Coventry Associates v. American States Insurance

(concurring) — I agree with the majority that neither a presumption of harm nor coverage by estop*286pel applies when an insurer conducts a bad faith investigation of a first-party insured’s claim. I write separately to clarify that actual harm remains an essential element of a cause of action for bad faith handling of an insurance claim.

The majority identifies the first issue as whether a first-party insured may state a bad faith or Consumer Protection Act (RCW 19.86) (CPA) cause of action in the absence of coverage. In my view, this is a nonissue because the Court of Appeals’ decision below…