How long can an insurance company stall before paying your claim?

Answer 1

The laws vary from state to state concerning time requirements on reporting/responding to losses. Additionally, many states do not have a specific insurance regulation saying that a claim must be settled in xx amount of days. There are, however, other relavent statutes that apply to claims. For example, the insurance company may be required to acknowledge your claim and assign a claim number to it within 10 days (working days, calendar days). Your best bet is to call your department of insurance to find out what time limits the insurance company is legally bound by. The DOI in your state probably has a web site that you can search around in.