Insurance attorney Steven Gursten tells the Macomb Daily that such insurance company abuse is rampant because Michigan is lacking bad faith laws
Steven M. Gursten, insurance attorney and head of Michigan Auto Law, was featured in a Macomb Daily story on the increasing frequency auto insurers are fighting claims, and the lawsuits that follow when auto accident victims must sue to receive the No-Fault benefits.
Gursten told the paper that insurance companies have learned it’s easier to fight catastrophic claims than pay them because plaintiffs typically settle for less: “No matter how much of a slam dunk or black and white a case is, the insurance companies have incentive to play games and not pay what they have to. Settling these cases on a discount, these companies are literally savings millions of dollars on a macro level. If it’s good business, forget the morality. It’s a shame what people have to go through and the stress it puts them under.”
Gursten added that Michigan must allow its insurance commissioner to punish companies that egregiously fail to pay on a claim and prevent companies from earning “excessive profits,” pass “bad faith” laws and/or allow juries to award punitive damages.
Here’s the full Macomb Daily story: Paralyzed Sterling Heights woman fights for insurance coverage
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