Denied Insurance Claim
Even though it feels unfair and may be just plain wrong, insurance companies regularly deny seemingly worthy people the money they feel they deserve, for many different reasons. The good news is that if this has happened to you, you may be able to contest it and wind up getting the compensation you are entitled to.
Reasons for Denied Insurance Claims
Insurance companies are notoriously difficult for victims of accidents to deal with. Most insurance policies are supposed to give assurance that in the event a policy holder does something wrong, the victim of the wrongdoing is supposed to have some or all of their expenses related to the wrong doing, paid for. Unfortunately, there are many different reasons that insurance companies will deny a person’s claim.
Premium Hasn’t Been Paid
A very common reason that insurance companies deny claims isbecause the policy holder did not pay their premium. Just because someone you were involved in an accident with gives you their insurance information, it does not mean that it is definitely current. If a driver stopped paying for coverage, they may have an insurance card that indicates they have insurance when in reality, the policy has already lapsed.
Misunderstood Policy
The language of insurance can be confusing to even the most educated and intelligent people. Consumers often think that they are “fully” covered when they technically are but in reality, they are not covered the way they understood they would be. One example of this is when someone submits a claim for damages that were incurred while using their personal car for business purposes when their policy does not cover the car if it is being used duringbusiness transactions.
“Full” Coverage
While many states have similar laws about automobile insurance, each state has a unique set of laws that are specific to that state. In states that place the responsibility of liability for damages on the at-fault driver/s, many drivers do not realize they are not fully covered until after an accident occurs. In an accident that is their fault, a driver’s insurance company will not typically compensate them if they are not fully covered is.
Waited Too Long to Report
It is important to report a crash as soon as you can. If you wait too long to do this, an insurance company may say that they didn’t have enough time to research your claim, or that there is not enough relevant evidence to support your claim, etc. Auto-insurance policies are supposed to have timelines for such matters and it is important to check yours before it is too late to make your claim.
New Car, Old Insurance
If the value of the vehicle you drive changes, especially if you get a newer car that is worth more money, it is important to make sure that your insurance policy is up to date with this information. If you do not do this, your insurance company may only be willing to pay the amount of damages that are calculated by the older and less expensive car’s value.
These are just a few of the many different reasons why a car insurance company may deny your claim. The more informed you are about this, the more likely you will be to not make mistakes that can negatively impact your financial situation.
Be informed with Personal Injury Defense LA.