Judge Tosses $10M Bad Faith Insurance Claim Over Plaintiff’s ’Unreasonable’ Demands

A federal judge threw out a $10 million bad faith claim an injured accident victim filed against an insurer, ruling that the woman’s demand for the at-fault driver’s policy limit contained unreasonable restrictions.

In a handwritten letter, plaintiff Amy Kemper said the insurer must not contact her or her friends, and she also argued that Equity Insurance’s demand that she place the $25,000 policy limit in an escrow account to cover any potential liens constituted a counteroffer, which she declined.

The “undisputed evidence shows the parties were unable to resolve Ms. Kemper’s claim because of her (and her lawyer’s) unreasonable refusal to assure the satisfaction of any outstanding hospital liens or even to allow [the claims adjuster] or Equity to contact her about the liens,” wrote Northern District Judge Michael Brown, ruling for the insurer on summary judgment.