Today a San Diego jury returned a $400,000 verdict in favor of our clients against a large insurance company that refused to pay on a valid claim. The jury also find that the insurance company acted in bad faith and with malice, entitling our clients to an award of punitive damages. The story began when a hard working Imperial Valley family bought fire insurance for their thriving restaurant business. One night a fire broke out in the back kitchen destroying the restaurant. The family looked to their insurance company for protection. Instead of doing the right thing, the company denied the claim, citing the lack of a “fire suppression unit” over the back furnaces. Incredibly the insurance company denied the claim even though the insurance company’s own inspector had signed off on the whole kitchen area as “good to go” and approved insurance! Instead of blaming their own lousy inspector, the insurance company claimed our clients were liars and cheats and “hid” the back area from inspectors! Attorneys Robert Hamparyan and Laura Sasaki fought for our clients for close to 3 years and for more than 6 weeks of trial. Finally, today, the jury said, “Enough is enough!” “Pay what’s fair!” Now, not only does the insurance company have to pay the $400,000 it originally owed, but attorneys fees, costs, and punitive damages! In the end, our clients will obtain a judgment for millions of dollars. Sadly, some insurance companies forget all about their policy holders and instead try to cheat us out of a buck whenever they can. Thankfully for our clients and all of us, Robert and Laura fight hard to make sure they do what’s right. Nice job guys!
