THE HAILEY | HART APPROACH TO INSURANCE DISPUTES

Colorado law requires prompt payment of all insurance benefits owed on covered claims. It is unlawful for insurance carriers to unreasonably delay or deny the full and fair payment of covered claims. We represent policyholders in litigation against their own insurance companies for unreasonable delay or denial of benefits owed under homeowners, commercial property, health, life, disability, and automobile insurance policies. 

Hailey| Hart’s goal is to always make our clients whole. We leverage the extra-contractual damages available under Colorado law to get our clients the funds they need to put their lives back together after an unexpected loss or tragedy. Those damages include all unpaid contract benefits, other economic losses flowing from the insurer’s breach of contract,attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, two times the benefit amount unreasonably delayed or denied, and all pre- and post-judgment interest allowed by law.

UNREASONABLE DELAY OR DENIAL OF COVERED CLAIMS

Insurance carriers in Colorado owe their policyholders a duty of good faith and fair dealing. That means insurers must be honest, fair, and communicative. Insurers must provide a thorough investigation of claims based on all available information. Insurers must look for facts supporting coverage and cannot ignore information provided by the policyholder. Insurers must be reasonably accurate in their valuation of claims and must pay all that is owed under the policy. If insurers hire experts, consultants, or attorneys to assist with claim investigation or evaluation, the insurer’s reliance on those experts, consultants, or attorneys must be reasonable. 

Hailey | Hart represents policyholders in litigation against their own insurers for bad faith claims handling under homeowners, commercial property, health, life, disability, and automobile insurance policies. We hold insurers who commit bad faith accountable for all available damages, including non-economic damages designed to compensate our clients for the financial stress, hardship, and worry caused by the bad faith conduct.

FIRST PARTY BAD FAITH CASES

Insurance agents and brokers must exercise all due care to procure the insurance products their clients request. Once a specific request for an insurance product is made, the agent or broker must either procure the product desired or promptly advise the customer that procurement is impossible because the desired product is unavailable. Agents and brokers who fail to procure an insurance product that is both requested and available may be liable for negligence. 

Hailey | Hart represents clients who have sustained a loss or tragedy that would have been covered by insurance but for the agent or broker’s failure to procure the policy requested. The goal of the negligent procurement case is to recover the benefits that would have been available under the requested insurance policy directly from the agent or broker.

AGENT / BROKER NEGLIGENCE

Insurance policies can be complex and hard to understand. Most contain a web of coverage exclusions and exceptions to those exclusions, which add back coverage under specific circumstances. We represent clients needing to understand whether their loss is covered, by whom, and why. 

Hailey | Hart works with carriers and their lawyers to identify relevant policy provisions and case law supporting coverage. Where multiple policies are at play, we identify which benefits are owed under what policy and push for prompt payment.

COVERAGE DISPUTES

Liability policyholders deserve both a quality defense and full indemnity from covered claims. We represent clients who have caused a covered loss but are not receiving the services promised by their own liability insurers. At-fault parties facing excess exposure on liability claims often need personal counsel. 

Hailey | Hart works to pressure the liability insurer to accept reasonable settlement offers from the injured party so as to protect the financial interests of the insured. When that is unsuccessful, we work to reach an agreement with the injured party’s counsel to take over any bad faith claim against the liability insurer, so as to protect the financial interests of the insured.

PERSONAL COUNSEL