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Legislative History

At the time of passage, IFCA was known as Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5726. That bill originated in the Senate Committee on Consumer Protection and Housing. At the same time as Senate Bill 5726 was introduced, however, the House Committee on Insurance, Financial Services, and Consumer Protection was considering a companion bill, House Bill 1491. Eventually, it was the Senate bill that carried the day. In the interest of completeness, this collection includes materials from both House Bill 1491 and Senate Bill 5826. The legislative materials for each of the bills are in chronological order below, from oldest to newest.

IFCA Book

In 2014, Ruiz & Smart trial attorney Isaac Ruiz wrote the definitive treatise addressing Washington’s Insurance Fair Conduct Act (IFCA). The book continues to be updated and remains an indispensable aid for policyholder advocates.

Statutory and Regulatory Material

A claimant who prevails under IFCA recovers the actual damages sustained plus “the costs of the action,” which include reasonable attorney fees and costs. The trial court may increase the total award of damages to an amount not to exceed three times the actual damages after a finding that the insurance company acted unreasonably in denying a claim for coverage or payment of benefits or violated one of several enumerated sections of the Washington Administrative Code. You can find the statutory and regulatory text here.

IFCA Basics

This is a simple one-pager about IFCA.

Bad Faith Basics

This is a simple one-pager about bad faith law.