Common gap patterns
- Unreturned voicemail after FNOL
- Email without response for 7+ days
- Requests for information without acknowledgment
- "Adjuster is on vacation" for extended periods
- Silence after a significant communication from policyholder
Why it works as a tactic
- Policyholder assumes the claim is being handled
- Time passes; urgency fades
- Deadlines may lapse without response
- Documentation shifts to "what happened in between"
Statutory basis for challenge
627.70131 requires response within statutory timeframes. Silence breaches these obligations.
How to counter
- Document every attempted contact
- Follow up in writing (email creates paper trail)
- Cite specific deadlines in follow-up
- File CRN after pattern established
- File DFS complaint in parallel
Written-communication priority
Prefer email or certified letter over phone for critical communications. Written communications:
- Create a paper trail
- Can be submitted in CRN/bad-faith evidence
- Force response or silence on record