Nationwide Ordered to Pay $18M Award for Faulty Repairs

An insurance company is contesting a ruling that it pay $18 million in punitive damages after a long court battle over faulty repairs to a Pennsylvania family’s vehicle in 1996.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Nationwide asked the judge Friday to reconsider a decision believed to be the largest punitive award ever handed down in Pennsylvania in a lawsuit accusing an insurer of bad faith.

Berks County Judge Jeffrey Sprecher’s ruling in June said Nationwide spent $3 million to defend its actions in a claim over Sherri Berg’s Jeep that it should have replaced for $25,000.

Instead, Nationwide had the Jeep repaired for half that amount, although those repairs were faulty and the vehicle was later found to be unsafe.

Nationwide says the company didn’t act in bad faith. Berg, of suburban Reading, died in April.