Montana § 33-18-243 - Insured And Third-Party Claimant's Duties -- Affirmative Defense

§ 33-18-243. Insured And Third-Party Claimant's Duties -- Affirmative Defense

Insured and third-party claimant's duties -- affirmative defense. (1) An insured or a third-party claimant shall cooperate with an insurer with respect to an insurance claim or cause of action made or asserted against the insured, the insurer, or both, or reported to the insurer. The duty to cooperate includes, in addition to other duties specified in the insurance policy, the duty to comply with the reasonable requests of the insurer in the investigation and handling of the insurance claim. (2) An insured or a third-party claimant shall deliver claim information to the insurer to allow the insurer a fair and reasonable opportunity to investigate and evaluate each claim made against an insured, insurer, or both, or reported to the insurer. (3) A breach of any of the duties of an insured or a third-party claimant set forth in this section does not create a separate or independent cause of action by an insurer against an insured or a third-party claimant, but the breach of a duty may be: (a) considered as evidence regarding whether the insurer had an opportunity to conduct a reasonable investigation based on the reasonably available claim information and whether the insurer had a reasonable basis in law or in fact for contesting the claim or the amount of the claim; and (b) asserted by an insurer as an affirmative defense to a cause of action commenced by an insured or a third-party claimant under 33-18-242 for an insurer's alleged violation of 33-18-201 (4), (5), or (6), or commenced by an insured or a third-party claimant that alleges the insurer's breach of contract or the insurer's breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. (4) An insurer may introduce any evidence in a civil action regarding the actions, inactions, and other conduct of an insured or a third-party claimant in a civil action commenced by an insured or a third-party claimant with respect to a claim or cause of action under 33-18-242 for an insurer's alleged violation of 33-18-201 (4), (5), or (6), or commenced by an insured or a third-party claimant that alleges the insurer's breach of contract or the insurer's breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. (5) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (a) (i) "Claim information" means documents, records, or information created, maintained, or stored in a media format that is reasonably available to an insured or a third-party claimant and that relates to, establishes, proves, or may tend to establish or prove: (A) damages of any kind or nature relating to the claim or cause of action against the insured, insurer, or both; and (B) the liability of the insured, insurer, or both to pay, satisfy, or otherwise compensate for the damages as provided in subsection (5)(a)(i)(A). (ii) The term includes information that is reasonably available to an insured or a third-party claimant only if the claim information is in the possession of the insured or third-party claimant, or their representatives or attorneys, or if the claim information can be reasonably obtained by the insured or third-party claimant on request. (b) "Insured" means an individual or entity insured under an insurance policy, against whom a third-party claimant is making, alleging, or pursuing an insurance claim or cause of action for damages, or an individual or entity making, alleging, or pursuing a claim or cause of action for which coverage may be provided by the insurance policy issued by the insurer to the individual or entity. (c) "Third-party claimant" means a third party making, alleging, or pursuing an insurance claim or cause of action against an insured for damages, or against an insurer pursuant to 33-18-242 . For purposes of this definition, the term also means an attorney or any other authorized representative acting for or on behalf of the third-party claimant or any assignee of the third-party claimant.