State insurance commissioners resolve thousands of complaints every year. Complaints vary from disputes with insurance companies about how one's insurance claim was handled to problems with the sale and service of an insurance policy. If you feel your insurance company has not been fair with your insurance claim or policy, you have the right to file a complaint with your state insurance commissioner.
Before you buy insurance online or even consider an insurance quote, it is always best to know your rights as a consumer. If you ever find that you need to file an insurance complaint with your state insurance commissioner, there are a few things you will want to do or be prepared to do. First, go to your state insurance commissioner's web site and find out what the process is to file a complaint. Many state insurance commissioners will have a complaint form available to download or fill out online. Once you know how to start the process, you will want to compile every piece of documentation that pertains to the complaint and start keeping records of all phone conversations and agent contacts. Most all insurance companies have large insurance claims departments and service call centers where you will almost always speak to a new person each time you contact the insurance claims department, so it is important for you to keep your own records of all conversations with the insurance company. Once you have your documents together and know how to file the insurance complaint, it is now time to officially file it to your state insurance commissioner.
Now that the complaint is filed, your state insurance commissioner's office will likely contact you asking for any additional documentation they will need. In most cases the next step the commissioner will take is to send a copy of the complaint to the insurance company and give them a designated response time. Most likely, if the commissioner feels the response is adequate, they will send you a copy of the explanatory letter. But, if the commissioner feels the response from the company is not adequate, your case will probably be taken over by a state designated person that will work with you and the company to resolve the issue and to find out if any laws were broken.
One important thing to remember in the complaint process is that even if your case is assigned a state designated person to try to resolve the situation, that person cannot act as your attorney. Depending on what is at stake due to the complaint and your confidence in dealing with the insurance company, hiring an attorney to represent you should always be a consideration.
