Man sues GEICO over low settlement offer

HUNTINGTON - A man is suing GEICO Insurance Company after he claims it breached its duty of good faith to him.

Gordon F. Reneau was also named as a defendant in the suit.

On Feb. 9, Michael G. Lowry was operating his vehicle on Madison Avenue in Huntington when Reneau collided with his vehicle, according to a complaint filed July 24 in Cabell Circuit Court.

Lowry claims the investigating officer at the scene found that Reneau was drunk, had no insurance, had fraudulent license tags and had a 4-year-old unrestrained child as a passenger.

Lowry claims when he discovered that Reneau had no insurance, he made a claim with GEICO, his own uninsured motorist carrier.

Despite the egregious facts surrounding his loss and having presented with medical expenses more than $8,000, GEICO has characterized the collision as "minimal impact" and made an extraordinarily low settlement offer, according to the suit.

Lowry claims GEICO owed a duty of good faith and fair dealing to its first-party insured and failed to do so.

GEICO knew that Lowry's claim was proper and knew or should have known the level of settlement which would be fair, but willfully, maliciously and intentionally utilized an unfair business practice in tendering an unreasonably low settlement offer for the insurance claim, according to the suit.

Lowry is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. He is being represented by Thomas P. Boggs of Duffield, Lovejoy, Stemple & Boggs PLLC.

The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge David M. Pancake.

Cabell Circuit Court case number: 13-C-518