According to a recent Wall Street Journal analysis, personal auto insurance policyholders have a “near-flip-of-a-coin” chance of being paid on liability claims and medical claims.
Executive Summary
Industry veterans who care about the level of trust in the P/C insurance industry analyze changes in claims operations, agent-customer relationships, underwriting decisions and communication practices that might be weighing on customers. "Some of it is on us," says one, dismissing the idea that billboard attorneys are causing ill will. The actions of opportunistic lawyers may not explain rising levels of auto liability claims being closed without payment, another observes. Part of a seriesOuch.
Just about a week after I wrote a LinkedIn post and a related article (“A Matter of Trust“) asking, “Does the property/casualty insurance industry have a trust problem?” the WSJ article titled “If You Get in a Car Crash, the Risk Is Growing Your Insurance Won’t Pay” (subscription required) seemed to give consumers a big reason not to trust insurers. After all, claims experiences—bad ones, in particular—are among the most important factors influencing trust in insurance, past research has found.
