What Actions Are Insurance Companies Prohibited from Doing?

• July 19 2019
• |   Insurance

Prohibited acts by insurance companies can include asserting an exclusion that doesn’t apply, or blatantly denying a claim, even though there is overwhelming evidence showing that they should have accepted the claim.

Another prohibited act is to delaying payment unreasonably. In Nevada, if you have a loss and need to make a claim under your insurance policy, there is a requirement that insurance companies are to get the claim forms to you in 20 days. After receiving your claim forms, they are required to make their decision within 30 days after receiving proof of loss.

Insurance companies frequently don’t process your claim in the required time period, sometimes delaying for months, if not years. They further sometimes fail to comply with other insurance regulations that require them to write letters to their insured explaining what kind of investigation they are actually doing.

Occasionally we find that the insurance company isn’t doing anything at all towards processing your claim for months, or they may request over and over again the same information in order to unreasonably delay the claims process.

When an insurance company receives proof of loss, and they are supposed to investigate the claim, but they often don’t really do much investigation. Then, they deny the claim for some minor exclusion they cited that doesn’t apply. They might make a small payment under one provision of the policy and claim they are done.

Or they might fail to tell the insured that in addition to the payment of the dwelling coverage on the residence, they may also have limited coverage which the insurance company would have to pay so the insured could to move out of their residence while the house is being repaired. If they also have personal property coverage, and if any personal property was damaged, they have a duty to pay that, too.

Unfortunately, insurance companies often engage in withholding or paying very little on one part of the claim, hoping that the whole thing goes away, when the insurance company has a duty to aid the insured in the process and tell them what kind of coverage is available.For the insured, it’s a totally new process, and the insurance companies are supposed to help with the insured but usually doesn’t.

If your insurance company is not helping and you feel like they are being adversarial or fighting you on everything, then I suggest you hire an insurance attorney who is knowledgeable about insurance laws and regulations, and knows what the insurance company should be doing.