As a general rule, insurers are not guilty of bad faith by
virtue of actions that are in accordance with opinions from
experts. The fact that an expert retained by the insured disagrees
with an expert retained by the insurer does not, in and of itself,
render it bad faith for an insurer to reasonably rely upon that
expert's opinion.
The past year saw courts affirming this principle. The U.S.
District Court of the Southern District of Texas did so in
Shockman v. State Farm Lloyds, No. 4:22-CV-02030, 2025 WL
2774122 (S.D. Tex. Sept. 26, 2025). The U.S. District Court for the
Northern District of Georgia similarly held that the reasonable
reliance upon an independent consultant's advice without more
did not constitute bad faith. Marble Masters of Middle GA, Inc.
v. Selective Ins. Co. of Am., No. 2:24-CV-99-RWS, 2025 WL
3255043 (N.D. Ga. Aug. 14, 2025).
