Does an insurance company (in GA--but accident in MO) have regulation which states when they must pay claimant

Question

It was their insured's fault; however, I can't get them to say when they will send me the check for the monies they owe me.

Answer 1

OK, the state where the insurance company is has NO BEARING on this claim.

The fact of the matter is, their duty of good faith performance is to THEIR POLICYHOLDER, not a third party claimant. If they have not accepted liability (ie, if they have not told you, yes, it's our guy's fault and we're paying the claim), you have no reasonable expectation that they are going to pay you. That means, as a CLAIMANT, and not an INSURED, fair claims practice laws do NOT apply to you.

Their insured could be contesting fault, or could even possibly not be covered as a driver under that policy. And maybe, the policy was cancelled for nonpayment. You have NO way of knowing.

Your BEST bet, if it's been a month and you are getting the runaround, is to file the claim with YOUR insurance company, and let them chase after the money.

Your second best bet, if damages are small enough, is to file suit in your local small claims court against the guy that hit you, AND the owner of the vehicle, if they are two seperate people.

Answer 2

There is no regulation that states claims must be paid within a certain number of days.

How long has it been since you sent them estimates for the damages? I'm assuming that we're just talking about collision damage to your vehicle.

Once you send in the estimates, they will generally pay on the lower of 2 estimates. It shouldn't take more then a couple weeks to pay the claim, assuming the estimates are in order. That means, the estimates are for the actual damage caused in the accident.

Answer 3

You may want to check with the Missouri Insurance Commissioners Office to see if Missouri has a "Fair Claims Practices" provision and ask if it has any time frame requirements.

Normally, any "Fair Claims Practices" act/provisions is going to require you as the party presenting the claim to provide certain documentation to the other insurance company. You may not have provided them everything they need. (however, they should tell you if you are missing any documentation). Once you have presented them everything they need and there are no liability questions then a period of 3 to 7 days is reasonable for them to acyaully send payment.

Good Luck

Answer 4

Since it was a MO accident and assuming the other person has a MO policy the MO law would prevail.

Answer 5

Jurisdiction is in MO so MO law will apply. If you have a complaint, you'll have to file it with the DOI of MO.