When policyholders pay insurance premiums, they have the reasonable expectation the insurance company will pay valid claims in the event of a loss in a timely manner. However, many times the claims process does not go as expected and insurance companies fall short, and the policyholder is left holding the bill.  It is possible that you will not receive a fair offer in response to your claim, or the claim will be denied completely.  In other situations, the insurance company will state that your claim is going to be paid in a timely manner, but delays can turn days into weeks, weeks into months, or months into years.  In most cases during the claims process, policyholders find they are working ‘with’ an insurance adjuster from the claims department with only a cursory knowledge of the policyholder and a directive to save money for the company and not the agent with whom they have developed a relationship with.

Insurance claims adjusters’ primary duties include evaluating claims, assessing risk, and deciding how much (or little) policyholders are entitled to.  They are experts at protecting the interests of the insurance company first and the policyholder second.  An unfortunate reality of the insurance claim process is the insurance company makes more money when it denies, delays, and underpays claims.

Disputes often arise when an insurance company completely denies a valid claim.  In some cases, insurance companies make a practice of denying legitimate claims and only investigate after legal action is taken.  In many cases insurance companies will routinely offer less compensation in damages than a policyholder is entitled and only pay fair value when a policyholder is represented by an attorney.  Sometimes, the insurance claim remains open in limbo, and it can seem like the insurance company will not help address your claim in a timely manner. Consequently, getting a lawyer involved will prompt the insurance company to move the claim forward.

Our Team here at Florida Litigators have extensive experience in reading and interpreting contracts of insurance and making sure you get the benefits of the policy you have paid for.  Often in the claims process the insurance company first disputes liability and once that hurdle is overcome and coverage is established, the insurance company may move to dispute damages.  Insurance policies are long and sometimes confusing documents (often by design), which often results in important provisions that are buried in legalese or parts of the policy may conflict with itself. These contracts are usually designed to benefit the insurance company first and the policyholder second.