is this advice also coming from a "don't bother us" perspective? I got that feeling from a USAA rep for a not at fault loss claim that I wanted them to follow up on, but they closed the claim. Luckily the other carrier paid for everything, other guy got the ticket so I didn't push it
Interestingly USAA is great for paying out their own claims, maybe I just got a bad rep.
Not at all. I don't actually handle claims directly any more, but I manage teams that do. I started my insurance career as an insurance adjuster, so I know what they go through. To be completely honest, claim adjusting is often
extremely busy. During "busy times", many adjusters have much more work than they can complete in a day, so they can get overwhelmed and stressed. I'd be lying if I said that didn't sometimes come across on some of the claims they handle and in their interactions. It's the nature of the industry though. Claims are rarely steady, so you're likely either going to be understaffed or overstaffed, depending on the season. It takes so long to ramp someone up due to the complexity of the job, you can't just hire seasonally.
With that said, you might have just gotten a bad rep. Some are great at keeping any stress or unrelated issues separate from their job and the people they talk to on a daily basis - some aren't.
As someone who hires claims adjusters, I look for someone who can provide amazing customer service, handle a bit of stress, and leave bad days at home. I'm huge on providing a good customer experience to both policyholders & 3rd party claimants. I don't think anyone should be treated like crap. I'm thankful that's the culture of my company as well, so I don't have to work hard to press that point. Unfortunately not every insurance company has that culture though.