Background
Barry Zalma writes on the insurance industry claims practices for
IRMI.com.
Mr. Zalma is a California attorney, insurance claims consultant, expert
witness, and author. Since October 1, 2012, Mr. Zalma limited his practice to
consultation, expert witness testimony, arbitration, mediation, and acting as
umpire in insurance policy appraisals. His insurance consulting practice, Zalma
Insurance Consultants, is available to insurers and insureds to assist in the
resolution of insurance disputes or to provide expert testimony or
consultation.
Mr. Zalma is a certified fraud examiner. He serves on the faculty of the
Virtual University of the Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, writes a
regular column for the National Underwriter Magazine, Insurance Advocate
Magazine, and "Underwriters Insider" and is a member of the editorial
board and frequent contributor to Claims Magazine. He has written for more than
18 years the twice monthly Zalma's Insurance Fraud Letter, a daily
blog summarizing recent insurance cases at Zalma on Insurance,
http://zalma.com/blog, and a video blog providing
painless insurance education called Zalma’s Insurance 101 available at
http://www.zalma.com/videoblog.
Mr. Zalma has served as a director of the Los Angeles Chapter of the
Forensic Expert Witnesses Association and the
Southern California Fraud Investigators Association and is a member of the
California Conference of Arson Investigators, the International Association of
Arson Investigators, the Southern California Fraud Investigators Association,
the American Bar Association Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section and its
Property and Coverage Committees, the Association of Southern California
Defense Counsel, and the Defense Research Institute. He holds the designation
Fraud Claim Law Specialist awarded by the American Educational Institution.
Mr. Zalma has testified as an expert witness in the California Superior
Court, various US District Courts, and the Superior Courts of Nebraska, Texas,
New Mexico, Nevada, and Oklahoma. He is an internationally recognized expert on
insurance claims handling, bad faith, insurance coverage, the commercial
general liability (CGL) policy, insurance fraud, jewelers block insurance, and
other inland marine coverages. Mr. Zalma is the author of, or has rewritten,
CGL, fire, auto, earthquake, jewelers block, and other insurance policies for
insurer clients.
In addition, Mr. Zalma is the author of the Zalma Insurance Claims Library
published by the National Underwriter Company available at http://www.nationalunderwriter.com/reference-bookstore/property-and-casualty/zalma-insurance-claims-library.html
including Insurance Claims: A Comprehensive Guide, Construction
Defect Coverage Guide, Insurance Law, and Mold Claims
Coverage Guide. The American Bar Association, Tort and Insurance Practice
Section, has published Mr. Zalma's book The Insurance Fraud
Deskbook, available at http://shop.americanbar.org/eBus/Store/ProductDetails.aspx?productId=139185127
or (800) 285–2221 and
Diminution if Value Damages available at http://shop.americanbar.org/eBus/Store/ProductDetails.aspx?productId=203226972.
Mr. Zalma is the author of the e-books Zalma on California Claims
Regulations – 2013; Zalma on California SIU Regulations;
Zalma on Rescission of Insurance in California – 2013; Random
Thoughts on Insurance – A Collection of Posts from the Blog, Zalma on
Insurance; Zalma on Insurance Fraud – 2012; Zalma on
Insurance – 2011; Murder and Insurance Fraud Don't Mix; Arson for
Profit; and Heads I Win, Tails You Lose – 2011.
Zalma's Insurance Fraud Letter is available, free from
ClaimSchool, Inc., and over the Internet at http://www.zalma.com/ZIFL-CURRENT. Mr. Zalma received his A.B.
degree in philosophy from Claremont Men's College and his J.D. degree from
the University of West Los Angeles, College of Law.
Training courses for insurance agents and brokers, insurance adjusters and
public insurance adjusters, and lawyers are available from IRMI's
WebCE.