In the past I considered MetLife to be a “raising the dead” company when it came to Customer Service, but in recent times, it looks like The Hartford is the top grave exhumation company when you want to speak to someone to ask questions or resolve issues. Having to “dig someone up” to speak to isn’t a good public relations move.
It’s not just long queue waiting phone lines, or the unreturned calls, but the inability to solve problems once you have your corpse to speak to. This past week I attempted to contact two claims handlers at The Hartford on behalf of clients. All reps I spoke to had heavy foreign accents, and there’s nothing wrong with that if you can understand them and communicate.
Usually, this is an indication the insurance company is using “offshore” help to take calls. Even these reps were difficult to contact and although some appeared to be helpful, not one person, from the lowest rung claims handler to the supervisor’s supervisor was available to speak with me.
In the end I politely asked the question, “Is ANYONE working at The Hartford today?” A very sheepish, heavily foreign accented woman responded, “Yes, they are.” “Can I speak with one of them please?”, I asked taking one last shot. I did eventually wind up with someone who assured me she would leave a message with a supervisor and they would get back to me. I’m still waiting.
Customer service, or the lack thereof, is a big deal, and it’s costly as well.The inability of any insurance company to quickly answer questions and resolve conflict issues is essential to the claims process. Having a complimentary public presence also assures “new business”, but costs of litigation, and DOI complaints are generally held in check with a good Customer Service Plan and responsive team.
In the past, The Hartford had one of the most restrictive claims review processes with hidden assignments to investigators who conducted indiscriminate surveillance. There were always three people assigned to each claim, including a private eye, who at will conducted surveillance on every red flag. The Hartford was also not forgiving of unpaid SSDI repayments and generally contacted collection agencies immediately to ruin credit ratings.
No, The Hartford was never a nice guy, but now there’s no one available to complain to, and claimants are at the mercy of inefficient, chaotic claims review, and unavailable customer service reps. At The Hartford, it’s not just a matter or “raising the dead”, insureds have to spend a lot of time “digging them up”, apparently.
It’s pretty obvious, COVID took its toll companywide, not just for The Hartford, but for many insurance companies. Now, insureds are left holding on to a dead phone in the graveyard with no one to pick up to provide assistance.
The Hartford was, and still is known for not meeting ERISA deadlines. Although these issues are best resolved in the courts, claimants are still at a disadvantage when attempting to manage their own claims. In the past, it was rather odd to see The Hartford remiss with such issues because a large percentage of UNUMProvident management transitioned to The Hartford in 2004-2008, replicating Unum’s old unfair claims practices. It’s looks like the crossover may be over although today Unum Group and The Hartford are experiencing the same problems. The Hartford, however, just seems to be punting in the dark.
Therefore, don’t be surprised if you can’t reach anyone at The Hartford, they seem to be all gone. It’s difficult and frustrating to try and resolve problems when all of the Customer Service Reps are literally ghosts.
