FYP.Originally Posted by Sammich
I've had SF since I've been driving...so for awhile. I've never had any problems making a claim with them. But it all depends on who is on the phone. I've "switched" claims handlers before, after making a complaint to their supervisor. Usually once you get a supervisor on the phone, shit moves quickly. Sounds like the woman you got a hold of was just a cunt and needs to have a complaint filed against her. Like you said, you can have the choice of taking the vehicle to their shop or have an adjuster come out to you (which usually takes a little bit longer for some odd reason). Clearly the whore on the phone was new or wanting to get fired for making false claims about policy.
Now my dealings with The Hartford were a nightmare to say the least. Long story short, I got hit, made the claim and was assigned to a claims agent. I wanted my car to go to a specific shop for repair and had to get an estimate from their approved shop first. Did that and took it to my shop, picked up my rental and thought all would be good in the hood. Turns out that the claims "handler" never bothered looking at my claim...ever...meaning he never checked up on it or anything. Car was in the shop for 72 days (parts delay, and a couple of other things) and it had to stay parked while the paint cured (not just dry..but cured) before the paint film could be reapplied otherwise the shop would not warranty the paint (I have paperwork from the shop, the film manufacturer and the paint manufacturer to back this up). So I get the car back and it looks fantastic. A couple of days later I get a call from Hartford stating that they are only going to pay like $500 of the $1800+ rental car bill because I "kept" the rental car an excessive amount of time. I was polite but stern in telling them that the time my car was i nthe shop was out of my control and that I did not hold the rental for anymore time than was needed. So now I have to be the middle-man between the ins. and the shop to convince the ins. comp. that it really did take that long. They finally agreed to cover $1500 of the rental and leave me with $550 for the 21 days that I "kept the rental after my car was done", claiming that I should have been driving it while the paint was curing. I go back and forth with them for a few weeks over the bill on the grounds of "driving the car without the paint protection will result in damage that was not on the car prior to the accident and putting film over chips in the paint was not acceptable". Mind you in the entire time I had the claim open, I had never spoken to my claims rep., I left him numerous messages and calls, but he never returned any of them, I always had to go through someone else to deal with them. I finally ended up dealing with a supervisor who was a complete asshole about the situation. After threatening to sue their client on grounds of bad faith practices (completely legal and not uncommon) he invites me to. Rather than dealing with that BS, I get in touch with his manager....well, I tried for a couple of weeks. So I went to her supervisor. Upon contacting his office (president of SE dept) I am quickly contacted by the SE district manager who I had not been able to get a hold of. I immediately layed down a foundation of poor communication and unwillingness to listen accept documentation proving my claim of letting the paint cure before sealing it. I had a check within a week for the $550 I had to pay to Enterprise because the rental was in my name and if I did not pay it, it would go to collections.
TLR? Lesson- when dealing with dumb people, step up the ladder immediately, don't bother dealing with the pricks...and keep going up the ladder until someone listens. Also, be well spoken, firm but polite.
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