UTPCPL Claim Against Insurance Agent Found "Colorable"

Judge Horan recently granted an insureds' motion to remand after finding that an insurance agency was not fraudulently joined because the UTPCPL claim against it was "colorable."  See Starkey v. Nationwide Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 2021 WL 3080146 (W.D. Pa. Jul. 21, 2021).

In Starkey, the insured was involved in an automobile accident and pursued a claim for underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage pursuant to a policy issued by the insurer and sold to her by an insurance agency.  Following her claim for coverage, the insured and her husband sued the insurer for statutory bad faith and both the insurer and insurance agency for violation of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL).  The insured alleged that, in the course of selling the Policy, the agent violated the UTPCPL by i) misrepresenting that UIM claims would be paid fairly, timely, and completely when there was no intention of providing such benefits,  ii) misrepresenting that