Employer That Denied Claim Without Basic Investigation Owes Bad-Faith Penalties

An employer that failed to conduct even a basic investigation into a workers' claim before closing the case is liable for administrative penalties under Industrial Commission regulations that prohibit unfair claims practices. The claimants' attorney who argued the case said the court's ruling in Tapia v. Industrial Commission is the first case that she is aware of that spelled out the standards for sanctioning an employer or carrier that acts in bad faith when processing a workers' compensation claim. "We're fighting this battle because the self-insure...