In Cotton States Mut. Ins. Co. v. Brightman, 276 Ga. 683 (580 SE2d 519) (2003) the Supreme Court of Georgia noted that industry experts had agreed that in cases involving multiple defendants and insurance companies, one company can offer its policy limits in response to a demand and then let the plaintiff negotiate with the remaining insurers. Id. at 686 (1). The Supreme Court went on to hold: An insurance company faced with a demand involving multiple insurers can create a safe harbor from liability for an insured's bad faith claim . . . by meeting the portion of the demand over which it has control, thus doing what it can to effectuate the settlement of the claims against its insured. This rule is intended to protect the financial interests of policyholders in cases where continued litigation would expose them to a judgment exceeding their policy limits while protecting insurers from bad faith claims when there are conditions involved in the settlement demand over which they have no control. Id. at 687 (2).