Insurers Must Thank & Educate its Personnel
Barry Zalma
Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/gUfxWBhU and see the full video at https://lnkd.in/grkiGZ8G and at https://lnkd.in/gP6wEKbF and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 4300 posts.
The insurance industry has been less than effective in training its personnel. Their employees, whether in claims, underwriting or sales, are hungry for education and training to improve their work in the industry.
Insurers without sufficient personnel to make a classroom training program practical have available options. If the insurer desires to honor its employees who wish to improve their knowledge and skills can do so inexpensively by adding to each employee’s library a complete insurance library by internationally recognized insurance coverage, claims handling, fraud, and insurance law expert and author, Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE.
If funds are not available for training vendors can be willing to assist. Although vendors are usually prohibited from making gifts to the insurer’s employees they may agree to donations to the insurer of educational materials that will help the employees improve their abilities for acknowledgement of the presentation.
Every insurer, insurance syndicate, insurance brokerage, insurance sales agency, insurer branch office, and vendors to the insurance industry should add to the libraries of their various offices or employees.
To add to the professionalism of the staff of insurance professionals, the insurer should make available to each the following books that are available at reasonable prices from amazon.com, the American Bar Association, Thomson Reuters, or Full Court Press, written by Barry Zalma. Details about each book are available at Barry Zalma’s Insurance Claims Library at https://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library/:
The Compact Book on Ethics for the Insurance Professional
The Compact Book of Adjusting Property Insurance Claims – Third Edition
The Compact Book of Adjusting Liability Claims – Third Edition
How to Acquire, Understand, and Make a Successful Claim on a Commercial Property Insurance Policy
The Tort of Bad Faith
The Equitable Remedy of Rescission
Insurance Fraudsters Deserve No Quarter
The Examination Under Oath to Resolve Insurance Claims
Insurance Fraud – Volume I and Volume II
Construction Defects and Insurance Second Edition (8 volumes)
Insurance Fraud Costs Everyone
California SIU Regulations 2020
California Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations 2022
Zalma’s Mold & Fungi Handbook
Zalma on Insurance Claims – Third Edition (ten volumes)
Mold Claims (two volumes)
Several True Insurance Crimes Novels and Novellas
From the American Bar Association
Getting the Whole Truth: Interviewing Techniques for the Lawyer
The Commercial Property Insurance Policy Deskbook
The Insurance Fraud Deskbook
Diminution in Value Damages
From Full Court Press
The Insurance Law Deskbook
California Insurance Law Deskbook
Zalma on Property and Casualty Insurance
Insurance Bad Faith and Punitive Damages Deskbook
From Thomson Reuters
Property Investigation Checklists Uncovering Insurance Fraud, 13th Edition
Details about each book available at the Insurance Claims Library at https://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library/
Free Resources
In addition you should make available the following free services: the podcast Zalma On Insurance at https://anchor.fm/barry-zalma; Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter at https://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/; Mr. Zalma is on Twitter at https://twitter.com/bzalma; Barry Zalma videos are available at Rumble.com at https://rumble.com/c/c-262921; Barry Zalma videos on YouTube- at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCysiZklEtxZsSF9DfC0Expg; Read posts from Barry Zalma at https://parler.com/profile/Zalma/posts and GTTR at https://gettr.com/@zalma; the podcast Zalma On Insurance at https://anchor.fm/barry-zalma.
Subscription Services
You can subscribe, for only $5 a month or $50 a year, to special videos from “Zalma on Insurance” at https://zalmaoninsurance.locals.com/subscribe; and “Excellence in Claims Handling” at https://barryzalma.substack.com/welcome.
On Line Training
Mr. Zalma, for a fee, will prepare a full Excellence in Claims or Excellence in Insurance training program. If interested in a specialized, directed to your needs alone training program, contact Mr. Zalma at [email protected] or 310-390-4455.
Concurrent Cause Doctrine Does Not Apply When all Causes are Excluded
Post 5119
Death by Drug Overdose is Excluded
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Southern Insurance Company Of Virginia v. Justin D. Mitchell, et al., No. 3:24-cv-00198, United States District Court, M.D. Tennessee, Nashville Division (October 10, 2024) Southern Insurance Company of Virginia sought a declaratory judgment regarding its duty to defend William Mitchell in a wrongful death case pending in California state court.
KEY POINTS
1. Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings: The Plaintiff moved for judgment on the pleadings, which was granted in part and denied in part.
2. Duty to Defend: The court found that the Plaintiff has no duty to defend William Mitchell in the California case due to a specific exclusion in the insurance policy.
3. Duty to Indemnify: The court could not determine at this stage whether the Plaintiff had a duty to ...
GEICO Sued Fraudulent Health Care Providers Under RICO and Settled with the Defendants Who Failed to Pay Settlement
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Post 5119
Default of Settlement Agreement Reduced to Judgment
In Government Employees Insurance Company, Geico Indemnity Company, Geico General Insurance Company, and Geico Casualty Company v. Dominic Emeka Onyema, M.D., DEO Medical Services, P.C., and Healthwise Medical Associates, P.C., No. 24-CV-5287 (PKC) (JAM), United States District Court, E.D. New York (July 9, 2025)
Plaintiffs Government Employees Insurance Company and other GEICO companies (“GEICO”) sued Defendants Dominic Emeka Onyema, M.D. (“Onyema”), et al (collectively, “Defendants”) alleging breach of a settlement agreement entered into by the parties to resolve a previous, fraud-related lawsuit (the “Settlement Agreement”). GEICO moved the court for default judgment against ...
ZIFL – Volume 29, Issue 14
Post 5118
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You can read the full 20 page issue of the July 15, 2025 issue at https://lnkd.in/giaSdH29
THE SOURCE FOR THE INSURANCE FRAUD PROFESSIONAL
This issue contains the following articles about insurance fraud:
The Historical Basis of Punitive Damages
It is axiomatic that when a claim is denied for fraud that the fraudster will sue for breach of contract and the tort of bad faith and seek punitive damages.
The award of punitive-type damages was common in early legal systems and was mentioned in religious law as early as the Book of Exodus. Punitive-type damages were provided for in Babylonian law nearly 4000 years ago in the Code of Hammurabi.
You can read this article and the full 20 page issue of the July 15, 2025 issue at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/ZIFL-07-15-2025.pdf
Insurer Refuses to Submit to No Fault Insurance Fraud
...
Rulings on Motions Reduced the Issues to be Presented at Trial
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CASE OVERVIEW
In Richard Bernier v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, No. 4:24-cv-00002-GMS, USDC, D. Alaska (May 28, 2025) Richard Bernier made claim under the underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage provided in his State Farm policy, was not satisfied with State Farm's offer and sued. Both parties tried to win by filing motions for summary judgment.
FACTS
Bernier was involved in an auto accident on November 18, 2020, and sought the maximum available UIM coverage under his policy, which was $50,000. State Farm initially offered him $31,342.36, which did not include prejudgment interest or attorney fees.
Prior to trial Bernier had three remaining claims against State Farm:
1. negligent and reckless claims handling;
2. violation of covenant of good faith and fair dealing; and
3. award of punitive damages.
Both Bernier and State Farm dispositive motions before ...
ZIFL Volume 29, Issue 10
The Source for the Insurance Fraud Professional
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gK_P4-BK and at https://lnkd.in/g2Q7BHBu, and at https://zalma.com/blog and at https://lnkd.in/gjyMWHff.
Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 29th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at http://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/ You can read the full issue of the May 15, 2025 issue at http://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ZIFL-05-15-2025.pdf
This issue contains the following articles about insurance fraud:
Health Care Fraud Trial Results in Murder for Hire of Witness
To Avoid Conviction for Insurance Fraud Defendants Murder Witness
In United States of America v. Louis Age, Jr.; Stanton Guillory; Louis Age, III; Ronald Wilson, Jr., No. 22-30656, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit (April 25, 2025) the Fifth Circuit dealt with the ...
Professional Health Care Services Exclusion Effective
Post 5073
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This opinion is the recommendation of a Magistrate Judge to the District Court Judge and involves Travelers Casualty Insurance Company and its duty to defend the New Mexico Bone and Joint Institute (NMBJI) and its physicians in a medical negligence lawsuit brought by Tervon Dorsey.
In Travelers Casualty Insurance Company Of America v. New Mexico Bone And Joint Institute, P.C.; American Foundation Of Lower Extremity Surgery And Research, Inc., a New Mexico Corporation; Riley Rampton, DPM; Loren K. Spencer, DPM; Tervon Dorsey, individually; Kimberly Dorsey, individually; and Kate Ferlic as Guardian Ad Litem for K.D. and J.D., minors, No. 2:24-cv-0027 MV/DLM, United States District Court, D. New Mexico (May 8, 2025) the Magistrate Judge Recommended:
Insurance Coverage Dispute:
Travelers issued a Commercial General Liability ...
