Helpful tips for dealing with potential bad faith insurance acts

Insurance is required for so many instances of our lives (i.e. home insurance, business insurance, car insurance) it should not be an arduous process to exercise our contractual rights under the policy. But remember, insurers are in the business of making money, so it is important to understand what can be done to protect one’s rights.

This post will highlight a few tips consumers should know about when processing insurance claims.

Be ready to ask questions – It is essential to ask a range of questions relating to the extent of your coverage and expected timelines, including whether your structure is covered, and how long it will take to process your claim.

Cross check your deductible – In the course of asking your questions, you should also verify your deductible against what your signed policy indicates.

Keep records of communications – It is important to keep detailed records of conversations had with customer service reps, claims adjusters and other insurance personnel. Essentially, taking the “James Comey” approach is essential. If it isn’t written down, it didn’t happen.

Keep your receipts – In the same vein, keeping records of costs incurred is important. These include temporary repairs, water or wind damage, removal of debris and even temporary relocation expenses.

Ultimately, if a consumer disagrees with an insurer’s coverage estimates or experiences a significant delay in payment of a claim, these pieces of information can be very helpful to an attorney. If you have additional questions about pertinent records for bad faith insurance claims, we invite you to contact us.