You had a party at your house, and you were pretty excited to see everyone who came. Once people started to leave, one of your guests apologized for damaging part of your home. Part of your decking had been broken, and the foundation below it had cracked apart. They said they had fallen against the railing, which resulted in the damage.
Clearly, there was already a problem with the decking, railing and foundation before they fell, so you told them it was no problem and that you’d make a claim against your insurance. You did, but your homeowner’s insurance agent hasn’t gotten back to you. It has been three weeks with no response since the initial claim. You called four times and left messages with all the information needed to get in touch and start the claim.
Why is it taking so long for your insurer to approve this claim?
Unfortunately, delaying a claim is a common tactic of some insurers because they hope that the insured will drop the claim or accept a low offer because of delays. Your insurance is obligated to cover incidents that are included in your policy. If damage to your home’s foundation or decking is covered in your policy, then the delay shouldn’t be significant.
You can do a few things if the claim isn’t handled promptly. One is to have your attorney send a certified letter to them requesting updates. Another is to potentially file a bad faith insurance claim for violating your rights as a policyholder. Our website has more on what you may want to do if you find yourself in this situation.