HANDLING CLAIMS - PAYING CLAIMS

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PAYING CLAIMS – HOW LONG SHOULD IT TAKE?

When we have a valid claim, we want the insurance company to reimburse us immediately. We have submitted our claim form, and we know the illness was not related to a preexisting condition. All our documentation has been submitted to the insurance company. Why the wait?

First of all, insurance companies are always careful because of fraud. Insurance companies lose tens of millions of dollars every year due to fraudulent claims. Even though yours is valid they still need to check out several things. They need to be assured that the illness is not related to a preexisting condition. The larger the claim the more careful they will be. They might ask to see the doctor’s medical records. They may want to contact your hospital in the USA. Sometimes getting these reports takes time, thus the delay in paying claims. Of course, if you break your leg or have an accident, that makes paying the claim much easier. Yet they still need all of the paperwork.

Usually count on it taking 60-90 days to get a claim paid. One company insists that their average turnaround time on a claim is 14 days--and that may be so. But note 14 days is their “average.” That means that many claims will take less time and many will take more time.