Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Insurer's Be Practical!


In the recent past I've been involved in several minor disputes over at most a few thousand dollars in medical or compensation benefits. That strikes me as incredible in this day when litigation costs and delays may help no one. I understand initially defending on a disputed issue but when it is being set for a hearing it is time to reassess from a business standpoint. Defense attorneys are just doing their job when they must defend the insurer/employer. They are trained to do so and not to settle at least not right away. Insurance however is a business and its may not be just a matter of who is right or wrong. Often I suspect cases have been prolonged and expenses gone up when they should have been just moved along. Settling or compromising on an issue is practical but not always legally correct. Being practical means to assess risk and costs along with the legal issues. When this is not done the insurer becomes a prisoner to the legal issues over the business side of it. I realize there are times each side gets hard nosed. Yet a middle ground is often the most sensible way to move a case along. I'd like to see insurers being pro-active in this because it requires business common sense not legal analysis.

No comments: