Reader question:
I thought I was covered for everything, but according to my insurance company, there was some silly technicality in my car insurance policy and so I get nothing. What’s the deal?
Mark
Most people don’t read their policies and just get the watered down version from their insurance agent, and are satisfied with that.
Nobody wants to read their policy. It’s worse than homework. It isn’t written to be read with ease. It’s probably full of language that you don’t understand, referring to situations that it may not properly define, and be written the most dry and boring language humanly possible. But situations like this one go to show while, despite the irritation it may bring, it is necessary to read one’s policy, even if you need to ask for help.
If you’re paying your insurance on time and keeping consistent, you can probably figure out that your insurance company doesn’t have a leg to stand on when it tries to weasel out of a settlement based on some tiny detail in your policy. But for somebody who might have missed a payment or made it late a time or two, they’re more inclined to believe the company when it says that disqualifies them for a settlement, and this is the worst mistake. It is true that sometimes in this case there is nothing you can do, but there are laws that say that the insurance company has to contact you a certain amount of days before cancelling your policy, so you cannot be without insurance without being aware of it.
There are other technicalities a company may try to fall back on, like if you missed a deadline, didn’t provide complete information, or misinterpreted a bit of the policy. However, the company is bound to follow the law, which means that in good faith it has to settle any valid claims. They’ll try to get out of it, because like any business they don’t want to spend money, but if it’s valid, they have to pay up. If you’re having difficulty dealing with your insurance company, you might want to hire a car accident lawyer.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.