$21M

Case Details

Mayerson Law secured the largest judgment in Pennsylvania history in an insurance bad faith case. The verdict is different from other insurance bad faith verdicts because Mayerson proved Nationwide knowingly placed its own insured at risk to suffer injury or death. The claim dispute involved Nationwide’s Blue Ribbon Repair Program and its appraisal and repair of an insured vehicle. Judge Sprecher found that Nationwide vacated the original appraisal that the vehicle was a structural total loss due to a badly twisted frame, and secretly ordered repairs be attempted by a non-disclosed facility. The repairs failed and the vehicle was returned in a dangerous condition. Experts confirmed the vehicle’s safety components (crash crumple zones and airbag deployment) were compromised and that the risk of a subsequent collision was increased by the repair failures, which caused the tires to quickly wear to the metal belts. Judge Sprecher found that Nationwide placed its profits over safety and knowingly risked the lives of its insured, and the motoring public to save itself money. The court further found that Nationwide concealed evidence, including internal reports documenting its early knowledge of the failed repairs. Nationwide paid its own lawyers in excess of $3 million to artificially inflate the cost of the litigation, as part of a broader strategy to develop a reputation in the legal community of being tough.

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