Background on The General
Famous for their advertisements featuring Shaquille O’Neal and a cartoon military general, The General has been around since 2000. Prior to that, their parent company sold insurance under the name Permanent General Agency as far back as 1963. The company is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. The General is prevalent in Louisiana, Texas, Ohio, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, and Georgia. The General is a subsidiary of PCG Holdings Corporation which is an affiliate of American Family Insurance since 2012.
Insurers of High-Risk Drivers
The General focuses primarily on the nonstandard auto insurance market–that is, they focus on selling insurance to people who may not qualify for insurance from larger standard insurers due to having a bad driving record, being inexperienced drivers, or otherwise being considered high-risk drivers by the big auto insurers. According to their own website, they “accept most drivers” and offer low down payments and monthly payments. This type of marketing confirms that The General targets the nonstandard insurance market. As you can imagine, when you focus on bad drivers as your target client, you deal with a significant number of accident claims. Adjusters for The General are no strangers to the tricks adjusters employ to deny and delay auto insurance claims.
Minimum Limits Policies from The General Insurance
Anytime an insurer is targeting the bad driver market, it is safe to assume that you are not likely to find a driver who has more than a bare-bones minimum limit liability insurance policy. Insurers aren’t stupid. They tend to offer bad drivers just enough to comply with the minimum legal requirements. PIP, UIM, and UM insurance are a rarity with these types of policies. Unlike a lot of insurance companies that refuse to disclose their client’s insurance policy limits, many times non-standard auto insurance companies are perfectly happy to tell you that they do not offer policies other than minimum limit liability-only policies.
Dealing with “The General” Insurance Claims
A quick review of the “Consumeraffairs.com” website suggests that many claimants have found The General difficult to deal with in filing claims. Unfortunately, this is the norm with insurance companies that offer nonstandard insurance policies. Delay and defend is not an uncommon tactic for nonstandard companies to try to avoid liability when their insured causes an accident. If the injured party fails to seek care out of fear the insurance company will not take responsibility, this, in turn, saves the insurance company money. Delays in getting proper medical care can result in a defense of failure to mitigate damages which ultimately may weaken your claim.
Call an Experienced Car Accident Lawyer
If you feel like you are getting the run-around from any nonstandard insurer, you probably are. That is what they do. Call Simmons and Fletcher, P.C., and let an experienced car accident lawyer fight the insurance company for you. It is what we do. Nothing lets these companies know you are serious like a Stowers demand letter from a lawyer that they know will file a lawsuit and take your case to Court. Call us at (713) 932-0777 for a free consultation today.
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