Insurance Bad Faith Case in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma Resolved Quickly

Best Evidence conducted two Focus Group research sessions for a major insurance company defending a bad faith case in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. This dispute arose from a serious motor vehicle accident at a construction project where a semi-truck, performing work at the construction site, rear-ended one vehicle and caused a domino effect of collisions. Four people were killed and one was seriously injured. The injured person and the estates of the deceased individuals sued numerous entities in the underlying lawsuit. The plaintiffs settled with all defendants with the exception one—the defendant of this bad faith lawsuit. A critical issue was whether or not the defendant construction company in the underlying lawsuit qualified as an “additional insured” under the insurance policies. When coverage was denied on the basis that the underlying defendant did not qualify as an “additional insured,” the construction company filed this bad faith lawsuit asserting that the insurance companies breached their duty of good faith and fair dealing. The plaintiff was seeking indemnification for $9 million as well as punitive damages. The case was settled favorably after completion of the jury research.