How to document a bad faith insurance claim

1. Build a correspondence log

Every call, voicemail, email, letter, and portal message goes into one running log with date, time, adjuster name, and a short summary of what was said or asked for. California regulators expect carriers to respond to communications within 15 calendar days (10 CCR §2695.5). A log is what proves they didn't.

• Date and time of contact
• Adjuster (or representative) name and claim role
• Channel: phone, email, letter, portal, recorded statement
• What the carrier said — and what they promised to do next
• What they actually did (or didn't do) by the next entry

2. Compare estimates line-by-line

Underpayment is the most common bad faith pattern we see. The evidence is a side-by-side spreadsheet: every line item from the carrier's estimate against your contractor's bid, with the dollar gap and a note on what's missing (scope, quantity, unit price, O&P, code upgrades, matching).

When the carrier's "independent" engineer or third-party estimating service shows up, archive the report and add a column for their numbers too. Contradictions between the carrier's own experts are powerful evidence.

3. Map each problem to the regulation

California Insurance Code §790.03 and the Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations (10 CCR §2695) define what counts as unfair claim handling. Most bad faith cases boil down to a small set of violations:

• Misrepresenting policy terms or coverage (§790.03(h)(1))
• Failing to acknowledge or act promptly on communications (§790.03(h)(2); 10 CCR §2695.5)
• No reasonable investigation before denial (§790.03(h)(3))
• Failing to attempt a prompt, fair, equitable settlement once liability is clear (§790.03(h)(5))
• Compelling the insured to litigate by offering substantially less than what is ultimately recovered (§790.03(h)(6))
• No written explanation of the denial or compromise basis (§790.03(h)(13))

4. Preserve originals — and don't argue over email

Keep originals of every photo (with EXIF intact), every scope, every policy page, and every signed proof of loss. Don't delete the carrier's app or portal — screenshot it instead. When you do need to respond to the adjuster, do it in writing so the record builds itself.