INSURANCE COVERAGE: Court grants insurance company’s motion to strike breach of implied covenant count

As a result of a motor vehicle accident which occurred between plaintiff, Clarke, and a non-party driver, plaintiff alleged that he sustained injuries,  medical expenses, lost wages, and a diminished earning capacity. At the time of the accident, plaintiff was insured by defendant State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Company. The plaintiff’s complaint asserted one count for uninsured motorist benefits and a second count for breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, alleging that defendant acted in bad faith in five potential ways. The defendant then filed a motion to strike the second count as legally insufficient, on the ground that the plaintiff had not alleged any facts in support of his claim. More specifically, the defendant argued that the plaintiff failed to allege facts that show the defendant acted with an improper motive or sinister intent. The court explained that the complaint merely included conclusory language characterizing the defendant’s failure to pay adequate underinsured motorist benefits as intentional and in bad faith. Because of this, the court holds in favor of the defendant, finding that the plaintiff’s complaint lacks any specific factual allegations that the defendant acted in bad faith with the intention of obstructing the plaintiff from receiving benefits to which he was entitled. The defendant’s motion to strike the second count is, therefore, granted. Clarke v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., No. HHD-CV-21-6149844-S, 2022 WL 17101528 (Conn. Super. Ct. Nov. 14, 2022)