Craig Wright wrote:
>
> Tom,
>
> Could you give us any hints as to the companies that behave the way you have
> indicated. Through experience, I've come to the conclusion that the first
> response to any claim is refusal. My last three claims required legal
> encouragement from my end.
Actually, my impression is that most of the major companies do try to
protect the interests of their insureds. I have seen more instances of
carriers defending and settling claims that involve a question of
whether the loss is covered than I have of carriers denying a righteous
claim. With one exception, which will remain nameless, I think
erroneous denials of coverage are not the result of company policy, but
the result to some human error early on in the claims department. Then
there are some smaller insurers that are undercapitalized that enter
markets and gain income from low premiums. Things go fine until the
claims start coming in, and then the company may engage in what's
referred to as "post-loss underwriting."
I think a mistake many people make is that they shop for the lowest
premium and nothing else. I've been with an independent broker for
fifteen years. The reason I went with this agency was they were a minor
defendant in a major case brought primarily against an insurance company
and I was defending them because it was alleged they had failed to
obtain the proper coverage. It was abundantly clear to me that this
brokerage was very knowledgeable about insurance matters generally, but
also very committed to going to bat for their clients with the
carriers. I pay a little more in premium, but it's well worth it.
As far as companies and their handling of claims, doesn't Consumer
Reports publish info on this?
--
Tom M.
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