Bad Faith Insurance Lawyer in Miami

Insurance companies are obligated to act in good faith when handling claims — toward their own insureds (first-party bad faith) and toward third parties making claims against their insureds within policy limits (third-party bad faith). When a carrier unreasonably denies, delays, or refuses to settle a clear case within policy limits, Florida law allows recovery of damages that often exceed the policy limits — including the full amount of any excess verdict, attorneys' fees, and pre-judgment interest. The Law Offices of Albert Goodwin litigates bad faith claims against auto, homeowners, commercial, and excess-line carriers.

Florida's Bad Faith Statute

Florida Statute § 624.155 codifies the right to sue an insurance carrier for bad faith. The statute applies to first-party claims (the insured's own claim for benefits owed under the policy) and to third-party claims that mature through an excess judgment or an assignment from the insured. The statute requires a specific procedural step before suit can be filed: service of a Civil Remedy Notice (CRN) on the carrier and on the Florida Department of Financial Services, with a 60-day cure period during which the carrier can resolve the claim without bad-faith exposure.

Third-Party Bad Faith — The Classic Case

The most common bad-faith scenario in Florida personal injury practice is the third-party "excess judgment" case:

1. A driver with a small auto policy (often $10,000 or $25,000 in bodily-injury limits) causes a serious crash with clear liability.
2. The injured claimant offers to settle for the full policy limits, with proof of damages well in excess of the limits.
3. The carrier delays, equivocates, attaches strings, fails to investigate, fails to communicate with its insured, or otherwise mishandles the claim.
4. The case goes to trial and a verdict comes in that vastly exceeds the policy limits — say, $1.5 million against a $25,000 policy.
5. The insured, exposed to the excess judgment, assigns their bad-faith claim to the injured claimant (often by a so-called "Cunningham agreement") in exchange for a covenant not to execute personally.
6. The claimant, now standing in the insured's shoes, sues the carrier for the full $1.5 million — and the policy limits no longer cap the carrier's exposure.

The seminal Florida case is Boston Old Colony Ins. Co. v. Gutierrez, 386 So. 2d 783 (Fla. 1980), which articulated the duties an insurer owes its insured: to investigate the facts, give fair consideration to a settlement offer that a reasonable person would accept, settle when a reasonable carrier would, advise the insured of settlement opportunities, advise of probable excess exposure, and act with diligence and care. State Farm v. Laforet, 658 So. 2d 55 (Fla. 1995), expanded on these duties.

First-Party Bad Faith

First-party bad faith applies when the carrier wrongfully denies or underpays benefits the insured is entitled to under the policy — UM/UIM claims, homeowners' claims, life and disability claims, and similar. Typical first-party bad-faith conduct includes:

• Denying a clearly covered claim without reasonable investigation
• Lowballing settlement offers far below the obvious value of the claim
• Misrepresenting policy provisions or coverage
• Failure to communicate timely with the insured
• Requiring duplicative documentation or unnecessary examinations
• Failure to provide a reasonable explanation of denial

A first-party bad-faith case in Florida generally cannot proceed until the underlying coverage dispute is resolved (the insured establishes the existence of liability and the extent of damages owed under the policy). After that, the CRN is served and, if not cured within 60 days, the bad-faith action ripens.

The Civil Remedy Notice (CRN)

The CRN must specifically identify the statutory violation, the policy language at issue, the facts giving rise to the violation, and what action would cure the violation. A defective CRN can be fatal to the entire bad-faith case. Florida courts strictly review CRNs to determine whether they put the carrier on adequate notice. Once filed with DFS, the CRN starts a 60-day clock — if the carrier pays the claim (or the policy limits) within that window, the cure is effective and bad faith is foreclosed.

Damages in a Successful Bad-Faith Case

If the carrier is found liable for bad faith, recoverable damages include:

• The full amount of any excess judgment against the insured, no matter how large
• Consequential damages flowing from the bad-faith conduct (interest on the judgment, credit damage, emotional distress in appropriate cases)
• Attorneys' fees under § 627.428 / § 624.155
• In appropriate cases, punitive damages

Common Bad-Faith Scenarios

• Auto carrier refuses to tender minimum policy limits on a clear-liability serious-injury case
• Homeowners' carrier denies a hurricane or fire claim despite obvious covered damage
• UM/UIM carrier lowballs or denies a meritorious uninsured-motorist claim
• Commercial general liability carrier fails to defend or settle within limits
• Disability carrier wrongfully terminates benefits

Bad faith litigation is technical, document-intensive, and slow — but the recovery in a successful case often dwarfs the underlying policy limits. If you have a case where the insurance carrier should have settled and did not, or where benefits owed under a policy have been wrongfully denied or delayed, contact the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin. Call 786-522-1411 or email [email protected] for a confidential evaluation.