The Reading Room
The laws that govern your claim. In full. In plain sight.
Every statute and regulation below is the complete official text — no summaries standing in for the law, no truncation — each linked to its primary source. The plain-English notes sit beside the law, never instead of it. Now you know the rule. Enforcing it against a carrier is a different job.
Georgia
The Georgia Insurance Code and Department regulations that control property claims.
O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.12 Georgia's Residential Roofing Contract Law (5-Day Cancellation; Roofers May Not Negotiate Claims) Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-23-43.1 Georgia Public Adjuster License Requirement Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-23-43.2 Georgia Public Adjuster Contract Requirements (Required Terms, Prohibited Terms, 3-Day Rescission) Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-23-43.3 Georgia Public Adjuster Fee Cap (33.3%) and Payment Handling Rules Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-23-43 Who May Adjust Insurance Claims in Georgia (Roofer / Unlicensed Adjusting Restriction) Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-4-6 Georgia's Insurance Bad Faith Penalty (50% Penalty + Attorney's Fees) Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-4-7 Georgia's Motor Vehicle Property Damage Bad Faith Statute (Third-Party Claims) Read the full text → O.C.G.A. § 33-6-34 Georgia's Unfair Claims Settlement Practices List (16 Prohibited Acts) Read the full text → Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 120-2-52-.03 Georgia's Claim-Handling Deadlines (15-Day Acknowledgment, 15/30-Day Decision, 10-Day Payment, 60-Day Cap) Read the full text →
Tennessee
The Tennessee Code and Department of Commerce & Insurance rules for policyholders.
Tenn. Code Ann. § 56-6-913 Tennessee Public Adjuster Fee Caps (15% Pre-Offer / 25% of the Increase / 10% Catastrophe Total-Loss; No Fees Before Settlement) Read the full text → Tenn. Code Ann. § 56-7-105 Tennessee's Insurance Bad Faith Penalty (Up to 25% After a 60-Day Demand) Read the full text → Tenn. Code Ann. § 56-8-105 Tennessee's Unfair Claims Practices List (15 Prohibited Acts) Read the full text → Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0780-01-05-.07, -.08, -.10 Tennessee's Claim-Handling Deadlines Rule — 30-Day Acknowledgment, 60-Day Decision, 30-Day Payment, and the Matching Standard Read the full text → Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 0780-01-91 Tennessee Public Adjusters Rule (Licensing, Examinations, Renewals, Public Complaints) Read the full text →
South Carolina
The South Carolina Code provisions that govern property claims and public adjusting.
S.C. Code Ann. §§ 38-48-10 through 38-48-160 South Carolina Public Adjuster Licensing (Complete Chapter: License, Contract Rules, 5-Day Rescission, Felony for Unlicensed Adjusting) Read the full text → S.C. Code Ann. § 38-59-20 South Carolina's Improper Claim Practices List (The Eight Claim-Handling Sins) Read the full text → S.C. Code Ann. § 38-59-30 Enforcement of South Carolina's Improper Claim Practices Rules (Director's Cease-and-Desist and Penalties — Not a Private Lawsuit Right) Read the full text → S.C. Code Ann. § 38-59-40 South Carolina's Attorney's Fees Remedy When an Insurer Unreasonably Refuses to Pay (90-Day Demand, Fees Up to One-Third of Judgment) Read the full text → S.C. Code Ann. § 38-75-20 South Carolina's Valued-Policy Rule (Total Fire Loss = Full Amount of Insurance Stated in the Policy) Read the full text →
Georgia case law
The Georgia decisions that control claims — the complete opinions, what they actually held, and how carriers stretch them.
AFLAC Inc. v. Chubb & Son, Inc., 260 Ga. App. 306, 581 S.E.2d 317 (2003) AFLAC v. Chubb & Son — Where Georgia's Definition of 'Direct Physical Loss or Damage' Comes From, and Why Storm Damage Meets It Read the decision → Allstate Ins. Co. v. Baugh, 173 Ga. App. 615, 327 S.E.2d 576 (1985) Allstate v. Baugh — When the House Is Paid Off, the Entire Rent Is Additional Living Expense, and You Recover Only the Months You Actually Incurred Read the decision → Allstate Ins. Co. v. Sutton, 290 Ga. App. 154, 658 S.E.2d 909 (2008) Allstate v. Sutton — The One-Year Suit Clause Survives the Negotiation: Once the Carrier Reserves Its Rights in Writing, Talking Does Not Stop Your Clock Read the decision → American Strategic Ins. Corp. v. Helm, 327 Ga. App. 482, 759 S.E.2d 563 (2014) American Strategic v. Helm — When an Exclusion Can Honestly Be Read Two Ways, Georgia Reads It Against the Insurer That Wrote It Read the decision → Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. Ogden, 275 Ga. 565, 569 S.E.2d 833 (2002) Auto-Owners v. Ogden — The Company Can Waive Its Own Suit Deadline by Admitting Liability and Promising to Pay; an Adjuster Cannot Revive It After the Clock Runs Out Read the decision → Bell v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co., 319 Ga. App. 302, 734 S.E.2d 894 (2012) Bell v. Liberty Mutual — The Covered Item Is the Building, So the Appraisers Could Price the House as One Item Read the decision → Braner v. Southern Trust Ins. Co., 255 Ga. 117, 335 S.E.2d 547 (1985) Braner v. Southern Trust — What You Paid and Roughly When You Bought It: Georgia's Supreme Court Relaxes the Proof Rule for Contents Burned in a Fire Read the decision → BSF, Inc. v. Cason, 175 Ga. App. 271, 333 S.E.2d 154 (1985) BSF v. Cason — After a Denial You Get the Actual Cash Value Now and a Fresh Window to Replace, but the Denial Does Not Excuse You From Replacing Read the decision → Clary v. Allstate Fire & Cas. Ins. Co., 340 Ga. App. 351, 795 S.E.2d 757 (2017) Clary v. Allstate — The Appraisers Priced Every Repair Needed to Put the House Back, Mold Remediation Included Read the decision → Ga. Co-operative Fire Ass'n v. Borchardt & Co., 123 Ga. 181, 51 S.E. 429 (1905) Ga. Co-operative Fire Ass'n v. Borchardt — After the Loss, the Claim Is Yours: Georgia's 1905 Rule That Post-Loss Assignments Don't Need the Carrier's Consent Read the decision → Cotton States Mut. Ins. Co. v. Walker, 232 Ga. App. 41, 500 S.E.2d 587 (1998) Cotton States v. Walker — A Late Proof of Loss Forfeits Nothing in Georgia Unless the Policy Says So in Express Words, and an Adjuster Who Says 'Take Your Time' Can Put Waiver in Front of a Jury Read the decision → Cudd v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., No. 22-13916 (11th Cir. Jan. 5, 2024) (per curiam) (unpublished) Cudd v. State Farm — Suing First Doesn't Breach the Policy: Appraisal Is Enforceable, but It Isn't a Toll Gate to the Courthouse Read the decision → Diamonds & Denims, Inc. v. First of Ga. Ins. Co., 203 Ga. App. 681, 417 S.E.2d 440 (1992) Diamonds & Denims v. First of Georgia — Partial Cooperation, or an Explanation for Why You Cannot Produce Something, Makes Post-Loss Compliance a Jury Question Read the decision → Evans v. Ohio Cas. Ins. Co., 264 Ga. App. 485, 591 S.E.2d 378 (2003) Evans v. Ohio Casualty — Ending an Examination Under Oath Can Be Survivable in Georgia; Never Sending the Sworn Proof of Loss Was Not Read the decision → General Accident Fire & Life Assurance Corp. v. Azar, 103 Ga. App. 215, 119 S.E.2d 82 (1961) General Accident v. Azar — Cost Is a Floor Under Actual Cash Value, and a Flat Refusal to Pay Waives the Proof of Loss You Already Filed Read the decision → Ga. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Brown, 192 Ga. App. 504, 385 S.E.2d 87 (1989) Georgia Farm Bureau v. Brown — 'Wholly Destroyed' Does Not Mean Burned to Ash: a Jury May Find a Total Fire Loss From Repair-Versus-Replace Cost and the Carrier's Own Photographs Read the decision → Ga. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Croft, 322 Ga. App. 816, 746 S.E.2d 285 (2013) Georgia Farm Bureau v. Croft — A Code-Upgrade Claim Lives or Dies on Three Exhibits: the Ordinance, the Pre-Loss Market Value, and a Repair Cost That Has Actually Been Fixed Read the decision → Ga. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Franks, 320 Ga. App. 131, 739 S.E.2d 427 (2013) (physical precedent only) Georgia Farm Bureau v. Franks — Once You Have an Insurable Interest, the Policy Decides What You Collect: Joint Ownership Does Not Cut a Total-Loss Payment in Half Read the decision → Georgia Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Washington, 145 Ga. App. 216, 243 S.E.2d 639 (1978) Georgia Farm Bureau v. Washington — A Neighborhood Bakery Is Not an 'Industrial Operation': Smoke Language Gets a Layman's Reading, Not an Underwriter's Read the decision → Gilbert v. Southern Trust Ins. Co., 252 Ga. App. 109, 555 S.E.2d 69 (2001) Gilbert v. Southern Trust — Georgia Reads Policy Conditions to Avoid Forfeitures, and "Small Circumstances" Are Enough to Show the Insurer Waived One Read the decision → Halcome v. Cincinnati Ins. Co., 254 Ga. 742, 334 S.E.2d 155 (1985) Halcome v. Cincinnati Insurance — Refusing to Answer Material Questions at an Examination Under Oath Breaks the Policy; the Court Decided Only the Income Questions Read the decision → Hanover Ins. Co. v. Hallford, 127 Ga. App. 322, 193 S.E.2d 235 (1972) Hanover v. Hallford — The $210 Roof Offer That Cost the Carrier a Bad-Faith Penalty: No Magic Words Needed to Demand Payment Read the decision → Henderson v. Ga. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co., 328 Ga. App. 396, 762 S.E.2d 106 (2014) Henderson v. Georgia Farm Bureau — A Mold Sublimit Does Not Swallow the Water Claim Underneath It Read the decision → Hill v. Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 214 Ga. App. 715, 448 S.E.2d 747 (1994) Hill v. Nationwide — An Empty House Is Still a Covered House: Georgia Will Not Read an Occupancy Condition Into a Policy That Does Not Contain One Read the decision → Lam v. Allstate Indem. Co., 327 Ga. App. 151, 755 S.E.2d 544 (2014) Lam v. Allstate — The Four-Shingle Case Carriers Stretch: a 4–3 Pleading-Stage Decision, Not a Carrier Veto Over Appraisal Read the decision → Marchman v. Grange Mut. Ins. Co., 232 Ga. App. 481, 500 S.E.2d 659 (1998) Marchman v. Grange — Georgia Enforces "Actual Cash Value Until the Repair Is Complete" Literally, and the Valued Policy Statute Will Not Rescue an Unbuilt House Read the decision → McGowan v. Progressive Preferred Ins. Co., 281 Ga. 169, 637 S.E.2d 27 (2006) McGowan v. Progressive — Georgia's Appraisal Rule: the Panel Decides Value, the Courts Decide Liability, and an Appraisal Payment Moots Nothing Else Read the decision → National Fire Ins. Co. v. Banister, 104 Ga. App. 13, 121 S.E.2d 46 (1961) National Fire v. Banister — Your Policy Limit Is Not Your Loss: Georgia Makes You State the Amount, and Measures It by Fair Market Value at the Time of Loss Read the decision → Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Kim, 294 Ga. App. 548, 669 S.E.2d 517 (2008) Nationwide v. Kim — Exclusions Are the Carrier's Burden: Strictly Construed, and an Exclusion the Policy Never Wrote Doesn't Exist Read the decision → Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Tomlin, 181 Ga. App. 413, 352 S.E.2d 612 (1986) Nationwide v. Tomlin — In Georgia, an Undefined "Collapse" Happens When Structural Integrity Is Seriously Impaired, Long Before the House Falls Down Read the decision → Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Wiley, 220 Ga. App. 442, 469 S.E.2d 302 (1996) Nationwide v. Wiley — A Homeowner Can Testify to What Her Own House Was Worth, and a Flat Refusal to Pay Waives the Proof-of-Loss Fight Read the decision → Omni Health Solutions, LLC v. Zurich Am. Ins. Co., No. 19-12406 (11th Cir. May 21, 2021) (unpublished) Omni Health Solutions v. Zurich — The Panel Sets the Amount of Loss, and the Suit Clock Stops While the Appraisal Runs Read the decision → Am. Cas. Co. of Reading, Pa. v. Parks-Chambers, Inc., 111 Ga. App. 568 (1965) American Casualty v. Parks-Chambers — Actual Cash Value Means Fair Market Value at the Time of Loss: a 1965 Pleading Ruling That What You Paid Is Not the Ceiling Read the decision → Peeples v. Western Fire Ins. Co., 96 Ga. App. 39, 99 S.E.2d 349 (1957) Peeples v. Western Fire — Agreeing to an Appraisal Stops the Policy's Suit-Deadline Clock While the Appraisal Is Pending Read the decision → Primerica Life Ins. Co. v. Humfleet, 217 Ga. App. 770, 458 S.E.2d 908 (1995) Primerica v. Humfleet — The 60-Day Demand Is a Timing Trap: It Only Counts When Payment Is Actually Due Read the decision → R&G Investments & Holdings, LLC v. American Family Ins. Co., 337 Ga. App. 588, 787 S.E.2d 765 (2016) R&G Investments v. American Family — A Building Under Renovation Is Not 'Vacant,' but the Cooperation and Examination-Under-Oath Clauses Keep Their Teeth Read the decision → Royal Capital Development, LLC v. Maryland Casualty Co., 291 Ga. 262, 728 S.E.2d 234 (2012) Royal Capital v. Maryland Casualty — Repaired Isn't Made Whole: Georgia's Supreme Court Says Buildings Can Recover Diminished Value on Top of Repairs Read the decision → Santiago v. Safeway Ins. Co., 196 Ga. App. 480, 396 S.E.2d 506 (1990) Santiago v. Safeway — Once the Loss Has Happened, the Claim Is Yours to Assign: Consent Clauses Don't Reach Post-Loss Benefits Read the decision → Selective Way Ins. Co. v. Litigation Technology, Inc., 270 Ga. App. 38, 606 S.E.2d 68 (2004) Selective Way v. Litigation Technology — Rainwater That Pools in a Pit and Runs Through a Pipe Is No Longer "Surface Water," and Denying on That Ground Can Be Bad Faith Read the decision → State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Mabry, 274 Ga. 498, 556 S.E.2d 114 (2001) State Farm v. Mabry — Value, Not Condition: Georgia Makes the Insurer Assess Diminished Value Without Being Asked Read the decision → Thompson v. Homesite Ins. Co. of Ga., 345 Ga. App. 183, 812 S.E.2d 541 (2018) (Division 1 is physical precedent only) Thompson v. Homesite — A Complaint to the Insurance Commissioner Is Not a Bad-Faith Demand, and § 33-4-6 Is the Only Door to Attorney Fees Read the decision → Varsalona v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 281 Ga. App. 644, 637 S.E.2d 64 (2006) Varsalona v. Auto-Owners — Buy the House, Buy the Policy, Never Move In: Georgia Enforces the "Residence Premises" Requirement and the Slab-Collapse Claim Dies Before Anyone Looks at the Slab Read the decision → Villa Sonoma at Perimeter Summit Condo. Assn., Inc. v. Commercial Indus. Bldg. Owners Alliance, Inc., 824 S.E.2d 738 (Ga. Ct. App. 2019) Villa Sonoma v. CIBA — A Bad-Faith Demand Sent While the Adjustment Is Still Running Is Not a Demand, but Claims About How the Insurance Was Sold Survive Read the decision → White v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 291 Ga. 306, 728 S.E.2d 685 (2012) White v. State Farm — Georgia's Suit-Deadline Trap: the Standard Fire Policy's 2-Year Floor Protects Only the Fire Half of Your Policy Read the decision → Williams v. Mayflower Ins. Co., 238 Ga. App. 581, 519 S.E.2d 506 (1999) Williams v. Mayflower — A Liability-Assignment Standing Case, Not a Bar on Assigning Post-Loss Property Benefits in Georgia Read the decision → York Ins. Co. v. Williams Seafood of Albany, Inc., 273 Ga. 710, 544 S.E.2d 156 (2001) York v. Williams Seafood — A Flood Exclusion Carrying Anti-Concurrent Language Did Not Reach the Policy's Separate Sinkhole-Collapse Coverage Read the decision →
Tennessee case law
The Tennessee decisions on bad faith, appraisal, and depreciation — complete opinions with the decisive language.
Alcazar v. Hayes, 982 S.W.2d 845 (Tenn. 1998) Alcazar v. Hayes — Tennessee Ends Automatic Forfeiture for Late Notice: Delay Now Only Presumes Prejudice, and the Insured Gets to Rebut It Read the decision → Artist Bldg. Partners v. Auto-Owners Mut. Ins. Co., 435 S.W.3d 202 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2013), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Apr. 9, 2014) Artist Building Partners v. Auto-Owners — Tennessee Enforced the Appraisal Award Against the Insurer That Demanded It, and Refused to Let It Cherry-Pick the Award Read the decision → Braddock v. Memphis Fire Ins. Corp., 493 S.W.2d 453 (Tenn. 1973) Braddock v. Memphis Fire — The Case Carriers Cite for the Right to Depreciate: Tennessee Allows It Where the Policy Says So, and Lammert Later Took Labor Off the Table Read the decision → Das v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 713 S.W.2d 318 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1986) Das v. State Farm — The Tennessee Suit Clock Starts at the First Denial, and Reopening the File for Another Engineer Does Not Buy a Fresh Year Read the decision → Dutton v. Tennessee Farmers Mut. Ins. Co., 577 S.W.3d 222 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2018), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Nov. 15, 2018) Dutton v. Tennessee Farmers — A False Answer on the Application Voided the Policy From Day One, and Seven Years of Renewals Did Not Cure It Read the decision → Kentucky Nat'l Ins. Co. v. Gardner, 6 S.W.3d 493 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1999), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Oct. 18, 1999) Kentucky National v. Gardner — Letting Your Own Case Against the Contractor Die Killed the Insurance Claim: Tennessee's Impairment-of-Subrogation Rule Read the decision → Lammert v. Auto-Owners (Mut.) Ins. Co., 572 S.W.3d 170 (Tenn. 2019) (No. M2017-02546-SC-R23-CV) Lammert v. Auto-Owners — Tennessee Insurers May Not Depreciate Labor When Paying Actual Cash Value Read the decision → McConkey v. Continental Ins. Co., 713 S.W.2d 901 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1984), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Dec. 31, 1984) McConkey v. Continental — Tennessee's False-Swearing Rule: a Knowingly False Statement About a Material Matter Forfeits the Entire Claim Read the decision → Merrimack Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Batts, 59 S.W.3d 142 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2001) Merrimack v. Batts — Tennessee Appraisal Fixes the Amount of the Loss; Coverage and Causation Stay With the Courts Read the decision → Myint v. Allstate Ins. Co., 970 S.W.2d 920 (Tenn. 1998) Myint v. Allstate — Prejudgment Interest Is Not Barred Because the Carrier Reasonably Disputed the Claim (and the Consumer-Protection Half Has Since Been Undone by Statute) Read the decision → Palmer v. Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 723 S.W.2d 124 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1986) Palmer v. Nationwide — The Four Things a Tennessee Policyholder Must Prove to Win the § 56-7-105 Bad-Faith Penalty Read the decision → Phoenix Ins. Co. v. Brown, 53 Tenn. App. 240, 381 S.W.2d 573 (1964), cert. denied (Tenn. July 15, 1964) Phoenix Insurance v. Brown — Tennessee's Twelve-Month Suit Clause Runs From When the Right to Sue Accrues, Not From the Date of the Fire Read the decision → Spears v. Tennessee Farmers Mut. Ins. Co., 300 S.W.3d 671 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2009) Spears v. Tennessee Farmers — Answering Questions Under Oath Is a Condition Precedent; Recorded Statements, Documents, and a Later Deposition Do Not Cure a Refusal Read the decision → Third Nat. Bank v. American Equitable Ins. Co. of New York, 27 Tenn. App. 249, 178 S.W.2d 915 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1943), cert. denied (Tenn. Nov. 20, 1943) Third National Bank v. American Equitable — Tennessee's Definition of Actual Cash Value, and the Repair-Cost Passage the Supreme Court Later Called Dictum Read the decision → U.S. Bank, N.A. v. Tennessee Farmers Mut. Ins. Co., 277 S.W.3d 381 (Tenn. 2009) U.S. Bank v. Tennessee Farmers — Starting a Foreclosure Is Not an 'Increase in Hazard': Tennessee Refuses to Read a Notice Requirement Into a Standard Mortgage Clause Read the decision →
South Carolina case law
The South Carolina decisions that anchor policyholder rights.
Carter v. American Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 279 S.C. 367, 307 S.E.2d 225 (1983) Carter v. American Mutual Fire — South Carolina's Brand-New Bad-Faith Action Reaches an Ordinary Homeowner's Fire Claim Read the decision → Carter v. American Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 297 S.C. 218, 375 S.E.2d 356 (Ct. App. 1988) Carter v. American Mutual Fire — The Insurer Carries the Burden on Arson, but South Carolina Lets It Be Carried Entirely by Circumstantial Evidence: Incendiary Origin + Motive + Opportunity Read the decision → Cock-N-Bull Steak House, Inc. v. Generali Ins. Co., 321 S.C. 1, 466 S.E.2d 727 (1996) Cock-N-Bull Steak House v. Generali — An Insurer That Cannot Say Why It Denied Part of a Claim Faces a Directed Verdict and Punitive Damages in South Carolina Read the decision → Graham v. Aetna Ins. Co., 243 S.C. 108, 132 S.E.2d 273, 100 A.L.R.2d 1352 (1963) Graham v. Aetna — Concealment Means Deliberate Withholding, and a South Carolina Insurer That Never Asked the Question Cannot Void the Policy Over the Answer Read the decision → Harwell v. Home Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 228 S.C. 594, 91 S.E.2d 273 (1956) Harwell v. Home Mutual — Refusing a Demanded Appraisal Cost a South Carolina Homeowner a Verdict She Had Already Won Read the decision → Johnson v. South State Ins. Co., 288 S.C. 239, 341 S.E.2d 793 (1986) Johnson v. South State — Fraud on the Contents Claim Voids the Contents, Not the House: South Carolina Adopts the Minority Rule on Severability Read the decision → L. D. Jennings Co. v. North River Ins. Co., 175 S.C. 407, 179 S.E. 621 (1935) L. D. Jennings Co. v. North River — An Appraisal Award Survives Minor Irregularities Unless They Substantially Affected the Result Read the decision → McCracken v. Government Employees Ins. Co., 284 S.C. 66, 325 S.E.2d 62 (1985) McCracken v. GEICO — An Innocent Co-Insured Recovers Her Share After the Other Spouse's Arson, Unless a Statute or Specific Policy Language Says Otherwise Read the decision → Mixson, Inc. v. American Loyalty Ins. Co., 349 S.C. 394, 562 S.E.2d 659 (Ct. App. 2002) Mixson v. American Loyalty — 'It Was an Unsettled Question' Is Not a Free Pass: an Insurer Can Still Face Bad Faith Where No Case Was on Point Read the decision → Nichols v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 279 S.C. 336, 306 S.E.2d 616 (1983) Nichols v. State Farm — South Carolina Recognizes First-Party Bad Faith: Unreasonable Claim Handling Is a Tort, and Actual Damages Are Not Limited by the Policy Read the decision → Ocean Winds Council of Co-Owners, Inc. v. Auto-Owner Ins. Co., 350 S.C. 268, 565 S.E.2d 306 (2002) (commonly cited as Auto-Owners Ins. Co.) Ocean Winds v. Auto-Owner — South Carolina Collapse Coverage Does Not Wait for the Building to Fall Down, but It Takes More Than Substantial Impairment Read the decision → Puckett v. State Farm Gen. Ins. Co., 314 S.C. 371, 444 S.E.2d 523 (1994) Puckett v. State Farm — South Carolina Refuses to Make the Examination Under Oath a Condition Precedent: No Forfeiture Without Proof of Prejudice Read the decision → South Carolina Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Kelly, 345 S.C. 232, 547 S.E.2d 871 (Ct. App. 2001) S.C. Farm Bureau v. Kelly — An Insurer Can Sue to Claw Back Fire Money It Already Paid, and the Innocent-Insured Defense Dies If You Do Not Get a Ruling on It Below Read the decision → Tyger River Pine Co. v. Maryland Cas. Co., 170 S.C. 286, 170 S.E. 346 (1933) Tyger River Pine Co. v. Maryland Casualty — When the Insurer Controls the Claim It Must Sacrifice Its Own Interests: South Carolina's Bad-Faith Root, Preserved by Name in Statute Read the decision → American Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Green, 233 S.C. 588, 106 S.E.2d 265 (1958) American Mutual Fire v. Green — A Denial on Other Grounds, Plus an Adjuster Who Said "Don't You Move Nothing," Excused a Late Proof of Loss Read the decision →
The Policyholder's Edge
Original writing from the firm — the working knowledge behind the statutes.
Article The Complexity Paradox: Why Your High-Value Home Insurance Claim Demands a Specialist, Not a Generalist Read → Article How To: Invoke The Appraisal Clause in Georgia Read → Article How To: Invoke The Appraisal Clause in South Carolina Read → Article How To: Write a Shingle Roof Claim Dispute Letter Read → Article Why Your Insurer's First Offer is a Starting Point, Not a Final Destination Read → Article DisgRACEd: How Hidden Bias in Insurance Can Affect Your Claim Read → Article Like Kind and Quality, Functional Equivalence, and "Matching": The Three-State Map for Discontinued Materials Read → Article The Appraisal Clause Is Invoked: Why Silence Is Not Golden Read → Article The Depreciation Fallacy: Why the "Actual Cash Value" of Your Roof is a Legal Fiction Read → Article The Insurer's Shell Game: Why "You Can't Appraise Scope" Is a Myth Designed to Underpay Your Claim Read → Article The First 48 Hours: A Step-by-Step Guide for Businesses After a Fire Read →