Claims & Disputes
What we would tell someone buying their first policies
The principles that survive across every line of insurance, from three people who have spent careers on different sides of them.
Aisha Rahmani
25 articles by Rahmani
Claims & Disputes
Small claims court and other routes when appeals fail
When internal appeals, external review and the regulator have not resolved it, several routes remain and they vary enormously in cost.
Disability & Income
Disability claim documentation over the long term
Long-term claims are reviewed repeatedly over years, and the file you build from the start determines how those reviews go.
Home & Property
Insurance when you work from home
Homeowners and renters policies exclude business activity, and a great many people are now conducting it in the covered dwelling.
Claims & Disputes
Fraud, exaggeration and the line between them
Adding a little to a claim feels harmless and is not, and the consequences extend well beyond the amount added.
Disability & Income
Long-term care claims and why they get denied
A benefit claimed decades after purchase, frequently by someone no longer able to manage the process themselves.
Auto Insurance
Non-renewal, cancellation and getting dropped
The difference between the two matters, the notice requirements are regulated, and there is more you can do about it than most people realise.
Health Insurance
Surprise billing protections and what they cover
Federal rules now limit balance billing in defined situations, and knowing which situations they are is the useful part.
Claims & Disputes
Complaining to the regulator, and when it works
A free escalation route that produces a formal insurer response, and that many policyholders do not know exists.
Disability & Income
Independent medical examinations and how to handle them
An examination arranged and paid for by the insurer, conducted by a physician they selected, whose report frequently decides the claim.
Home & Property
Insuring a home you rent out
A homeowners policy does not cover a rented property, and using one is a coverage gap waiting to be discovered at claim time.
Auto Insurance
Rental cars, borrowed cars and who covers what
The counter agent asks whether you want the waiver, and the answer depends on coverage you have not read.
Claims & Disputes
The examination under oath and other formal requests
A contractual right insurers hold to question you formally, which appears in larger claims and should be taken seriously.
Disability & Income
Returning to work on a disability claim
The provisions that determine whether attempting a return costs you your benefits, and what to check before you try.
Home & Property
Getting insured in a hard market
In several states, homeowners coverage has become expensive, restricted or genuinely difficult to obtain, and the options are narrower than they were.
Health Insurance
Medicare basics for people who are not yet on it
Four parts, several enrollment deadlines, and penalties for missing them that last for life.
Claims & Disputes
Bad faith: what it means and when it applies
Insurers owe a duty beyond the contract, and where they breach it the remedies can exceed the policy limits.
Home & Property
Water damage: covered, excluded, and the line between
The most common homeowners claim and the most frequently disputed, because coverage depends on where the water came from and how fast.
Auto Insurance
Rideshare, delivery and the gap in personal auto policies
Personal policies generally exclude commercial use, platform coverage has phases, and the gap between them is where people find themselves uninsured.
Health Insurance
COBRA, marketplace coverage and the gaps between jobs
Losing employer coverage triggers several options with short deadlines, and the default option is frequently the most expensive one.
Claims & Disputes
When a claim is denied: reading the letter properly
A denial is a position, not a verdict, and the letter tells you exactly what to argue against.
Disability & Income
Social Security disability, and why it is not a plan
A genuine safety net with a strict definition, a long process and a high initial denial rate.
Health Insurance
The explanation of benefits, decoded
The document that says it is not a bill, arrives after every service, and contains the information you need to catch errors.
Home & Property
The exclusions page, and why flood is not covered
Homeowners policies list what they do not cover, and the list contains several of the most likely ways a house is damaged.
Health Insurance
Prior authorization, and how to get one
The requirement that a service be approved before it happens, and the process that decides it — including what to do when the answer is no.