Founding Attorney · Former Licensed Claims Adjuster
The honest answer from someone who processed claims for two decades: a simple, well-documented claim can pay in a couple of weeks. A disputed one can take many months. The difference is rarely luck — it's how the claim is documented, how the carrier is managing its workload, and whether anyone is holding the insurer to its deadlines.
The phases every claim moves through
- Reporting and acknowledgment — the carrier logs the claim and assigns an adjuster.
- Investigation — inspections, statements, records. This is where most time is won or lost.
- Evaluation — the adjuster sets and refines the reserve, then builds an offer.
- Negotiation and payment — the phase most people think is the whole process.
What Florida law actually requires
Florida gives insurers real deadlines, not suggestions. Property insurers must acknowledge communications promptly, begin investigating within set windows, and generally pay or deny a property claim within roughly 90 days. Auto claims move under PIP's own clock: your medical care must begin within 14 days of the crash, and properly billed PIP benefits are due on a statutory schedule.
The delays that are legitimate — and the ones that aren't
Complex losses, multiple parties, and genuine coverage questions take real time. But some delay is manufactured: repeated requests for documents already provided, inspections that never get scheduled, adjusters who rotate off the file every month. I ran claim desks — I know exactly what a busy-but-honest file looks like versus a stall.
Insurers don't earn interest on claims they pay quickly. Understand that, and slow-walking stops being confusing.
How to speed up your claim
- Document the loss completely on day one — photos, receipts, records, witnesses.
- Respond to legitimate requests fast, in writing, and keep copies.
- Create a paper trail of every call: date, name, what was said.
- When deadlines slip, cite them in writing — carriers escalate files that look litigation-ready.
Claim dragging past the deadlines with no real explanation? That pattern has a name — and legal consequences. I know it from the inside.
See how I handle stalled and denied claims→Think this applies to your situation?
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