How and when to file a complaint against your car insurance company
'They will investigate your complaint and work with the insurance company to resolve it,' said Janet Ruiz, spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute in San Diego.
According to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), tens of thousands of complaints are overturned each year.
This embedded content is not available in your region.
Learn more: How does car insurance work? The basics explained.
It might be hard to know when it's worth going through the time and effort to file an insurance complaint. Here are the most common reasons consumers file complaints against their insurers:
It's been weeks or months since you've filed a claim, but there's been no word whatsoever from the insurance company about a resolution
You felt disrespected or mistreated by the claims adjuster
The adjuster or your insurance agent mishandled your claim
Your claim has been denied without an explanation
Your settlement offer seems unfairly low, though they won't tell you why
The insurance company refuses to issue you a policy or renew your existing policy without a valid reason
You're quoted a higher-than-normal price on an auto policy that is not commensurate with your driving record, age, or other determining factors
Learn more: How to switch car insurance companies
First, find the link to your state insurance department's complaint process on the NAIC website — the search tool is halfway down the page. Most states will have online or written complaint forms that you can fill out, asking you to complete the following information:
Your name, address, and telephone number
The name of your insurer
What type of policy and your policy number
Your insurance agent's contact information, if applicable
The nature of your complaint
Any documents, photos, and correspondence with the insurer or your agent, including emails and texts that support your complaint
The type of resolution you're looking for
While the complaint process is similar across states, there can be marked differences. Below are four states' procedures to serve as examples.
The California Department of Insurance provides an online form to file a complaint and downloadable forms that you can mail to the state. However, the department recommends that consumers file a complaint online, as mailing paper forms may delay the process.
The Golden State's complaint form also informs consumers that if they have filed a bad faith insurance claim against their insurer regarding their dispute, the state will defer its investigation until the lawsuit has been decided in court or settled. However, consumers should still lodge a complaint with the state while the lawsuit is ongoing so the state can have a record of it. After the lawsuit is concluded, the consumer and their bad-faith attorney can submit evidence of insurance law violations.
Learn more: Car insurance requirements in California — and ways to save money
In the Garden State, formal complaints against insurance companies must be submitted in writing — in dark ink and with no highlighted sections so all information is legible. In addition to the standard information mentioned above, the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance also asks consumers to include a copy of their auto insurance ID card, a copy of the policy declarations page, and, if applicable, notices of either a nonrenewal, premium increase, or claim denial.
Learn more: Car insurance rates are rising in New Jersey. Here's how to save.
The Texas Department of Insurance offers thorough step-by-step guides walking consumers through the process of filing a complaint, with optional guides in Spanish. For help with an auto insurance complaint, the Lone Star State recommends consumers follow these steps:
Step 1: First, talk to your insurance company to resolve the issue. If you disagree with their decision, let them know why.
Step 2: Ask your insurer for an appraisal. It's a three-appraiser process; The insurance company will provide its own appraiser; you hire and pay for your own appraiser; and you pay half of the cost for a third appraiser, chosen by the other two appraisers, to serve as the 'umpire.'
Step 3: File a complaint with the state if you disagree with the appraisal results or if you believe your insurer violated any laws. The department details what it can do to resolve issues and what it can't do, like overrule the decision regarding who was at fault in an accident.
Step 4: The department will contact the insurance company, which has 15 days to respond to the complaint, with an option to extend that time for another 10 days. Then the department will let you know how the insurer's response impacts your complaint.
Step 5: If you are dissatisfied with the results of your complaint, the department provides resources to obtain legal help from a bad-faith attorney.
Learn more: Car insurance costs are big in Texas. Here's how to get the cheapest rates.
In Colorado, consumers are urged to first contact the Colorado Division of Insurance to explain their situation so a complaint analyst can determine whether the agency can help them and what that assistance would look like — including helping them file a complaint, said Bobbie Baca, the division's director of consumer services for property, casualty, and title insurance.
'While complaints are often warranted, it often happens that a complaint results from a misunderstanding of the complicated world of insurance,' Baca said. 'Complaint resolutions may include claim settlements, facilitating communications, and reversal of non-renewals or cancellations.'
Indeed, a total of $4,995,340 last year was recovered for Colorado consumers through the division's investigations into their auto insurance complaints, according to the FY 2023-24 Colorado DOI Annual Complaint & Recoveries Report.
It's best to file a complaint with your state's insurance department rather than with the Better Business Bureau or on other sites. The state departments are officially designated to process complaints and are the only ones that can take enforcement action if necessary.
Below are five tips to help you file a complaint against your car insurance company, from how to go about it alone to when it's time to seek legal counsel.
Tip 1: Start with your insurance agent. Try to resolve the issue first with your insurer or agent, and if they are not willing or able, ask for their supervisor's contact information.
'If you are still not satisfied, let them know that you will file a complaint with the Department of Insurance,' Ruiz said. 'They may be able to find a resolution without going through the complaint process.'
Tip 2: Know when to skip the phone call. If the concern is directly related to the behavior of your agent, it may be better to skip calling your state's insurance department and file a complaint first, Baca advised.
Tip 3: Compile supporting financial evidence. When including documents to support your complaint, be sure to have estimates from body repair shops and other figures disputing the insurer's decision.
Tip 4: Locate an arbitrator. See if the terms of your policy dictate that you first go through either an arbitration or appraisal process with the insurance company. You can find an arbitrator from the American Arbitration Association.
Tip 5: Consider a bad-faith attorney. As a final option, you may want to hire a bad-faith attorney, though state insurance departments typically offer their services for free, Baca said. 'We can answer a lot of questions, provide education, point people in the right direction, and if it is something we can investigate, we can help them file a formal complaint,' she said. 'If the division is unable to assist the consumer, that is when they may want to consider talking with an attorney.'
Remember, once you hire an attorney, you will no longer be able to communicate directly with your insurance company, Ruiz advised.
Tim Manni edited this article.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
a few seconds ago
- CBS News
Higher U.S. tariffs officially in effect on dozens of nations
Washington — President Trump officially began levying higher import taxes on dozens of countries Thursday, just as the economic fallout of his months-long tariff threats was beginning to create visible damage to the U.S. economy. The White House said that starting just after midnight EDT, goods from more than 60 countries and the European Union began facing tariff rates of 10% or higher. Products from the European Union, Japan and South Korea are being taxed at 15%, while imports from Taiwan, Vietnam and Bangladesh are being taxed at 20%. Mr. Trump also expects places such as the EU, Japan and South Korea to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. He immediately took to his Truth Social platform to hail the levies, saying, "IT'S MIDNIGHT!!! BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TARIFFS ARE NOW FLOWING INTO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!" About an hour before that, he posted, "RECIPROCAL TARIFFS TAKE EFFECT AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT! BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, LARGELY FROM COUNTRIES THAT HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS, LAUGHING ALL THE WAY, WILL START FLOWING INTO THE USA. THE ONLY THING THAT CAN STOP AMERICA'S GREATNESS WOULD BE A RADICAL LEFT COURT THAT WANTS TO SEE OUR COUNTRY FAIL!" "I think the growth is going to be unprecedented," Trump said Wednesday afternoon. He added that the U.S. was "taking in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs," but he couldn't provide a specific figure for revenues because "we don't even know what the final number is" regarding tariff rates. Despite the uncertainty, the Trump White House is confident that the onset of his broad tariffs will provide clarity about the path of the world's largest economy. Now that companies understand the direction the U.S. is headed, the administration believes they can ramp up new investments and jump-start hiring in ways that can rebalance the U.S. economy as a manufacturing power. But so far, there are signs of self-inflicted wounds to America as companies and consumers alike brace for the impact of new taxes. What the data has shown is a U.S. economy that changed in April with Trump's initial rollout of tariffs, an event that led to market drama, a negotiating period and Trump's ultimate decision to start his universal tariffs on Thursday. After April, economic reports show that hiring began to stall, inflationary pressures crept upward and home values in key markets started to decline, said John Silvia, CEO of Dynamic Economic Strategy. "A less productive economy requires fewer workers," Silvia said in an analysis note. "But there is more, the higher tariff prices lower workers' real wages. The economy has become less productive, and firms cannot pay the same real wages as before. Actions have consequences." Even then, the ultimate transformations of the tariffs are unknown and could play out over months, if not years. Many economists say the risk is that the American economy is steadily eroded rather than collapsing instantly. "We all want it to be made for television where it's this explosion - it's not like that," said Brad Jensen, a professor at Georgetown University. "It's going to be fine sand in the gears and slow things down." Trump has promoted the tariffs as a way to reduce the persistent trade deficit. But importers sought to avoid the taxes by importing more goods before the taxes went into effect. As a result, the $582.7 billion trade imbalance for the first half of the year was 38% higher than in 2024. Total construction spending has dropped 2.9% over the past year, and the factory jobs promised by Trump have so far resulted in job losses. The lead-up to Thursday fit the slapdash nature of Trump's tariffs, which have been variously rolled out, walked back, delayed, increased, imposed by letter and frantically renegotiated. The process has been so muddled that officials for key trade partners were unclear at the start of the week whether the tariffs would begin Thursday or Friday. The language of the July 31 order to delay the start of tariffs from Aug. 1 said the higher tax rates would start in seven days. On Wednesday morning, Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, was asked if the new tariffs began at midnight Thursday, and he said reporters should check with the U.S. Trade Representative's Office. Trump on Wednesday announced additional 25% tariffs to be imposed on India for its buying of Russian oil, bringing their total import taxes to 50%. He has said that import taxes are still coming on pharmaceutical drugs and announced 100% tariffs on computer chips, meaning the U.S. economy could remain in a place of suspended animation as it awaits the impact. The president's use of a 1977 law to declare an economic emergency to impose the tariffs is also under challenge. The impending ruling from last week's hearing before a U.S. appeals court could cause Trump to find other legal justifications if judges say he exceeded his authority. Even people who worked with Trump during his first term are skeptical that things will go smoothly for the economy, such as Paul Ryan, the former Republican House speaker, who has emerged as a Trump critic. "There's no sort of rationale for this other than the president wanting to raise tariffs based upon his whims, his opinions," Ryan told CNBC on Wednesday. "I think choppy waters are ahead because I think they're going to have some legal challenges." Still, the stock market has been solid during the recent tariff drama, with the S&P 500 index climbing more than 25% from its April low. The market's rebound and the income tax cuts in Trump's tax and spending measures signed into law on July 4 have given the White House confidence that economic growth is bound to accelerate in the coming months. As of now, Trump still foresees an economic boom while the rest of the world and American voters wait nervously. "There's one person who can afford to be cavalier about the uncertainty that he's creating, and that's Donald Trump," said Rachel West, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation who worked in the Biden White House on labor policy. "The rest of Americans are already paying the price for that uncertainty." (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.) 8/7/2025 12:02:21 AM (GMT -4:00)
Washington Post
a few seconds ago
- Washington Post
Apple CEO gifts Trump glass statue with 24-karat gold base
Politics Apple CEO gifts Trump glass statue with 24-karat gold base August 7, 2025 | 4:48 AM GMT Apple CEO Tim Cook gifted President Donald Trump an inscribed piece of Apple-produced glass made in Kentucky that sits upon a 24-karat gold base on Aug. 6.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
China's July exports top forecasts amid rush to meet Trump tariff deadline
(Corrects June export growth in paragraph 2 to 5.8% from 4.8%) BEIJING (Reuters) -China's exports beat forecasts in July, as manufacturers made the most of a fragile tariff truce between Beijing and Washington to ship goods ahead of a looming deadline later this month. Outbound shipments from the world's second-largest economy rose 7.2% year-on-year in July, customs data showed on Thursday, beating a forecast 5.4% increase in a Reuters poll and June's 5.8% growth. Imports grew 4.1%, following a 1.1% rise in June. Economists had predicted a 1.0% fall. China is facing an August 12 deadline to reach a durable tariff agreement with the U.S. administration, after Beijing and Washington reached framework agreements in May and June to reduce non-tariff barriers such as rare earth minerals and technology to avoid further escalating their trade war. Without a deal, global supply chains could face renewed turmoil from U.S. duties snapping back to triple-digit levels that would amount to a bilateral trade embargo. Trump said on Tuesday the U.S. was close to a trade deal with China and that he would meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping before the end of the year if the world's two largest economies could come to an agreement. China's July trade surplus narrowed to $98.24 billion from $114.77 billion in June. Separate data from the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis on Tuesday showed the U.S. trade gap with China shrank to its lowest in more than 21 years in June. Chinese government advisers are stepping up calls to make the household sector's contribution to broader economic growth a top priority at Beijing's upcoming five-year policy plan, as trade tensions and deflation threaten the outlook. And top leaders have vowed to step up regulation of aggressive price-cutting by Chinese companies that is pushing prices ever lower. But economists warn that reversing the current deflationary slump will be far more difficult than during the last round of supply-side reforms a decade ago, as the downturn now poses a broader threat to employment, which Chinese leaders have emphasised is a core component of social stability. Reaching an agreement with the United States — and with the European Union, which has accused China of producing and selling goods too cheaply — would give Chinese officials more room to advance their reform agenda. However, analysts expect little relief from Western trade pressures. Export growth is projected to slow sharply in the second half of the year, hurt by persistently high tariffs, President Trump's renewed crackdown on the rerouting of Chinese shipments and deteriorating relations with the EU.
