If you have been involved in a car accident or are dealing with repair issues with your vehicle due to a natural disaster, break-in or other issue, you might be expecting your car insurance company to cover the damage. After all, this is probably one of many reasons why you pay for car insurance. However, if your car insurance company has denied your claim, you might be wondering what to do next. Before you can do that, however, you will need to determine why your insurance company is denying your claim. These are three potential reasons why.
1. An Unauthorized Individual Was Driving Your Car
As you might already know, insurance companies generally expect for people to add all individuals who drive their car to their policy. If someone who is not listed on your policy was driving your vehicle when the incident occurred, such as if you let someone borrow your car, your insurance company might try to deny the claim.
2. You Don't Have Ample Coverage
Depending on your policy, there is a chance that you do not have ample coverage to cover the incident. For example, many people who have older vehicles that are not financed choose to have liability insurance only rather than full coverage, which means that if there is an accident, the insurance company will cover the damage to the other person's car but not to the insured's car. Additionally, you should check the limits on your policy; even if you do have full coverage on your vehicle, your policy limits might be too low to pay out for your claim.
3. Your Policy Lapsed
If your insurance policy lapsed, such as if you did not pay your premium and your coverage was cancelled, then you may not be able to rely on your insurance company to cover your claim. If your insurance company is denying your claim and you are not sure if you made your payments, you may want to check your records to determine if you missed a payment.
As you can see, there are a few different reasons why your car insurance company might not cover your claim. Depending on the situation, however, there is a chance that there is something that you can do about it. If you work with an insurance dispute attorney, he or she can look at your individual case and determine if there are steps that can be taken. If you have any questions, contacting one of these attorneys can be a smart decision.
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