Bad Faith

When to Cry Over Spilled Milk: A Cautionary Tale for Insurers on Payment Handling

Bad Faith, Claim Payments, Public Adjusters

When an insurer issues claim payments, the job isn’t always finished once the check clears. The recent Pennsylvania Superior Court decision in Spilled Milk, Inc. v. Nautilus Insurance Co. (Oct. 28, 2025), serves as a reminder that even well-intentioned payment handling can expose a carrier to breach of contract and bad faith allegations when the …

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Property in 60 Seconds: Clear Vacancy Language Earns Insurer Summary Judgment

Bad Faith, Property in 60 Seconds, Vacancy

On May 14, 2024, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania held that the Vacancy provision in a commercial property policy applied, barring coverage for a policyholder’s claim of over $13 million in theft/vandalism damages, while simultaneously denying allegations of bad faith.  In 4301 N Delaware QOB LLC v. Selective Insurance Company of South Carolina, the plaintiff policyholder sued Selective for breach of contract and …

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Improper Policy Cancellation Does not Support A Statutory Bad Faith Claim

Bad Faith

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania in Devein Dalessio Trucking, LLC v. Progressive Corp. recently held that Plaintiff’s statutory bad faith claim cannot be exclusively based on an allegedly improper cancellation of a policy and granted the carrier’s motion to dismiss. Pennsylvania’s bad faith statute is limited to causes of action …

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REASONABLY RELYING ON EXPERTS IS A MERITORIOUS DEFENSE IN BAD FAITH LITIGATION

Bad Faith

In order to recover under Pennsylvania’s bad faith statute, a party must prove, by clear and convincing evidence, that (1) the insurer did not have a reasonable basis for its coverage determination, and (2) the insurer knew of or recklessly disregarded the lack of a reasonable basis. Rancosky v. Wash. Nat’l Ins. Co., 170 A.3d …

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