Unpredictable Valuations

Of all the major auto insurance companies, Nationwide is often the most difficult to predict when it comes to valuing accident claims. Nationwide is highly erratic and inconsistent in how comes up with a reasonable settlement value in an accident claim. You could submit the exact same accident claim to Nationwide 3 times and get 3 drastically different offers.

Protective of Insureds

Nationwide is particularly cautious about protecting their insured drivers from verdicts that exceed their insurance policy limits. More so than other insurance companies, Nationwide will try to avoid any possibility of exposing their insured to personal liability and facing a bad faith claim for refusing to settle within policy limits.

Lawsuit Reactionary

Nationwide claims adjusters tend to be much more “lawsuit sensitive” than other companies. All insurance companies get more reasonable with their settlement offers after suit is filed, but Nationwide is one of the most reactionary. It is not unheard of for Nationwide adjusters to double or triple their settlement offer immediately after the lawsuit is filed.

Adjuster Autonomy

Nationwide claims adjusters seem to have a very high level of autonomy and decision making authority. Some insurance companies give their claims adjusters almost no indepdent decision making ability and just have them follow a script. Claims adjusters at Nationwide seem to have very extensive authority and the ability to independently value and settle claims.