In Brooks v. Tenn. Farmers Mut. Ins. Co., 2014 Tenn. App. LEXIS 776 (Tenn. Ct. App. Nov. 26, 2014), an insured’s home was damaged by a tornado and an independent adjuster hired by the insurance company offered the homeowner $56,788 to resolve the claim. The homeowner disagreed with the estimate and refused to settle
Consumer Protection Act
The End of the Consumer Protection Act in Insurance Cases
By Brandon McWherter on
Posted in Bad Faith, Consumer Protection Act
This will probably come as no surprise to most but my feelings concerning the legislature’s recent removal of the insurance industry from the protection of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act are pretty strong. I called every member of the legislature I knew, and some I didn’t, in an attempt to stop the bill. But there…
Tennessee Legislature Restricts Application of Consumer Protection Act, Overruling Myint v. Allstate
By Parks Chastain on
Posted in Bad Faith, Consumer Protection Act
On April 29, 2011, the Tennessee legislature adopted House Bill 1189 was enacted into law and signed by Governor Haslam. Public Chapter No. 130 will be codified in Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 56, Chapter 8, Part 1. The signed law is available by clicking here.
The law amends Title 56 related to insurance business acts…
Discovery in Bad Faith and Consumer Protection Act Cases, Part I
By Brandon McWherter on
In bad faith and Tennessee Consumer Protection Act cases, I routinely run into work product objections during discovery. Often these objections are made even as to reports and documents generated before the claim was denied. I believe work-product objections as to pre-denial materials are improper. As we know, Rule 26.02(3) protects against disclosure of materials…
What Does a Mercedes-Benz Have to Do with Insurance Litigation?
By Brandon McWherter on
Posted in Consumer Protection Act
The Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern Section, issued a new opinion yesterday interpreting the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act. The case, Timoshchuk v. Long of Chattanooga Mercedes-Benz et al (.pdf), arose from a Mercedes dealer’s sale of a "new" Mercedes which turned out to be not so new. A few months after purchasing…
The Tennessee Supreme Court’s Treatment of Tennessee Consumer Protection Act Claims in the Insurance Setting
By Brandon McWherter on
Posted in Consumer Protection Act
I ran across a good article (pdf) this evening by Robins H. Ledyard entitled Treatment of Insurance Claims under Tennessee Consumer Protection Act. Published in the Federation of Regulatory Counsel Journal in the Fall of 2008, the article gives a short synopsis of our Supreme Court’s analysis of TCPA claims in the…
A Word About the Crossley Decision
By Brandon McWherter on
Posted in Consumer Protection Act
On the topic of whether independent adjusters should be held liable under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (see my prior post here and Parks’ rebuttal here), a case commonly cited by defendant insurance companies and adjusters is Crossley Const. Corp. v. National Fire Ins. Co. of Hartford, 237 S.W.2d 652 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2007). …
Independent Adjusters Should Not Be Liable To Insureds Under The Tennessee Consumer Protection Act
By Parks Chastain on
Posted in Consumer Protection Act
I understand the reasoning of Magistrate Bryant, and the state court judges with whom I have debated this topic, but it just does not seem right that a person or entity not associated with the consumer transaction at all should be held liable under the Act. How was the independent adjuster involved in the …
Independent Adjusters Can Be Held Liable for Violations of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act
By Brandon McWherter on
Posted in Bad Faith, Consumer Protection Act
Magistrate Ed Bryant (W.D. Tenn.) recently issued a Report and Recommendation in one of my cases in which he held that Tennessee law allows an independent adjuster to be held liable under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act. The defendant independent adjuster argued that my client failed to state a claim under the TCPA because the…