What should I expect from Allstate after an accident?

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

Beverly Law is not affiliated with Allstate.

The companies behind the Allstate name

The Allstate Corporation says in its Form 10-K filed in February 2025 that it was incorporated in Delaware in 1992 as the holding company for Allstate Insurance Company, with principal offices in Northbrook, Illinois, and it names its brands as Allstate, National General and Answer Financial (Allstate Form 10-K). Allstate announced on January 4, 2021 that it had completed its $4 billion acquisition of National General (Allstate Newsroom).

So the name on your claim letter may be a company you have never heard of. Check the policy or claim letter for the exact insurer, because complaints and lawsuits name that company.

Regulators count these companies together as the Allstate group:

Reporting the claim

Allstate’s claims page says you can “File and track your claim via My Account or the Allstate® mobile app” (Allstate claims). Its contact page lists 1 (800) 726-6033 for existing customers who want to speak with the call center (Allstate contact). If you are not an Allstate customer, its claims page says to call 800-255-7828 to file your claim (Allstate file or track a claim). Keep the claim number, the adjuster’s name and the name of the specific Allstate company on every letter.

What Washington’s regulator found in 2024

On October 22, 2024, the Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner announced a $40,000 fine against Allstate Fire and Casualty Insurance Company. The office reviewed 95 randomly selected Allstate auto claims from April to September 2022. In four of them, it found that the company did not reply properly to a lienholder and paid that claim 123 days after the first demand, took 195 days after the first report to confirm or deny coverage on a car, did not pay a subrogation claim until 160 days after the demand, and did not affirm or deny coverage for personal property stolen with a car (OIC announcement). Those are findings about specific files, and they show the kind of timing the rules below measure.

The deadlines, by who is claiming

Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou.

Court rulings involving Allstate

Texas, 2021. In Allstate Insurance Co. v. Irwin, the Texas Supreme Court held that an injured policyholder may use a declaratory judgment suit to establish what must be shown before an underinsured motorist carrier owes benefits, and that attorney’s fees may be available under that statute. The court also said the carrier’s failure to pay is not an actionable breach of contract until a judgment binds the carrier (Irwin).

Washington, 2019. In Keodalah v. Allstate, an Allstate policyholder sued both the company and the adjuster over an underinsured motorist claim. The Washington Supreme Court held that “employee adjusters are not subject to personal liability for insurance bad faith or per se claims under the CPA” (Keodalah).

California, 1989. After the California Supreme Court held in 1988 that Insurance Code 790.03 creates no private lawsuit for third-party claimants (Moradi-Shalal), a Court of Appeal applied the same rule to first-party claims in a case against Allstate (Zephyr Park).

If the other driver’s limits are too low, see making a UIM claim.

Statements, records, exams and your car

Decline or postpone a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer; we found no law that requires one. Before signing a medical release, check that it shows an expiration date or event and your right to revoke it in writing, as federal privacy rules require (45 CFR 164.508).

A defense medical exam comes with a lawsuit. In California your attorney may attend the physical exam and make an audio recording (CCP 2032.510). In Texas the defense needs a court order on good cause (Rule 204.1), and in Washington a court order sets the exam’s time, place and scope (CR 35). Our deposition page covers the other big step in discovery.

If your car is totaled in California, the cash offer must be itemized and explained in writing and include taxes and one-time transfer fees (10 CCR 2695.8). Whether you pay a deductible depends on whose coverage pays, as explained in do I pay my deductible if I wasn’t at fault.

Regulators

• California Department of Insurance: 1-800-927-4357 (CDI)
• Texas Department of Insurance: 800-252-3439 (TDI)
• Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner: 800-562-6900 (OIC)

What this means for your case

Identify the exact Allstate company first. Then track every deadline from the date you reported. If the coverage may be too small for your injuries, learn the other driver’s limits before you talk numbers; our page on policy limits explains how. A complaint to the regulator creates a record, but it does not replace a claim or a lawsuit filed on time.

Common questions

Related pages

Injury law FAQs

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.