Claims Advice

Without the claims procedure there would be no such entity as an insurance policy.

An insurance 'claim' can be defined as, "the notification to an insurance company requesting payment of an amount due under the terms of the policy". In essence, this facility indemnifies an insured person against the loss of or damaged by a peril specified in the insurance contract.

This protection against loss or damage is not restricted to a physical loss, such as damage to a car, property or person, but also extends, for example, to liability issues, such as that an employer would have for their employee's.

The claims process is a carefully constructed procedure, which has several permutations depending on factors such as, the Insurance Company involved and what type of insurance contract for which the claim relates. Whilst each Insurance Company will have their own interpretation of the claims procedure, with the advent of the Financial Services Authority in January 2005, certain steps within the main structure MUST be completed to certain standards.

The following sections will discuss in more detail the claims procedure; both generically and in particular reference to policy types; your responsibilities as an insured person or group of peoples; how to notify the appropriate parties of a claim and how regulation impacts on the claims procedure.