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Contact your agent or insurance company if you have
a question about your policy. If still not satisfied, contact
Consumer Services at 1-800- 686-1526.
Q: Can the department tell me if my insurance company is
reputable?
A: The Ohio Department of Insurance cannot rate or recommend
companies. The department can tell you only whether the company
is authorized to do business in Ohio. You can get information
about company financial and service ratings by contacting a
private rating firm such as A.M.
Best Company, Fitch
Investors’ Service, Standard & Poor, Weiss
Research, or Moody’s
Investor Service.
Q: My HMO won't pay my claim? What can
I do?
First, carefully read your policy to determine whether
your claim should be covered under the terms of your contract.
Q: I am having a problem with my employer’s self-funded
health care plan (self-insured). Can you help?
A: The Department of Insurance has limited regulatory
powers regarding self-funded plans. We recommend you contact
the U.S.
Department of Labor, Office of Pension and Welfare Benefits
Administration.
Q: Can the company raise my health insurance premium even
if I didn’t have a claim?
A: Yes, as long as the increase is across the board – that
is, as long as the company raises the rates for everyone in
the same health insurance pool that you are in.
Q: When I bought my life insurance policy, the agent said
it would be "paid up" after ten years, but it’s
been that long and I’m still getting bills. Why?
A: Your contract (insurance policy) may provide for guaranteed
interest rates and/or dividends the insurance company will
pay on your premiums. But your premiums must make very high
earnings before they will "pay up" your policy. The
company must stand behind items that are guaranteed in the
contract. Promises of "paid up" life insurance are
illegal when based on non-guaranteed values. If you have documentation
of the agent promising this, we may be able to help. Documentation
would include any writing containing the promise -- even an
informal, handwritten note or a similar notation by agent.
Q: The police did not give me a ticket after a car accident,
but the insurance company still raised my rates. Can they do
that?
A: If the company paid any part of a claim for your accident,
your premium probably will go up. The company can also raise
your premium whenever it raises the rates for other drivers
in the same automobile insurance "pool" as you.
Q: Is there a grace period on my auto premium?
A: Not usually. Auto premiums normally have no grace period
so if your payment is late, your policy can be cancelled.
But, read the policy. It could stipulate a grace period.
Q: I paid extra for a replacement cost rider in my homeowner’s
policy. My television was stolen and even though I decided
not to get a new one, shouldn’t I have received what it
would have cost to replace it?
A: First read the rider. It may be that if you don’t
replace the item, the company will give you only the actual
cash value – in other words, what the item was worth at
the time it was lost.
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