What do you do when you have got an insurance claim dispute? It is difficult because it is often a case between you, 'the victim', and big organizations full of professionals that seem to get a joy out of working against you, not with you. You need to accept the fact that insurance providers are in the business of making money and not giving it away.
What do you do when you have got an insurance claim dispute? It is difficult because it is often a case between you,
'the victim', and big organizations full of professionals that seem to get a joy out of working against you, not with you.
Before it even gets to that point, it is always best that you start with the best insurance provider you could find so that you will be assured that they won’t give you a hard time in the event that you would file a claim for your insurance benefit. Getting a policy from the best insurance company means that you have looked beyond price alone and have checked feedback from their current and previous customers regarding their claims experience.
They may not be the most expensive insurance providers around but after all insurance is all about filing a claim since that is the only time you get to feel what it is you have been paying them for. However, if you already have your policy and you just recently filed a claim and they are not helping you out as you would have expected, then it is time that you learn what you need to do for an insurance claim dispute.
The Reality of Insurance Claim Disputes
You need to accept the fact that insurance providers are in the business of making money and not giving it away. Though some of them would really go out of their way to help you out, a number of them would always look for ways to deny you of your claim or if not, pay you less than what you should receive. If you unfortunately got involved with this kind of an insurance provider, then take note of the tips found below in going through your dispute.
At first, call your insurance company’s claims department and try to resolve it over the phone. Always remember that you need to note down all the necessary details on your conversation with them whether it would be through phone or personal. List down all the names of their representatives you have spoken with, their superiors, the date, the time, and all the necessary details. Make sure to be careful when submitting information to them you are not sure of. If you make an inaccurate statement to them it makes it simply harder on you.
Leave it to the Professionals
If this does not work, start working with professionals yourself. Take the example of a car accident. In the event that you suspect that your insurance provider is not quoting you the right amount that they should compensate you for the repairs that are needed to be done on your vehicle, then it would be wise to have an independent appraiser take a look at your car. This way, you will be a step ahead of your insurance company since they will demand this in the event that you file a dispute against them. Just make sure though that the appraiser you hired is completely not connected in any way to your insurance company. If the appraiser tells you that your company is giving you an incorrect quote, then instruct him to send you and the company detailed copies of his evaluation.
Whether you are talking about a car or a personal accident, e.g. personal injury, medical malpractice, a welding rod claim, etc, etc., the same principle applies. Get a specialist on your side like a personal injury lawyer who can look into this matter on your behalf. They can work out what they think is the right amount of compensation and work with your insurance company. Many of them work with a fee-for-success-only model which allows you to do this without feeling it in your back pocket.
As soon as your professional steps in, a likely outcome is that your insurance provider will either admit the error or provide a revised estimation of your damages and pay-out. However, there are certain cases wherein they will refuse to budge and stick to what they have on hand.
Taking Your Insurance Claim Dispute Further
When they have not made any kind of change after you showed then proof from an independent appraiser, you now need to contact your state's department of insurance. They may be reached via phone, mail, and email or online. Gather all necessary information you may need to submit to them. Make sure that you have submitted all the necessary documents to them regarding your insurance claim dispute.
Before you get into litigation, make sure that you escalate this with the company's state or national offices as well. Again, make sure at this point that you are not working on this alone, but are working with a specialist who knows what he/she is doing.
An insurance claim dispute can lead to much stress, anger and frustration. A lot of those negative emotions can be mitigated if you leave much of the grunt work to professionals who you trust and who can work on your case for you.
