Wichita Drivers Could Be In Danger Due to Car Accident Insurance Issues

After a motor vehicle collision in Wichita, you have the right to expect insurance companies will provide the coverage drivers paid for. Kansas is a no fault insurance state, so every driver should be covered for medical treatment expenses and partial lost wages by a personal injury policy when injuries were sustained. Property damage may also be covered by an insurer following the crash. When serious injuries occur due to an accident, the insurer of those responsible for the collision should cover all losses.

Insurers, however, do not generally do their part to ensure they provide the necessary funds for crash victims to move on. Instead of being fair in their treatment of consumers who are depending upon insurance companies to pay out claims, the insurers instead use a variety of different techniques to make it harder for crash victims to collect or to reduce the amount insurers have to pay out. In some cases, consumers dealing with car accident insurance issues could actually find themselves put in danger by the dishonest and misleading tactics the insurance companies use.

Could Car Insurance Issues Create a Safety Risk?

Claims Journal warns two South Central states have taken action in recent months because of dishonest and dangerous tactics by auto insurance companies. In Louisiana, State Farm insurance was sued because of a particular business practice. The Attorney General of Oklahoma also issued a warning about the same business practice, alerting consumers to the fact they were possibly being scammed and indicating an intent to go after insurers.

The business practice causing the problems involves car insurers referring clients to preferred auto body shops. While there may be a legitimate reason insurance companies want repairs done at a particular location, the problem is these insurers were not acting in the best interests of customers.

The insurers were referring the consumers making insurance claims for repairs to body shops willing to do those repairs quickly and on-the-cheap. The auto body shops were spending minimal time doing repairs to lower labor costs, which meant they were often failing to follow recommended best practices or manufacturer guidelines for how the repairs are to be performed.

The auto body shops were also using low cost parts, including aftermarket parts and even salvage parts. Consumers were not being told the cheap parts were being used, but the insurers were charged much less. The use of the salvage or aftermarket parts could end up voiding the manufacturer warranty consumers have on their vehicles. Even worse, the parts could end up malfunctioning, or failing very quickly. The substandard parts combined with the shoddy installation practices could result in the parts causing problems with vehicle operation. This, in turn, could lead to the consumer getting into another accident when his car malfunctions on the road.

Consumers can never count on auto insurance companies not to be dishonest when it comes to claims after a crash. It is advisable for collision victims to have an experienced advocate on their side who can look out for their interests and help to protect them from suffering uncompensated loss.