly, and make reasonable efforts to settle within limits when liability is clear. When they do not, bad faith becomes both a legal claim and a strategic lever for a personal injury attorney who knows how to use it.
This is not theory. It shows up in the file room, in emails that never arrive, in low offers with no supporting analysis, and in depositions where adjusters cannot explain their decision tree. Whether you handle car crashes, rideshare collisions, trucking cases, motorcycle wrecks, or pedestrian injuries, the patterns repeat with minor variations. What changes is the record you build and the way you sequence pressure. Here is how experienced counsel approach insurance bad faith, step by step, while keeping clients protected and cases moving.
What bad faith looks like in the real world
Most carriers do not announce bad faith. They inch toward it. The signs show in timing, tone, and missing work product. After a rear-end crash on a city street, for example, a car accident lawyer sends medical records and a clear liability statement. The adjuster replies two months later asking for items already provided, then makes a “nuisance” offer that does not cover emergency room charges. Liability is not the issue; the tactic is delay coupled with devaluation. In a more complex matter against a commercial carrier, a truck accident lawyer may see the insurer sit on a policy disclosure, ignore black box requests, and decline to preserve key evidence from a tractor-trailer. Those are not just discovery skirmishes. They can be breaches of duty.
The most common red flags include incomplete or cursory investigations, failure to timely communicate, refusal to consider known damages, rotating adjusters with no transfer notes, unexplained comparables, and sudden coverage defenses raised late in the process. The duty of good faith requires reasonable diligence and fairness, not perfection. That difference matters. A simple mistake is not bad faith. A pattern of intentional neglect, strategically applied to achieve an unfair outcome, can be.
The legal framework and why it matters to your strategy
Bad faith lives at the intersection of contract and tort. The policy is the contract; the special duty of good faith gives rise to tort remedies in many jurisdictions, which can include consequential and sometimes punitive damages. Some states recognize first-party and third-party bad faith with different standards and requirements. Some require a pre-suit notice with specific cure periods. Others limit Get more information bad faith to post-judgment conduct, while a growing number allow pre-judgment bad faith based on failure to accept reasonable settlement opportunities.
Knowing the local map shapes every move. A personal injury attorney needs to understand the requirements for a valid time-limited demand, whether policy disclosures are mandatory, and what must be included in a bad faith notice. In many places, you must give the insurer a fair chance to settle before a bad faith claim can ripen. If that chance is not clearly presented, you lose leverage. If it is, and the carrier rejects it without basis, the stage is set for an excess judgment and a follow-on bad faith case.
The auto accident attorney who masters these procedural gates controls the pace. The car crash attorney who mistakes ordinary obstinacy for actionable bad faith wastes energy and credibility. Precision is the difference.
Building the record before the fight begins
Most bad faith claims are won in the correspondence long before you file suit. An organized file does not just look good; it creates momentum. I open a shared timeline the day I sign a client. Every communication with the insurer goes on it, with dates and a two-sentence description. Every medical bill, wage loss proof, and liability exhibit gets a numbered index. When I call an adjuster, I email a same-day summary to confirm the substance and any deadlines. That simple discipline turns “they never sent it” into “see Exhibits 14 and 15.”
Evidence preservation requests matter even in soft-tissue car cases. Send them promptly and specifically. In a rideshare claim, a rideshare accident lawyer should demand trip data, electronic communications, and driver status logs from the platform, along with the vehicle’s telematics if available. In a motorcycle crash, photograph gear, scrape patterns, and skid marks early, and ask the insurer to confirm that the bike will not be altered pending inspection. In a trucking case, the preservation letter should identify the engine control module data, driver qualification file, hours-of-service logs, dashcam footage, and post-accident drug and alcohol testing. If the carrier delays or refuses, the record is already pointing to an unfair claims practice.
I also document cooperation. If the insurer asks for wage records, I provide them and identify precisely what is included. When they ask for prior medicals, I narrow the scope and still send what is reasonably relevant. When they demand a recorded statement that exceeds policy requirements, I offer a written statement addressing the core liability facts. The theme is reasonableness. Judges and juries respond to it, and so do claims supervisors.
The anatomy of a settlement opportunity the insurer cannot dismiss
A time-limited demand is not a form letter. It is a meticulously supported offer that satisfies every statutory or case law requirement in your jurisdiction. It frames the facts as the adjuster will have to do if the file escalates. It gives the carrier a fair, achievable path to settle within limits. Then it imposes an expiration date that accounts for postal time, internal routing, and decision-making. I rarely set less than 20 business days unless the liability is overwhelming and time-sensitive, for instance, when catastrophic injuries exhaust minimal limits.
The demand should include a policy disclosure request if your jurisdiction permits or requires it, a precise statement of facts with liability analysis, medical specials with source documents, wage loss proof, and a pain-and-suffering component tied to concrete facts rather than adjectives. Attach the police report and photographs that matter, not every image from your client’s phone. Use a concise summary table of damages if the case benefits from it. Confirm how payment should be made and how liens will be protected. If there are multiple claimants or obvious coverage issues, address them head-on. A personal injury lawyer who anticipates the carrier’s internal obstacles removes excuses for delay.
When the offer goes out, I send it by email and certified mail, then I follow up with a short confirmation call. I log the call, the deadline, and any questions raised by the adjuster. If they ask for additional material, I respond within days and memorialize the new deadline. If they ghost the file, the timeline now reads like a bad faith manual.
Diagnosing the insurer’s playbook by practice area
The broad tactics are similar across claims, but each practice area has its quirks. A motorcycle accident lawyer will often see insurers lean on bias: the rider must have been speeding or lane-splitting. Counter with objective speed estimates from crush damage or surveillance video if available. Emphasize training and protective gear. In a pedestrian case, carriers sometimes claim dart-out behavior without evidence. Pin them to time-distance calculations based on intersection timing and vehicle speed data. For a truck crash, the common move is to blame a phantom vehicle or raise comparative fault aggressively. Get the reconstruction early and secure the motor carrier’s safety data to show systemic issues. For rideshare collisions, insurers may try to sidestep coverage by pointing to app on or off status. Lock down the driver’s platform records. Courts often take a dim view of coverage games when trip data tells a clear story.
In low-impact car crashes, you will see the “minimal property damage equals minimal injury” argument. It is unscientific and widely discredited when presented as a rule. Present the medical records in sequence and include peer-reviewed references on delta-V thresholds only when necessary, not by default. In chain-reaction collisions, the car accident lawyer should sort stacking and priority of coverage cleanly, then create a settlement ladder that makes sense for each carrier. Confusion is the insurer’s ally. Clarity is yours.
Using regulatory frameworks without turning your case into a treatise
State unfair claims practices statutes and insurance regulations are useful, but they are not cudgels you swing in every letter. Quote them sparingly. Focus on conduct, not citations. When the carrier ignores mandatory timelines or fails to provide a written basis for denial, note the variance and ask for compliance. If you need to escalate, copy the supervisor and attach your earlier correspondence. When a pattern emerges, you can reference the specific regulation with a short parenthetical and move on. Complaints to the insurance department have their place, but they are most effective when the record already shows noncompliance. Regulators care about clear violations, not routine disputes over valuation.
Litigation pressure without performative aggression
You cannot bully an insurer into good faith. You can make bad faith expensive and visible. If pre-suit efforts stall, file suit and set early depositions. The first deposition in a contested liability crash is often the adjuster or corporate representative, not just the at-fault driver. In a trucking case, depose the safety director and claims handler about preservation steps taken immediately after the crash. Ask for the communications log, reserve changes, and supervisory reviews. Courts commonly allow limited discovery into claim handling when you have alleged bad faith or spoliation with factual support.
Early motions can shift leverage. A motion to compel policy disclosures with a supporting affidavit from your client about financial stress tells the court and the carrier that you mean business. Motions for sanctions over spoliation, if warranted, create risk the insurer cannot ignore. Keep the tone professional. Judges notice when a personal injury attorney is measured and fact-driven, and react badly to chest-thumping.
Negotiating with carriers who devalue cases by script
Some carriers push uniform “severity points” systems. They tally diagnostic codes, number of therapy visits, and gaps in care, then spit out a dollar range. When you recognize that pattern, change the inputs. Replace ambiguous clinical notes with clear physician narratives. Get a treating doctor to explain mechanism of injury in one paragraph that even a layperson can grasp. Tighten the timeline so that gaps reflect logistics, not indifference. If PTSD or mild traumatic brain injury is at issue, secure neuropsychological testing from a reputable evaluator, not just self-reports. Carriers respond to credible documentation more than adjectives. A car crash attorney who treats the medical file like a technical brief will beat a copier-and-staple approach every time.
In high-exposure cases, reserve dynamics drive behavior. Adjusters are watched closely when a claim threatens to pierce limits. Your job is to present the facts in a way that forces a reserve increase sooner rather than later. A well-crafted demand with clear liability and compelling damages, followed by early expert disclosures, can move reserves up during the internal quarterly review cycle. With the right timing, you nudge the case into the authority of a higher-level committee, where risk control often favors settlement.
Protecting the client while you build leverage
Bad faith strategy fails if the client cannot hold on long enough to benefit from it. A personal injury attorney has to balance top-line value with real-life pressures. If the client faces eviction, you may need to prioritize a partial settlement from one policy while preserving claims against others. If medical liens threaten to swallow the settlement, negotiate early, not after a verdict. Hospitals and health plans often accept fair reductions when presented with the math and the statutory context. In catastrophic cases, consider structuring portions of the settlement to protect long-term needs and public benefits. It is not a sign of weakness to solve problems. It is part of the job.
When clients ask about a quick settlement, explain the trade-offs in plain language. I often say, here are two paths. First, we can take the number on the table, resolve quickly, and end risk. Second, we can press for full value, which will take months and may require litigation. I explain likely ranges and break out the timeline. People make good decisions when they see the road ahead, not just the destination.
When to pull the bad faith trigger
Not every low offer is bad faith. Pulling the trigger too soon distracts from liability and damages. I look for three conditions before advancing bad faith formally. The liability is strong and documented. The demand clearly allowed the insurer to settle within limits. The carrier either ignored the opportunity or rejected it without a defensible explanation. When those elements line up, I send a concise notice that meets statutory requirements, attach the earlier demand package, and invite cure within a fair window. I do not multiply issues. One notice, one clean ask.
If the carrier still stonewalls, I litigate the underlying case to judgment aggressively, with an eye on excess exposure. That means beating back comparative fault where it is weak, putting human loss in front of a jury without melodrama, and documenting every post-demand decision the insurer made. In many jurisdictions, an excess verdict opens the door to assign the insured’s bad faith claim to the plaintiff. That move puts you in direct contention with the insurer on conduct, not just valuation. It is serious leverage, and it should be used judiciously.
A short, practical checklist for the first 90 days
- Create a claim handling timeline and index every communication and document. Send targeted preservation letters and confirm coverage details in writing. Build a complete, organized demand package that meets statutory requirements. Set fair deadlines and memorialize any extensions or additional requests. Document patterns of delay or denial with concise, professional correspondence.
Nuances across policy types and carriers
Not all policies or carriers operate the same way. Be mindful of the distinction between surplus lines and admitted carriers. Surplus lines may have different regulatory oversight, which can alter your complaint strategy. Some rideshare insurers have layered coverage that triggers based on app status, and those layers can create finger-pointing among carriers. An auto accident attorney handling a Lyft or Uber case should expect to parse primary and contingent coverage and should get comfortable with the platform’s certificate language.
Umbrella and excess policies often require consent to settle from the excess carrier, not just the primary. Build them into your demand timeline early. If the excess carrier remains silent, put that on the record. In wrongful death claims with multiple claimants, set a process for equitable distribution that does not create further exposure for the insured. Invite the carriers to a global mediation with a clear structure, and send a follow-up letter if they decline. It all goes to reasonableness.
Evidence that moves the needle
Photographs of bruises and crumpled metal have their place. The evidence that shifts adjusters and juries is often quieter. A supervisor’s email that says, “we can sit on this and see if they go away,” is gold. So is a notation that a reserve increase was denied despite new liability facts. You obtain those through careful discovery and sometimes through protective orders. In a truck case, maintenance records that show overdue brake service coupled with a failure to download ECM data can turn a negotiation. In a pedestrian accident, intersection timing data from the city can neutralize a dart-out defense. In a motorcycle crash, helmet damage analysis and rider training certifications undermine unfair stereotyping.
Do not forget the human pieces. A one-page letter from an employer explaining how missed work affects staffing and customers can ground an abstract wage loss claim. A short note from a physical therapist, in unemotional language, describing objective strength deficits can carry more weight than pages of flow sheets. Adjusters are asked to justify decisions to supervisors. Give them the kind of exhibits that survive that scrutiny.
Mediation as a pressure valve, not a surrender
Mediation works when you prepare the mediator to carry your story to a room you cannot enter. Send a brief with timelines, clean exhibits, and the specific bad faith markers you have documented. Keep the tone Motorcycle Accident Lawyer factual. Do not turn your brief into an indictment. If you have a valid time-limited demand in play, integrate it into the mediation strategy: tell the mediator why the demand was fair and how the carrier fell short. If the case does not settle, the mediator’s proposal and notes often prompt internal reviews at the carrier. Sometimes the number moves a week later when a supervisor realizes the optics.
Ethics and professionalism when the temperature rises
Bad faith claims tempt lawyers to match aggression with aggression. Resist it. Never threaten regulatory complaints or punitive damages as a form of theatrics. Say what you mean, do what you say, and keep your letters short. Jurors and judges will read them one day. A personal injury attorney who sounds calm, patient, and precise is more credible. That credibility turns into leverage when you finally put the claim handling on trial.
Treat defense counsel as part of the solution. Many want to settle strong cases but need tools to move internal stakeholders. Give them those tools. I have seen candid calls with defense counsel unlock six-figure authority increases because the lawyer could say, credibly, that the plaintiff’s counsel is reasonable and trial-ready.
Two brief case snapshots that illustrate the arc
A pedestrian accident attorney represented a school custodian struck in a crosswalk. Video confirmed the driver never braked. Medical bills totaled just under six figures due to a fractured tibia. The carrier sat at a low six-figure number, arguing quick recovery and minimal wage loss. Counsel sent a 30-day demand with the video, a simple pain chart from the treating orthopedist, and letters from the school principal about staffing shortages. When the carrier missed the deadline with no explanation, counsel followed with a short notice referencing the demand and giving seven additional business days. Silence. Suit followed, plus early depositions of the adjuster and insured. Emails showed the adjuster recommended tender, but a supervisor delayed to “see if plaintiff will blink.” The case settled for policy limits, and the bad faith record secured a contribution from the excess carrier toward liens and fees.
A motorcycle accident lawyer handled a case where the rider suffered a mild TBI after a left-turn crash. Property damage was moderate. The insurer leaned on the “no helmet equals fault” narrative, despite state law not requiring helmets for the rider’s age. Counsel obtained neuropsych testing, an occupational therapy evaluation, and surveillance video from a nearby store showing the driver on a phone. The demand integrated these pieces and offered a structured settlement that managed long-term cognitive therapy costs. The insurer balked. Counsel filed, deposed the corporate representative on evidence preservation, and learned that telematics from the insured’s vehicle had been overwritten. A spoliation motion followed, and the case resolved at a number triple the initial offer, with a confidentiality clause the client approved.
What to do when you win the battle but risk losing the war
Even when you secure an excess verdict or a strong settlement, unaddressed liens and allocation issues can erode the result. Bring lienholders to the table early. Medicare requires precision; do not guess at conditional payments. Private health plans often claim ERISA preemption. Challenge it where appropriate and negotiate with documentation of hardship and proportionality. In multiple-claimant crashes, seek court approval of allocations where needed to create finality for the insured and avoid future fights. A car crash attorney who threads this needle protects both the client and the integrity of the bad faith claim.
The quiet advantage: reputation and repetition
Insurers know who does their homework. A personal injury attorney who consistently sends clean demands, sets fair deadlines, and follows through in litigation builds a brand inside claim departments. That brand pays off in dozens of small ways: quicker callbacks, more realistic opening numbers, and a smoother path to policy limits when the facts warrant it. It is not glamourous. It is consistency over years.
When younger lawyers ask what moves the needle most in bad faith situations, I tell them the same thing my mentor told me: precision is persuasion. Write fewer words with more facts. Put your evidence in order. Be early rather than loud. In a profession where noise is cheap, clarity still wins.
A compact set of pressure tools that play well together
- A fully compliant time-limited demand with organized exhibits and clear payment instructions. Follow-up letters that confirm calls, reset deadlines as needed, and stay relentlessly professional. Early, targeted discovery that exposes claim handling without fishing expeditions. Strategic use of regulatory references, focused on conduct rather than rhetoric. Mediation briefs that teach, not preach, and create a record the carrier cannot ignore.
Personal injury work often depends on uncovering and addressing the gap between what an insurer should do and what it actually does. Whether you are a car accident lawyer, a truck accident lawyer, a rideshare accident lawyer, a motorcycle accident lawyer, or a pedestrian accident attorney, the fundamentals are the same. Build the record. Offer a fair path to settlement. Hold the carrier to its duty of good faith with steady pressure. And never lose sight of the person at the center of the file, whose life is not a case number but a daily reality shaped by your choices.