Seven signs a claim is about to go wrong, PropertyCasualty360
By Louie Castoria, partner and chair emeritus of KD’s Professional Liability practice group
Published by PropertyCasualty360 I October 1, 2020
Learning to identify the factors that indicate problems with a claim can save insurers time and money.
Veteran claims executives know that sometimes lawsuits go off the rails. Juries can “run away,” key witnesses can crater on cross-examination, and judges can, occasionally, be injudicious. However, there are warning signs:
- It’s quiet, too quiet. Most insurers have reporting intervals stated in their litigation guidelines, but these represent minimum standards, not the ideal. Ignoring reporting deadlines is bad enough, but it’s a danger sign when an attorney who has been a more frequent correspondent than the guidelines recommend goes radio silent.
It could be an illness or “nothing much doing.” Is it a high-end stakes case? Are there trial or pre-trial deadlines coming up? Those usually aren’t good times for the silent treatment; rather, times to over-communicate. Maybe counsel doesn’t want to broadcast what’s happening, hoping things will turn out fine, but forgetting Murphy’s Law. Clients hate surprises, especially ones that begin, “We regret to advise …”
Read more at the full article.
