Legal Question in Insurance Law in California

my car was stolen at the end of dec.09 it was reported stolan the 1st weak in jan.10. Ibought my ins, policy from a local brocker in sept of 09 and paid for a years coverage& never recieved a policy until 2 days after the car was stolen.i contacted ins.com. and i recieved a letter from a claims rep. stating that my policy did not go into effect until 2 days after my car was stolan and that forether more that their was an excluision stating that my claim would most likely be denied, keeping in mind that i had never seen nor read a copy of the policy until 2 days after the theift and the brocker that i bought the policy from never went over the policy with me nor did she inform me of any type of exclusions in this full-coverage policy i had purchased through her. it is now the 24th of march 2010 and the insurance co. still havent honered their end of our policy agreement. my question is what should i do now?


Asked on 3/24/10, 9:42 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Armen Tashjian Law Offices of Armen M. Tashjian

You may have a case against your insurance carrier for breach of contract and breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing. You may also have a case against the broker who sold you the policy. However, review of all pertinent facts and documents is necessary before final decision is made on the course of action. Let me know if I can be of service.

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Answered on 3/29/10, 11:18 am
Steven Murray Steven W. Murray, APC

What probably happened is the broker kept your funds and did not pay the insurer until after the claim was filed. To whom was your check payable? Get a copy of the check/receipt for payment. And what kind of an exclusion was cited: did the car have to be garaged, or not parked on the street?

Write the insurer and demand to know why the policy was issued three months after it was paid for. Don't do anything on the phone with either the broker or the insurer. Go to the broker and get a complete copy of your file.

You may need to hire a lawyer to accomplish this. Is there a loan outstanding, and if so, perhaps your lender can assist you since it surely is a loss payee.

Good luck.

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Answered on 3/29/10, 3:35 pm


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