Motion To Dismiss in UIM Bad Faith Claim Denied

In the case of Debree v. American States Ins. Co., No. 3:20-CV-00247-JKM (M.D. Pa. July 30, 2024 Munley, J.), the court denied a UIM carrier’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in a case alleging breach of contract and insurance bad faith.

The Defendant focused its Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on the Plaintiff’s bad faith claims. The Defendants asserted that the Plaintiff could not establish that the Defendant did not have a reasonable basis for denying benefits under the policy or that the Defendant knew or recklessly disregarded its allegedly lack of a reasonable basis in denying the claim.

According to the Defendant, the record before the court established that the parties merely disagreed over the value of the UIM claim and that such agreement does not constitute bad faith.

The Plaintiff argued that factual disputes existed regarding the Defendant’s investigation into the claim, which disputes precluded the entry of summary judgment on the bad faith claim.

The court noted that, after a review of the case before it, and keeping in mind that bad faith claims are very facts-specific, the court denied the Motion for Partial Summary Judgment after finding that the Plaintiff had submitted sufficient evidence to allow the Plaintiff to proceed with the bad faith claim.

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