Allowing ins. fraud to stand
by upset customer on Apr 3, 2020
1 out of 5 stars
My car got destroyed by someone running a red light nearly 3 months ago and I haven’t received a dime from them yet. There was a witness who testified on my behalf but Economical Insurance wanted to make me 50% at fault because there is conflicting stories between me and the guy who ran the light. This is ridiculous because most people who are at fault deny it, therefore having a witness who nearly got hit by the same driver, should make it a slam dunk case. I couldn’t imagine how unfortunate it would be to have this happen without having a witness. I had to threaten them with a lawyer to get them to budge and reduce my fault down to 0%. I went to the garage of their choice the day after the accident to get a damage assessment but here I am still waiting on the money I’m owed. In these 3 months, I’ve paid them nearly $1000 from my monthly payments. I’m not sure what service I’m paying them for?
I got hit on a Saturday night - badly. They claim to have 24 emergency claim support - NOPE! People are at their most emotionally vulnerable - but if you get hit after 5 pm on a Friday - guess what? You'll be waiting for 3 days. They have an answering machine that DOESN'T record messages. It's been like that for 2 years and NO ONE CARES ENOUGH TO FIX IT! I called on a Monday morning - go through to a representative - she put me on hold after a 5-minute chat and my call was disconnected. Did she call back? NOPE! I got an assessment and it's been 4 days - my shop still hasn't received it. I'm driving around in a smashed-up car. Terrible company.
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Long story short, they told body shop to start the work and then halfway through, they denied the claim. Now I'm stuck with a 20K bill which I can't afford. I have no choice but to have my car taken away by the sheriff and lose it. Now my credit with BMW is destroyed and my credit score will be tanking. I never missed a payment, any claims, an excellent driver. When I told friends about my experience, they also mentioned that they've been played around by Economical as well for 100% at fault no accident. This insurance company is a huge crook. I had another friend who told me she was under investigation. They came to her house for her to prove she lived there. Inspected her belongings and clothing etc. This company literally has to sniff through your underwear to insure you are not committing any insurance fraud and you are living where you say you are. I thought this was a joke but a disgusting and true story. Insurance companies need to be investigated!
Was hit from behind and pushed into vehicle ahead. At a full stop at a traffic light. Wanted car repaired but believe they wanted parts to sell so claim to repair rejected. It cost us money that we would not have had to pay if the company had just paid for repairs. The car had minimal mileage and excellent condition prior to the accident. Very frustrated. The client’s wishes of no concern. Paid out more than the cost of repairs would have been. Suggest looking for a different insurer.
I was in a collision which the third party was responsible for the damages, it took 3 months to get an appointment with the garage they suggested, the garage was a disaster in regards to customer services (completely unprofessional when contacted for an ETA), once the vehicle was returned to me it was filthy, dust everywhere in the vehicle from the repairs they had done, they not only returned my vehicle with a missing piece but the windshield was still not fixed (damaged during the side collision which affected the frame of the vehicle and cracked the base of the windshield), when contacted they refused to repair the broken windshield and suggested I open a new claim as if it was from a different collision this was suggested by a manager... The customer service is marked as 1 star due to the lack of professionalism from the handler that was assigned to my file, they refuse to admit that they made a mistake when inspecting my vehicle and are not only refusing to add the windshield to the claim they are "assuming" it was caused by a different collision, logically if there was a different collision the body of the vehicle would be damaged and a different collision would have been reported, which is not the case. The lack of solutions provided, lack of additional research and not following up with the customer has made this review what it is. This company does not have a good reputation and if they continue to provide a poor service with the retention of customers and referrals will diminish greatly.
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I was in an accident in August where the other driver was at fault. Admittedly I was scammed by the tow truck driver and had my car towed to what I later learned was their own auto body shop by a different name and not a preferred shop. Lesson learned on that matter. However, the insurance company had deemed my car a write off and then changed their mind because I was tricked into signing a work order from the tow driver while at the scene of the accident (yes lesson learned again, read what you're signing even if you are still in shock from the accident). After the insurance company changed their mind they approved over 17,000.00 in repairs of my car (4-month-old car) and when I finally got my car back over 2 months later the driver window wasn't repaired properly and it was noted and agreed that they needed to order parts... 2 trips back for me to check up on the parts and for the second time I'm told they have no clue who I am or what I need and the guy I dealt with (owner) is away. I asked my rep at Economical to please authorize the repairs to be completed elsewhere and to not pay the auto body shop for the deficiencies but they refuse to do it even though they have been following this disaster from the beginning and says the auto body shop didn't charge for deficiencies. Can you imagine an auto body shop keeping a car on their lot for an extra month and not charging the insurance company? No chance! So now I'm stuck with a car that the window isn't working, the car is less than 6 months old and I will have to take it elsewhere to have the repairs done and to pay for it myself. Needless to say, I will be cancelling my insurance as soon as this is over and will never have Economical in my life again.
DO NOT TRUST THESE THIEVES! I am a 60 years old male that has one accident non-fault in 1978, perfect driving record. Was with the same broker for 23yrs+. Home, Buss. three vehicles full coverage. Claim free. Four years ago was switched Economical Insurance without my consent. Though a lower rate was offered, I had reservations. Since then the rate has doubled! March returned home discovered large dent on drivers door 2 years old truck . Upset, but not surprised in too days society. Contacted broker. Not to worry full coverage we will take care of it. Contacted 4 days later by Kelly. Was basically interrogated rude condescending attitude for 45min. Insinuated that it was I that had slid sideways into another vehicle and failed to contact police file report informed Kelly that it would be up to the adjuster to determine. Contacted broker informed agent of conversation, was told that we have no control who the adjuster will be. Emailed photos of the damage, statement. Waited for response & waited & waited. Contacted broker 2nd week May. No problem we will take care of it. Call not returned. Contacted Kelly 5 times by email no less than 10 phone messages & to other Economical representatives that just blew me off, between June & Aug. 30. Numerous attempts to resolve this matter was ignored by my trusted family broker, one excuse after another over a three month period! During this time I got a price from two body shops $3300& $3600. What kind of Corporation would offer forgivable first claim? Insult the client to the point of legal action. Not even inspect, asses the damage. Would it not be a good buss. payout a minor claim of $3600 ($500 deduct) and keep the premiums flowing in. Guess not at Economical Insurance. Received renewal on Sept 2 and to insult me more Economical attempted to raise my premium by all most 30 %. I had already contacted another Insurance provider in July and received a substantial $ 1000+ lower rate. I have had the repair done at my own expense. Cancelled home buss. vehicle coverage by Broker, Economical in a total of $4400 annually. Just before deciding to warn others, and my 5-star negative experience with unethical business practices of Economical Insurance. My broker that I considered family friends, contacted me wanting to know if the service I received prompted me to seek other Insurance providers. YES!
Do not even consider using this insurance group for your needs. On Wednesday, August 7 I had my first conversation with them regarding hail damage on my vehicle. Initially, they misdirected me to two shops to get repair quotes, finally advising me to visit one specific shop only. I have both printed quotes in hand from both shops and have requested a cash settlement. We have spent the last two weeks in a complete runaround with an incompetent adjuster whose only response is that she cannot do anything until the quotes are "downloaded". I would not trust this company at all. Also worth noting, my broker at Brokerlink has not been helpful in resolving this either.
Claims manager was extremely professional and knowledgeable. Great communication skills and made things easy to get my car fixed.
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They only get one star because I can't do 0. Do your future self a huge favour, and don't bother with Economical Insurance. Not only they have terrible customer service, their assume guilty policy punishes good drivers who act in good faith while allowing or even rewarding bad drivers who lie about insurance claims to get off with only a slap on the wrist. No wonder insurance fraud is so high, with that policy. I have been a customer for years with no claims. I've driven 10 years with no at-fault accidents. The first time I submitted a claim this year, things went downhill fast. Not only did the insurance agent insist I go to their auto shop, across town from where I had an appointment already booked, but she also didn't even give me the right address. I'm glad I called the shop to confirm ahead, because I found out that she had also given me the wrong time, Monday afternoon instead of Friday, making my time off work nothing but lost hours and income. (Apparently, this was not the first time this had happened according to the auto shop.) Next, we come to the claim itself. I had a police report with a clear not at fault, a clear recounting of the events, and photos of vehicle damage on my left / driver's side. The other 'honest' driver (who insisted we should not do insurance and was 'very honest,' we could settle with cash!) made a false claim to their insurance saying I turned right and hit them, instead of what happened, they turned right and hit me. Their story is physically impossible while travelling in the same direction given the physical damages to my vehicle. But, the lie did not match, so apparently, it was an automatic 50/50 - now, not only was I being given bad customer service, they weren't even trying to help at all, and I was treated as guilty in each subsequent interaction. Nobody wanted to do any real work to help or make sure that things were done right. They are currently trying to finalize my claim without even bothering to wait for the police report on their end to be delivered - pure laziness, and it makes me wonder if that part is even legal - I gave them proof and they can't even be bothered to read it? Clearly, it was far easier (and more profitable) to just hit the 50/50 button than do their job. This policy of treating their customers like dirt, and guilty until innocent not only punish those drivers who do things right but by allowing the false claims to stand it condones and even rewards bad drivers who lie to avoid a penalty, with no burden of proof on their side. I can almost guarantee that the other driver, if they keep driving like what I saw, will go on to be in another accident and next time may not be lucky enough to escape with no injury. The first agent I spoke to argued up and down how I could have hit the other person, in fact, taking their side! (and the first story I heard was not identical to the second story either - different stories from the other insurance agency would also make things a bit suspicious too!) This lack of oversight might be why insurance fraud is so high if their agents just accept lies at face value while deliberately ignoring proof from their own customers.