An insurance bad faith lawyer helps policyholders and claimants when an insurance company treats them unfairly, unreasonably denying, delaying, or underpaying a valid claim. At Rosenthal, Kooshoian & Lennon, LLP, our insurance bad faith attorneys hold insurers to the good-faith obligations they owe and fight to recover what you're actually owed. You paid your premiums and kept your end of the deal. When an insurer won't keep its end, our firm makes it answer.
Insurance companies make money by collecting premiums and paying out as little as possible, and most of the time they play fair. But when a company crosses the line from driving a hard bargain into treating a policyholder unreasonably, that's bad faith, and it can cost people the coverage they counted on at the worst possible moment. Our Buffalo insurance bad faith lawyers push back. This connects closely to our broader Buffalo personal injury practice, so the full weight of the firm is behind your case.
Call us 24/7 at 716-854-1300 to speak with a personal injury lawyer near you, or contact us for a FREE consultation.
Insurance bad faith is when an insurance company unreasonably fails to honor its obligations to a policyholder or claimant. Every insurer owes a duty of good faith and fair dealing, and it breaks that duty when it denies a valid claim without a reasonable basis, drags out payment, lowballs a settlement, or refuses to properly investigate. Bad faith is more than a disagreement; it's unreasonable conduct.
The key word is unreasonable. An insurer is allowed to question a claim, ask for proof, and dispute what something is worth. What it can't do is deny, delay, or shortchange a claim it has no legitimate reason to fight. Our insurance bad faith attorneys look at whether the company had a genuine, reasonable basis for what it did, or whether it simply put its own bottom line ahead of its obligations.
Differently, and more narrowly, than many other states, which is why experienced counsel matters. Unlike states that allow a separate bad faith lawsuit with automatic punitive damages, New York generally treats an insurer's bad faith as a breach of its contract, and recovering damages beyond the policy benefits requires showing especially egregious conduct. That makes these cases winnable, but demanding.
In practical terms, New York lets you force an insurer to pay what the policy owes, plus interest, and in the right circumstances additional consequential damages that flowed from the insurer's unreasonable conduct. Getting more than the policy amount takes proof of conduct that went well beyond an ordinary claim dispute. Our Buffalo insurance bad faith lawyers know exactly what New York requires and how to build a case that meets it, rather than promising damages the law here won't support.
First-party bad faith is when your own insurer mistreats your claim. Third-party bad faith is when a liability insurer mistreats the person its policyholder injured, usually by refusing a reasonable settlement. Both involve an insurer acting unreasonably, but they arise in different situations and are handled differently.
First-party cases involve the coverage you bought, your disability, property, health, no-fault, or uninsured motorist coverage, when your own company won't pay. Third-party cases usually arise after an injury, when the at-fault person's insurer refuses to settle a strong claim within the policy limits and exposes its own policyholder to a large verdict. Our insurance bad faith attorneys handle both, because both leave people holding a bill an insurer should have paid.
It takes many forms, but each involves an insurer treating a claim unreasonably. The common thread is a company putting its own interests ahead of the good-faith obligations it owes, in a way that has no legitimate justification.
Some of the most common examples our insurance bad faith lawyers see include:
If any of this sounds like what you're facing, our insurance bad faith attorneys can tell you whether the company crossed the line from tough to unlawful.
It's the obligation every insurer owes to deal fairly and honestly with its policyholders. When you buy a policy, the insurer promises not just to pay covered claims but to handle them reasonably, to investigate fairly, communicate honestly, and pay what's owed without inventing reasons to avoid it. Bad faith is the breach of that promise.
This duty exists because insurance isn't an ordinary product. You pay for years hoping never to use it, and you rely on it precisely when you're most vulnerable, after a fire, an injury, a disability, or a death. The law expects an insurer to honor that trust. Our Buffalo insurance bad faith lawyers hold companies to it when they forget who they're supposed to be protecting.
It can be, if the denial was unreasonable. A denial isn't automatically bad faith; an insurer is allowed to deny a claim it has a genuine, reasonable basis to dispute. But when a company denies a clearly covered claim, ignores the evidence, or invents a pretext to avoid paying, that unreasonable denial can be bad faith and grounds to make it pay what it owes.
The question is always whether the insurer had a legitimate reason. A close call on a genuinely disputed issue is one thing. A flat denial of an obviously covered loss, with no real investigation or explanation, is another. Our insurance bad faith attorneys examine the denial letter, the policy, and the claim file to determine whether the company acted reasonably or simply refused to pay.
It's one of the clearest forms of insurer bad faith. When someone with insurance seriously injures another person, and the injured person offers to settle within the policyholder's coverage limits, the insurer is supposed to seriously consider that offer to protect its policyholder. If it unreasonably refuses and a jury later awards more than the policy limits, the insurer can be on the hook for the entire excess judgment.
This is where bad faith law has real teeth in New York, and it protects the insured policyholder. An insurer that gambles with its policyholder's money, rejecting a fair within-limits deal and hoping for a better result at trial, does so at its own risk. Our insurance bad faith lawyers understand this dynamic from both sides of an injury case, and it's a key part of how we press liability insurers to settle serious claims fairly.
Closely, in more ways than one. After an accident, you may be dealing with your own no-fault or uninsured motorist coverage, and if your own insurer won't pay what it owes, that's a first-party bad faith issue. On the other side, if the at-fault party's insurer refuses to settle a strong claim within limits, that sets up a third-party bad faith exposure that can benefit you.
That second scenario matters for anyone seriously hurt by someone with too little insurance. When we make a reasonable within-limits demand and the insurer unreasonably refuses, we build a record that can hold the insurer responsible for a verdict beyond the policy limits. Our insurance bad faith attorneys use these principles throughout our injury practice, especially where the harm is severe and the coverage looks too small.
Almost any kind of coverage can be handled in bad faith. Our insurance bad faith lawyers see it across auto and no-fault, uninsured and underinsured motorist claims, disability, homeowners and property, life, and health coverage. Wherever there's a policy and a claim, there's a duty of good faith that an insurer can violate.
The setting changes, but the pattern is familiar: a valid claim, a policyholder who needs the money, and a company that won't pay what it should. A disability insurer that cuts off benefits, a homeowners insurer that denies a covered loss, an auto insurer that stalls a no-fault or uninsured motorist claim, each can be a bad faith case. Our insurance bad faith attorneys evaluate the coverage and the conduct to see what applies.
At a minimum, the benefits the policy owes, plus interest. Beyond that, New York allows additional consequential damages, the foreseeable losses caused by the insurer's unreasonable handling, when they can be proven, and in the failure-to-settle context, the full amount of a judgment that exceeds the policy limits. Damages beyond the policy require serious, well-documented proof.
New York is more restrained than states that hand out punitive damages for bad faith, so it's important to be realistic and strategic about what a given case can recover. The core goal is to make the insurer pay the coverage it wrongly withheld, and where the conduct and the losses justify it, to reach the additional damages the law allows. Our insurance bad faith lawyers build each case around what New York actually permits, and pursue every dollar of it.
When the insurer had a reasonable basis for its position. Not every denied or disputed claim is bad faith, and it's important to be honest about that. If there's a genuine question about whether a loss is covered, or a legitimate dispute over value, an insurer is entitled to take its position without acting in bad faith. Bad faith is about unreasonable conduct, not any disagreement.
Drawing that line is exactly where an experienced eye helps. A company will always claim its denial was reasonable, so the case turns on the facts, the policy, the evidence it had, and how it actually handled the claim. Our insurance bad faith attorneys assess honestly whether you have a genuine bad faith case or a coverage dispute to be won on the contract, and we tell you straight which one it is.
Largely through the insurer's own records. The claim file, the internal notes, the correspondence, and the timeline often reveal whether the company investigated fairly and had a real basis for what it did. Proving bad faith means showing the insurer acted unreasonably, and the proof usually lives in how the company documented and handled the claim.
That's why these cases reward thorough, aggressive work. The claim file can show an adjuster who never investigated, a denial written before the facts were in, or a settlement offer designed to exploit a policyholder's desperation. Our insurance bad faith lawyers know what to demand and what to look for, and we build the record that turns an insurer's unreasonable conduct into an accountable one.
It depends on how the claim is framed, and the deadline can be shorter than you'd expect. Because New York often treats bad faith as a breach of the insurance contract, the deadline can turn on the contract, and some policies shorten the time to sue well below the usual period. Missing the deadline can end the claim, so this isn't something to put off.
Many policies contain their own time limits for filing suit, sometimes as short as two years, and those provisions are often enforceable. Between the policy language and the way the claim is characterized, the timeline can be tricky. Our insurance bad faith attorneys pin down every applicable deadline early, so a technicality never costs you a valid claim against your insurer.
Document everything and get advice before you give up. Keep copies of your policy, every letter and email, and notes of every phone call, including names, dates, and what was said. Put your claim and your disagreements in writing, don't accept a denial at face value, and talk to a lawyer before signing a release or accepting a lowball offer.
A clear paper trail is your best protection, because a bad faith case often comes down to what the insurer knew and when. Save the denial letters, the delays, and the shifting explanations. Getting our insurance bad faith lawyers involved early lets us preserve that record, deal with the insurer directly, and keep you from accepting far less than the policy owes you.
Our insurance bad faith lawyers start by separating a real bad faith case from an ordinary coverage dispute, then build whichever one you have. From the start, our attorneys review the policy and the claim file, demand the insurer's records, and document exactly how the company handled, or mishandled, your claim.
Our insurance bad faith attorneys press the insurer to pay the coverage it owes, and where the conduct and the losses support it, we pursue the additional damages New York allows. In the failure-to-settle context, our team builds the record that can hold an insurer responsible for a verdict beyond the policy limits. We prepare each case as if it's going to trial, because that's what moves an insurer, and most cases resolve through negotiation once the company sees we're serious. Our firm keeps these matters in house from start to finish.
Our insurance bad faith lawyers battle insurance companies every single day, and we know how they think, delay, and deny. Our firm handles these cases the same way it handles every case, in house, start to finish, through settlement, trial, and appeal, with an honest read on what New York's demanding bad faith rules will and won't support.
These cases reward a firm that understands both insurance coverage and how to try a case, and that won't be strung along by an insurer's tactics. That's what our insurance bad faith attorneys bring, along with straight answers in plain language, so you always know where your case stands and what to realistically expect. You held up your end. Our team will make the insurer answer for theirs.
If an insurance company has unreasonably denied, delayed, or underpaid your claim in Buffalo or Western New York, the attorneys at Rosenthal, Kooshoian & Lennon, LLP are ready to help. Contact us for a free consultation, and a Buffalo insurance bad faith lawyer will review your policy and the insurer's conduct, tell you honestly whether you have a case, and lay out your options, with no fee unless we recover for you.
Don't let a company wear you down into accepting less than you're owed. The sooner our insurance bad faith lawyers get involved, the more our team can do to preserve the record, meet any deadline hidden in your policy, and force the insurer to honor the coverage you paid for. If your bad faith issue grew out of an accident, our Buffalo car accident lawyer page covers the injury side of that overlap as well.
Call us 24/7 at 716-854-1300 to speak with a personal injury lawyer near you, or contact us for a FREE consultation.
Disclaimer: This page is for general information only and isn't legal advice. Reading it doesn't create an attorney client relationship. Insurance and bad faith law is complex and can change; the principles described reflect New York law as of 2026, and how they apply depends on your policy and facts. Every case is different, and prior results don't guarantee a similar outcome. For advice about a specific claim, please consult a licensed New York attorney.
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