What Is Considered an Unfair Health Insurance Settlement Offer?
Let’s say that you fall ill or become injured – it can happen to anyone – and you incur substantial medical expenses. When you file a claim with your health insurance company, what steps can you take if that claim is rejected, or if the insurance company offers to settle your claim for an amount that’s far less than the claim is worth?
Your first step is scheduling a no-cost legal consultation with a California health insurance claims attorney at the McKennon Law Group. Do not accept an offer from the insurance company for a settlement amount that does not compensate you reasonably, fully, and fairly.
Do Not Accept a Quick, “Lowball” Settlement Offer
Accepting a quick settlement offer from your health insurance company may seem like your simplest and most expedient option, especially if you’ve been unable to work and you need immediate cash, but settling for less than your health insurance claim is worth entails waiving your right to seek additional compensation or to take additional legal action.
When you buy a health insurance policy, independently or through an employer, you presume that if you need medical attention, the costs – except for deductibles and co-payments – will be covered.
However, if your health insurance company denies your claim or offers you a substantially lesser amount, you could end up paying medical bills out-of-pocket, and for many if not most Californians, the result could be severe financial hardship or even bankruptcy.
How Do Health Insurance Companies Handle Claims?
When a health insurance company examines your claim for healthcare coverage, the company considers:
1. the payout amount that your claim is seeking
2. the cost of contesting your claim if you take legal action
3. potential strategies for challenging your claim
4. whether you’ve retained an insurance claims attorney to work on your behalf
Especially if you’ve been seriously ill or seriously injured, you should never settle a health insurance claim before you know the full extent of your injuries and the prognosis for your recovery. It may take some time for your medical providers to determine your long-term medical needs and calculate your long-term healthcare costs.
How Will an Insurance Claims Attorney Help You?
Health insurance policies are complicated; even the most intelligent person can find the language obscure and baffling. A California insurance claims attorney at the McKennon Law Group is familiar with the terms and conditions of health insurance policies, how those terms and conditions apply in individual cases, and what the law requires.
If your claim for health insurance benefits is denied, an attorney with the McKennon Law Group will examine your policy and discuss your options for recovering the full insurance payout amount that you are entitled to by law.
How Can You Learn More?
For more than seventy years, the insurance attorneys at the McKennon Law Group have aggressively and effectively represented consumers – throughout California and across the United States – who are being treated unfairly or illegally by an insurance company.
If you would like to learn more, or if you need to launch the legal process promptly, call the McKennon Law Group at (800) 682-4137, or complete the contact form on this website. We have offices in San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Newport Beach.