Problems You May Face When Settling Your Insurance Claim
Did you know that many insurance claims are routinely and grossly underpaid and denied? Issues regarding the settling of insurance claims make up almost half of all policyholder complaints the National Association Of Insurance Commissioners receive. These issues included denial of a claim, delays waiting to receive a claim, and unsatisfactory claim amounts.
It may be helpful to hire a public adjuster to work on your behalf. This would be beneficial as a public adjuster can help you understand and interpret your policy transparently, speed up the claims process, resolve the claim with fair value and protect your rights as a policyholder. Thus, you can have peace of mind knowing that you can avoid common problems that insurance policyholders often face.
Denial of Property Claim
When your claim is denied, your insurance company is refusing to pay for your requested damages at that point in time. Denial of a claim may occur for several reasons. First, liability for damage is unclear. Second, policy exclusions. There will not be any policy that covers every single possible disaster, injury, and damage. Third, unpaid premiums. A lapse in insurance coverage could occur if you don’t pay your premiums punctually. Last, delayed notification. If you delay reporting an accident or form of damage to your insurance company, the insurer may become suspicious of your claim’s authenticity. It might hurt your credibility even more. It is also important to examine the fine print of every insurance policy before you sign it to ensure that it meets your needs adequately.
Furthermore, you may be at risk of experiencing insurance bad faith, which is a breach of an insurance company’s fiduciary duty to its policyholders. Bad faith could present itself in numerous ways. For example, your claim is rejected for no justifiable reason, policy coverage has been misrepresented, the insurer does not conduct a further investigation for your claim, the insurer does not make attempts to establish communications, or a lowball settlement is intentionally offered.
Delays in Paying Claim
While unprofessional, it is common to face delays in the claims process. The process may also be unnecessarily delayed by the need for many supplementary and authentification documents or paperwork. After this is settled, you may still have to face a protracted waiting period for the payment to be transferred.
Failure to Properly Assess Damages and Lowball Estimates
Some insurance companies may have unethical practices that produce one-sided contracts that inordinately benefit themselves. Your insurer may underestimate the type or extent of damage you have suffered, resulting in a lower quantum of damages than what you deserve. For example, they may not hire qualified professionals to assess the condition of your property, effectively failing to estimate the cost of replacement or repair accurately.
Another similar issue is that insurance firms will offer less than what policyholders deserve in the hopes that they will settle out of desperation or urgency.
If you feel overwhelmed and don’t know if your interests are protected, hire a reliable public adjuster that works for you, not your insurance firm. You can trust Stone Claims Group for its professionalism and expertise to negotiate the best settlement for you. The entire process is transparent and fully ethical, beginning with initial contact, investigation, complete documentation of your losses, meeting with your carrier adjusters, negotiation, and resolution.