When insurance companies act in bad faith, they fail to honor legitimate claims or wrongfully deny benefits, such as life or disability insurance. They may conduct insufficient investigations; delay claim processing or fail to pay valid claims. Some insurers may treat their policyholders as adversaries, deceive or avoid questions, hide key facts, or consistently deny claims. Despite Texans paying millions in insurance premiums annually, many companies actively seek ways to avoid fulfilling their coverage responsibilities. “Insurance bad faith” is a legal term that refers to a tort claim an insured person can bring against an insurance company for its wrongful actions. Many policyholders are unaware that insurance companies have a high duty of care toward their insureds, known as a fiduciary duty. Despite this, insurance companies often engage in practices that lead to the wrongful denial of claims. They focus on finding loopholes in the policy to technically avoid payment and frequently breach contracts or misuse their power to pressure policyholders into accepting lower settlements than what is fair.