Can I sue my insurance broker for negligence or bad faith?

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Can I sue my insurance broker for negligence or bad faith?

I’ve been with this insurance broker for over 5 years. I have multiple cars with this insurance company. I bought a new car in March 2017. I went to add full coverage on my 2017 leased car. My broker told me it was done and I paid. I later was in an accident and car was totaled. turns out my broker made a mistake and gave me the wrong coverage only liability. Now my insurance claim was Denied and my credit will take a hit and car will be discharged. My broker tried to hide from me and ignored me. In the end told me it would be fast for me to

Asked on June 2, 2017 under Insurance Law, California

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 6 years ago | Contributor

Yes, if you told your broker to add collision coverage and she failed to do so, you may be able to sue her for her negligence in not procuring it for you. You could potentially recover from her what you should have  received from insurance. You would have to be able to prove, to win such a lawsuit, too things:
1) That you gave her the instructions to get the full coverage: obviously, having sent instructions in writing in some way that you could prove she got them (e.g. fax, email) would be very beneficial in this regard.
2) That when you received the coverage for her, it was not obvious that you only received liability coverage--if it was obvious and you failed to object at the time, the law will presume that you agreed to the level or type of coverage that you clearly received, in which case you cannot late complain about or sue over not have received different or additional coverage.


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