I have had many conversations with people who my company insured, yet those individuals questioned strongly whether I was serving their best interests or that of the company who employed me. I heard it over and over again– insurance companies don’t care about their insureds or people they insure, they only care about making money. The policy I always followed was the state policy that bound both the company and the person being insured. Within that policy lays the “discretion”. Claim representatives are given that discretion (authority) to make decisions on behalf of the insurer. Although my first interests were of the customers, I’m sure there existed those that wanted to show the boss that they could “reduce costs” through tight claim management. The fiduciary responsibility is to the company that employs them. The customer doesn’t directly pay the claim representative, the insurance company does. With that said, take the time to review your auto policy and the laws of your state. Contact your agent to advise him/her of the handling of the claim. It’s not recommended as a means to get claims resolution, however, the agent’s contact with the claims department to discuss the handling of a claim does help. Make sure you educate yourself and know your policy rights before making any decision. Always ask additional questions to the claims handler and follow up with your own claims research as well. This will save you time, hassle, and probably some money. Steven Gross