Can I Change My Insurance If I Have an Open Claim?

Handling Your Current Claim

Switching insurance companies won’t have any impact on an open insurance claim you have. Your current insurance company will still be responsible for your claim as it normally would. To put it another way, your current insurance company is obligated to process and pay your claim as normal, even if you cancel your policy. State laws mandate the insurance company of record at the time of loss is responsible for the claim. A possible exception would be if you waited too long to file the claim, but if the claim is already open, this should not be an issue.

Also, be aware that your new insurance company is not responsible for the open claim at your current insurance company. Your new coverages and deductibles would not apply. You will still have to deal with your old insurance company on the open claim until it is resolved.

To sum this up, insurance companies cannot choose to not pay a claim because you left their insurance company. They could deny the claim for other legitimate reasons, but leaving them is not a legitimate reason for a denial of a claim.

Considerations When Changing Insurance

First: Who you select to insure your home or auto is your right. You can switch insurance companies any time you want, even if you have an open claim. If you are not happy with the way your current insurance company has treated you during its handling of your claim, this may be a reason to consider switching.

Second: Make sure you read your current insurance policy before switching insurance companies. Some insurance contracts will have a small fee to cancel early. Generally, the fee is nominal, but make sure you check to know for sure. If you are not sure or need some advice, reach out to my team here at Trailstone Insurance Group. We will help you figure out the best way forward.

Third: Before you cancel your current insurance, make sure we can find you a better rate with one of our 40 insurance companies. We will do all the shopping for you, and there is never a fee for our service. Our team will need 10-15 minutes of your time to get the details on your open claim and discuss the new coverage your family may need in their new policy.

Your Trailstone agent will provide you multiple quotes and options, so you can make an educated decision about your insurance. If you have questions, we will be there to help with advice and answers. If you want to move forward with your new insurance, we make the change seamless with digital signatures and a convenient cancellation form for your old insurance company.

Fourth: Will the new insurance company accept you as a client with an open claim? This is not for you to worry about. Our team will verify with the new insurance company’s underwriter that your policy is approved before we make any suggestions on changing insurance.

Typically, the underwriter will agree to insure your home or auto if the claim repairs have been completed, even if the claim shows “open” on your claim history. Many times, pictures or invoices may be required to assure the underwriter the claim is repaired so they can move forward with the new policy.

On the other hand, if the repairs have not been completed or a liability claim is not closed, we may have to wait to issue your new policy. This will depend on the advice from the underwriter. Again, our team is well-versed in this process and will guide you through it.

If we have to wait to issue the new policy, our software will track the claim dates and we will help switch your policies once the underwriter is comfortable moving forward. So, all is not lost in this situation.

Final Thoughts

If you have an open claim or feel like you are just paying too much for your insurance, get a quote started now. Remember, Trailstone works with more than 40 insurance carriers and will likely save you a ton of money. We will treat you better than your current insurance agent that is out golfing three days a week.