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 complaint about claims representatives
Posted Fri November 2, 2007 12:00 pm, by Cynthia I. written to Allstate Insurance
Write a Letter to this Company
November 1, 2007
Allstate Insurance Company
Attn: Corporate Headquarters
Willow Road Plaza
2675 Sanders Road
Northbrook, Illinois 60062-6104
Re: Official Complaint -- Claim #XXX (property damage)
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with the way Allstate has handled my property damage claim. I have attempted to resolve this issue short of contacting corporate headquarters but my attempts were largely ignored. Hence, the lengthy letter to follow:
As background: I was rear-ended by an Allstate policyholder on August 21, 2007. I was not the at-fault driver. My 2007 Mazda CX-7 was damaged, and I sustained physical injuries for which I am still receiving treatment. I have retained a lawyer to handle my injury claim.
From the very first time I contacted Allstate regarding the damage to my vehicle until now, I have experienced customer service problems ranging from Allstate claims representatives' failing to return my calls, to an incident in which my character and integrity was impugned over a $7 rental car upgrade.
On September 19, 2007, my attorney contacted Allstate claims adjuster, regarding my property damage claim. At that time he conferenced me in. She was not available, so he left a message on her voicemail asking her to contact me. On September 21, after I had not heard from her, I contacted her myself and left another message. She eventually called me back on September 21, got my damage estimate set up and instructed me to call her back should I need a rental car.
October 19, I made an appointment for October 30 to have my car repaired, and I also contacted her to arrange a rental car. At that time, she was not at her desk and I had to leave a voicemail, but she never returned my call. I called her again on October 29, but the outgoing message on her voicemail indicated that she was out of the office from October 26th until October 31. I pressed "0" so that I could be connected with someone else, since my appointment for the repair work to my vehicle was scheduled for the next day. I was connected to lady whose name I unfortunately did not
record. She attempted to set up the rental car reservation, but was unable to give me a
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confirmation number due to computer problems. She stated that she would call me back with the reservation number. I left her my cell phone number and email address for this purpose but she never called back with the reservation. I contacted Allstate again on the morning of October 30 and a gentleman was able to assist me in setting up the reservation. Regretfully, I did not record his name, but I was pleased with the customer service he provided.
On October 30, I dropped my car off for repair and was picked up by an employee of Enterprise Rent-a-Car, who transported me to the Enterprise office. At that time, I was informed that the vehicle authorized for my use by Allstate was of the "intermediate" class. Vehicles of this type are much smaller than my CX-7 and lack a cargo area, which I need. When I requested an SUV or a vehicle with a cargo area, the Enterprise employee stated that he would have to call Allstate for the authorization. Since she was out of the office, the Enterprise employee was connected with Mr. The Enterprise employee told him my request and he evidently asked to speak with me directly.
The Enterprise employee handed me the phone, I identified myself, and, without saying "Hello" or exchanging any sort of customary greeting, he brusquely asked: "What's going on?" Despite his curt tone, I explained my situation and reiterated the request made by the Enterprise employee that I be placed in a vehicle of similar size to my CX-7. He stated that it was policy that Allstate authorize an intermediate sized vehicle. I explained that due to my "job and personal lifestyle" that I require more room, which is why I purchased my CX-7. I then asked if a vehicle of similar size with cargo space was available to me. He placed me on hold for an extended period after which he returned to the phone and stated that he would upgrade me to a "standard-sized" vehicle, such as a Ford Taurus which is "pretty big." I stated that I required a cargo area and asked again whether an SUV of similar size to my own could be authorized. Without ever answering that question, he continued to discuss the Ford Taurus and similar vehicles, and in response to him, I continued to request an SUV. After a few minutes of this, he tersely stated that he would be placing me in a standard vehicle. When I asked whether I could speak with someone of superior rank than he about the issue, he became very unpleasant. At that time he told me that he basically was the highest ranked person in his areawhich I find hard to believe given his unprofessional demeanor and inept manner of handling customer issues (and if such a person truly is employed in a supervisory capacity, it is a sad state of affairs for Allstate consumers).
At that point, I began to elaborate on why my job and lifestyle required the cargo space I was requestingbooks and files for my job, my dog that I cannot transport in a car trunk. His response to me was that my "story was growing," implying that I was lying or making things up in order to secure the upgrade. When I attempted to explain that I was not adding to my story, but merely giving him a more specific description of what my job and lifestyle entailed, he cut me off and stated that this was the first he had heard of a dog. He even speculated that I must have a small dog because the cargo
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area in the CX7 is not "all that big." Eventually, he reluctantly stated that he would upgrade me to an SUV, and repeated that that was the first he heard of a dog and booksagain implying that I was being untruthful. I reminded him that when I first requested a vehicle with cargo space, I cited my job and lifestyle. I stated that I was simply elaborating on those factors to make him understand the reason for my request since he had been continually denying me up to that point. I also informed him that I was offended and insulted at the implication that I was lying to get him to authorize a vehicle with cargo space. At this point he did not offer any sort of apology, but angrily asked me if I was represented by counsel. When I told him that I was, he told me in that I needed to have my lawyer contact him if I wished to discuss my vehicle claim further. I found this to be an unnecessarily antagonistic and completely unacceptable response. He had already said that he would upgrade the vehicle so that was no longer an issue. At this point, I was chagrined at his implication that I was a liar, but instead of handling my complaint or referring me to someone else at Allstate, he abruptly ended the conversation, without addressing the issue further. Not only was ending the call in this manner an inappropriate response from a customer service perspective, but refusing to speak to me without offering me any other recourse, and insisting that my attorney contact him to address this issue is tantamount to leaving me with no redress at all. Calling my lawyer to resolve a minor, non-legal customer service complaint is an inappropriate use of my lawyer's time and I have neither the financial resources nor the inclination to employ my attorney for such a purpose.
Needless to say, I was extremely displeased at being so rudely treated by him, so I called Allstate again to ask for the number to the corporate offices so that I could file a complaint. I dialed the same number that was dialed when the enterprise Employee reached him and the call went directly through to her. When I asked her for the corporate office information, she represented that she was "the head of all northeast Florida" and that she would be able to help me. I doubt that she is a regional head for Allstate for the following reasons: 1) my call went directly to her and was not routed through several people as is typically the case when contacting management in a large corporation and, 2) she never addressed my complaint what differentiates supervisors from employees of lower rank is that, through training and aptitude, supervisory personnel-- especially regional heads-- are particularly adept at addressing consumer complaints. Her non-responsiveness to my problem is an indication that she obviously lacks this key skill. Notwithstanding the forgoing, I nevertheless attempted to lodge my complaint with her in hopes that she would address it. I recounted what occurred during my conversation with him, and although she made an initial glib apology, she made no real effort to address the reason for my call. After placing me on hold for a brief period, she stated that she entered the upgrade for me and proceeded to discuss the following issues: 1) she noted that my car was driveable and that the estimated damage was under $500; 2) she reminded me that Allstate only authorized a five day rental reservation, so if the repair took longer than expected, Allstate would not pay for any fees outside of the rental period: therefore I needed to make sure the body shop had all the parts necessary for the repair. None of these issues were of concern to me and I see no reason why she
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thought it necessary to discuss them at that point, other than to try to intimidate me into quietly accepting how poorly I had been treated by reminding me of the limitations of the rental car authorization. Because this did not relate in any way to my complaint about his behavior, I again brought the conversation back to the insulting manner in which I had been treated. Her response to me was that she knew him and that she found it hard to believe that he would behave in such a manner. I suggested that she pull the tape of the conversation which, as stated at the beginning of all calls to Allstate, was being made for quality assurance purposes. But she said, "Oh, we can never get those tapes." I find it hard to believe that tapes made for training and quality assurance purposes are unobtainableespecially by a person who purports to be "the head of northeast Florida." Moreover, if the recordings can never be obtained, how can training ever be conducted or quality assured? The outcome of my call to her was that she upgraded the vehicle (which had already been done by her) and informed me of the rental expiration policy (which he did not do because he was too busy being rude to me). However, she did nothing to address the sole reason that I contacted her: which was the disrespectful way he treated me. In fact, what I took from her response to me was that she did not believe that he behaved as I had described and that no attempt to review the conversation or address the issue would be made by her or anyone else.
The claim representatives' failure to return my calls so that my rental car request could be processed pales in comparison to the needlessly acrimonious and unprofessional manner in which I was treated by him. As I pointed out to him, I was not asking to be placed in a Hummer or an ExpeditionI simply requested a vehicle that was similar in size to the SUV that I currently drive. This seems to me to be a reasonable, minor, and routine request, one which I certainly did not expect to result in insults or unnecessary rancor.
Of most significance to me is the fact that the Enterprise employee later informed me that the upgrade from a standard-sized vehicle to an SUV would cost Allstate $7 (which is $35 over a period of five days). Is the state of the Allstate Corporation's financial affairs such that consumers are subjected to abusive customer service practices for the sake of saving the company $35? Are Allstate representatives trained to insult and alienate consumers rather than to expeditiously exercise discretion in favor of allowing a $7 car rental upgrade when the situation warrants it? Are Allstate representatives encouraged to use their discretion arbitrarily and capriciously, such that one will repeatedly refuse a request and then turn around and grant it, while another grants it immediately? Is the foregoing a reflection of Allstate's corporate culture when it comes to customer service? Is it customary for a person of purported supervisory rank to shift the focus of a customer complaint to irrelevant, extraneous issues, to gloss over a customer complaint entirely, or to make the customer feel that the level of service provided is tied to the value of their claim?
Lost in this entire unpleasant experience is the fact that I am the victim in this case. An insured of Allstate struck my new 2007 vehicle, damaged it, and injured me. From the
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way I have been treated, one would think that this situation is somehow my fault. Although I do not have a policy with Allstate, as a consumer I had the expectation that a reasonable request made by me would be handled professionally without undue delay or unpleasantness, and that I would be treated with dignity and respect. Instead, the service I received both at the point of sale and at the "supervisory" level was substandard, unacceptable, and warrants a change in Allstate's damage estimate and settlement draft folders which bear the slogan: "VIPVery Important Papers for a Very Important Person." To say that the treatment I received thus far makes me feel anything but a "very important person" is an extreme understatement.
I am not an Allstate policyholder and, based on Allstate's treatment of me up to this point, I would never consider switching to Allstate. Furthermore, I will tell anyone who is considering insuring their home or vehicle with Allstate about its extremely poor service in hopes that they will take their business elsewhere. After all, if this is how Allstate treats innocent accident victims about so minor an issue as a $7 rental car upgrade, I shudder to think of how it treats its policyholders who are at fault and have to file a claim. It is my sincere hope that Allstate will investigate each incident described in this letter and address them in appropriate manner, so that other accident victims are not subjected to insults and poor service when trying to resolve their claims.
I realize that this letter may be of little or no consequence to the Allstate Corporation, but I sincerely hope that it is. If it is not, then a shift in corporate priorities is in order, as the customer service problems at Allstate are pervasive in nature. I experienced serious customer service issues with four of the five Allstate representatives with whom I have spoken, and after failing to properly address my problem, two of your reps attempted to stymie my efforts to present my complaint to persons with more authority in your organization. My overall impression of Allstate's claims representatives is that their service falls far below the standards that the average person would expect in any consumer-based business. If my experience is any indication of the quality of service that Allstate's claims representatives routinely provide on a daily basis, imagine how many displeased people there are out there who have not taken the time to voice their concerns as I have. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the issues raised in this letter. Thank you for your time
Sincerely,
XXX
cc XXX, Esquire
Better Business Bureau of Northeast Florida
Ken Amaro, Consumer Advocate, First Coast News
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reprimands for the employees involved
sincere letter of apology to me.
mandatory customer service training.
offer me somthing to make up for the experience and foster goodwill
 Reply
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by Karen E. Posted Fri December 12, 2008 @ 11:32 AM
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I agree that the letter is quite long, but considering what were
trying to explain, I can understand that. However, a better approach
might be to have a brief letter giving the bare bones facts of the
situation, what you would like to see happen, and make reference to
another page with the full details. That way your point is not lost in
the details and generating nasty responses like you got in the
comments here.
There is nothing wrong with being upset about being treated poorly and
wanting to be heard about it. Honestly, though, I think your own
mental health is better served by letting it go, but that's just me.
That's not to say that it was acceptable (it wasn't) or that you
shouldn't give detail about an accusation you are making, or even that
you shouldn't want to be heard.
The other commenters here strike me as missing the point altogether
and quite judgemental on top of it. People are ugly sometimes, as
you've found out. Sorry that happened.
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by T. C. Posted Mon November 5, 2007 @ 10:46 PM
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Finger hurts from scrolling. You got a car and could have lived with
the smaller one for just a little while. You decided to put yourself
and others through hell. No it was not an suv but many other less
arrogant people survive with less.
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I should hire a personal injury lawyer against you for boring me to
near death with this drawn out whinefest of yours. My eyes ache from
taking so long to read it, and my ass hurts from sitting so long in
one spot!
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by Richard S. Posted Mon November 5, 2007 @ 10:08 AM
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I have a limo that I drive every day because of the roominess. I hope
Allstate will give me a replacement limo if my limo is in an accident
and needs to be repaired.
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Hahaha I didnt even bother to read this book. I read the other posters
remarks.
Geez, you were the kid in the class that wrote everything the teacher
said in class didnt ya?? Even if you knew it.
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by Cor H Posted Sun November 4, 2007 @ 5:40 PM
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"mandatory customer service training".
Funny how people who don't get what they want assume that the customer
service representative wasn't trained. Of course, they were trained!
Sometimes, training involves having to say "no" to people.
The letter was copied to the Better Business Bureau. Hilarious since
the OP got what she wanted. What does she expect the BBB to do now?
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by Angelic Princess:) Posted Sun November 4, 2007 @ 12:32 PM
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waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long. You got a car. Would you rather have no
car? Of COURSE you want something to make up for it. ::shakes my
head:: greedy people.
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by Ahsha Posted Sun November 4, 2007 @ 9:25 AM
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Please rewrite this novel. You have made included way too many
details. Just make the point that you feel you received poor service.
A reader gets bogged down with all this.
I think the Allstate agent was correct to refuse more contact when he
discovered an attorney is involved.
You got what you wanted, why keep dragging it out? Be grateful you
were not seriously injured and go on with life.
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by Gino Posted Sun November 4, 2007 @ 12:04 AM
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First, I hope your injuries are minor and that you suffer no permenent
trauma, that's the most important thing of all.
I had a similar accident with an older vehicle but with Allstate
insurance. I was somehow able to get a PT Cruiser at the standard
rate, and found it to have much much much more cargo area than the
Mazda vehicle you own. Unfortunately, this is the state of the
insurance industry today.
Basic transportation is usually all that they offer, and the consumer
has to pay extra for any upgrade. Even in a standard size vehicle,
people DO somehow manage with large families and jobs that require
boxes of files and samples etc. I honestly couldn't finish reading
this letter just because of the sheer amount of informatation. I doubt
anyone who gets it will give it the full attention it deserves, it
will probably get bogged down by being sent through the legal
department first. But I hope you do hear something from them. A lot of
effort went into this letter.
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by donno Posted Sat November 3, 2007 @ 1:48 PM
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All this over an incident in which you got what you wanted. The only
thing you didn't get was the redress you seek, as far as I can tell.
Buried somewhere in this excessively lengthy diatribe is something
about $7. With all the other "major" problems you write about $7
seems trivial.
Your integrity was inpugned, according to you. What about the poor
employees whose aptitude you impugned?
Offer you something to foster goodwill? That's not likely. I think
they already did.
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by calm Posted Fri November 2, 2007 @ 9:53 PM
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Your complaints about the two employees you dealt with while you were
at Enterprise seem to me to break down into three categories.
You did not get what you wanted immediately. However, over the course
of the first conversation, they made concessions to you and ended up
giving you what you were asking for. You did not end up making
concessions to them.
You were not spoken to the way you think you should have been spoken
to. I suspect that both employees don't think they were spoken to the
way they should have been spoken to either.
You believe that they suggested that you were a liar in private phone
calls with you. In this letter, you've suggested that they're liars.
In public, on the internet. And originally you had their names
attached to those allegations.
Now you want them reprimanded, humiliated, and retrained; and you
want "something" given to you to make up for your horrible
experiences.
I honestly don't see why you should get any of those things. Maybe
they might benefit from a quiet conversation about how to defuse
difficult conversations, but I think any sincere letters of apology
and "somethings" should be going in both directions.
Moreover, since you've got an attorney involved, I think you might
want to doublecheck whether he or she thinks it's a good idea for you
to post 5-page rants about this online and mail them to journalists.
If your attorney is fine with it, then either he or she is a paper
tiger or you need to find a different attorney.
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I also have a 07 Mazda CX-7 and the cargo area really ISN'T all that
big.
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No one is going to read such a long-winded diatribe. You need to edit
this down and get to the bottom line, leave out the dramatics, the
details of "oh he didn't greet me with pleasantness in his voice,"
etc.
All I can make of this is, you didn't like your rental car. Life's
tough.
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