Are You A Victim of Abusive Claims Handling by CURE Auto Insurance?

One of the many reasons why I began speaking out about CURE Auto Insurance is because I’ve watched as this New Jersey-based insurer has been behaving like something out of an episode of The Sopranos—as if Tony Soprano himself were running an insurance company!

Exhibit A: CURE auto insurance has been declaring its customers’ vehicles to be a “total loss” after a crash. CURE then told its own customers to sign over the title of the vehicle and/or otherwise allow CURE to take possession of the vehicle. After taking title and possession of the vehicle, CURE proceeded to cancel the insurance policy on its customers. After CURE Auto Insurance cancelled the policy, they often did not pay out on the vehicle loss claim (for example, in the Detroit News article about CURE doing this, CURE did not pay without a fight or court litigation) – AND – they also kept the vehicle!  

If this sounds to you like something right out of an episode of The Sopranos, you’re not alone. 

I’ve been a practicing auto accident attorney in Michigan for 30 years. My law firm is the largest in Michigan specializing in helping people in auto accidents – and as I told Tracy Samilton of Michigan Public – none of our attorneys or myself have EVER seen an insurance company do this.  

Not one. Until, that is, CURE entered the Michigan market.   

Fortunately, the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) has also taken notice.  

It appears that after the exposé on abusive claims handling by CURE Auto Insurance by The Detroit News, along with profiles of victims,  DIFS moved to take decisive action.  

In Bulletin 2025-19-INS, issued on September 12, 2025, DIFS Director Anita G. Fox said that “claims administration practices” like what CURE has been doing in Michigan are “improper” and “abusive” and could result in sanctions and regulatory action against any insurance company who has “committed” these practices.

Specifically, the DIFS Bulletin identified the following “claims administration practices” as “abusive” and “improper”:

• “Declaring a vehicle a total loss and accepting transfer of the vehicle’s title without first completing an investigation of the claim and agreeing to pay the claim”
•  “Inducing a claimant to transfer a vehicle’s title and subsequently canceling or purporting to ‘rescind’ the policy based on alleged misrepresentations that could have been uncovered earlier through reasonable diligence”
• “Investigating underwriting issues after a claim is filed without having reasonably investigated those issues before issuing the policy”

Also, the DIFS bulletin said it was “abusive” and “improper” when an insurer “[r]etain[s] the proceeds from the sale of a vehicle transferred by the claimant after the insurer has cancelled or purported to ‘rescind’ the underlying automobile insurance policy based on alleged misrepresentations.”

The Bulletin was issued less than a month after The Detroit News ran an explosive exposé story about CURE insureds.  

In The Detroit News story:

• CURE told its customers that their vehicles had been “deemed a total loss” after their cars had been totaled in car accidents.
• CURE had these customers give CURE (or a third-party working with CURE) title and possession of their vehicles
• After taking possession and title – using what sounded like various pretexts – CURE cancelled their policies (which CURE also refers to as voiding or rescinding the policy)
• CURE refused to pay on the total loss collision claims
• CURE did not return their vehicles

The Detroit News reported that the vehicle for one of the insureds is listed for sale by CURE on an internet auction site, while the vehicle itself is in limbo in an impound parking lot.

For the other insured, CURE just sold its insured’s vehicle at auction. Only after pocketing the proceeds from the auction, being sued by the insured, and – ONLY AFTER being called out by The Detroit News – did CURE finally pay its insured’s $75,000 claim on a wrecked vehicle, according to The Detroit News.

Lawmakers have also taken notice of what CURE has been doing. The Michigan Senate’s Committee on Finance, Insurance and Consumer Protection just held a hearing on September 17, 2025, about auto insurers’ abusive and improper claims practices, where testimony was taken about CURE’s practices as described in the several articles by The Detroit News.

Did CURE do this to you? You can fight back. File a complaint with DIFS if you think you’ve been the victim of abusive and improper insurance practices by CURE Insurance

DIFS “strongly urges” anyone who has been the victim of, been affected by, or has knowledge of abusive and improper claims practices by CURE Auto Insurance – or any other auto insurer – to file a complaint with DIFS.

Click here for the link to complete an online complaint form for DIFS.

The DIFS Bulletin states: “DIFS strongly urges any consumer who has knowledge of the abusive conduct described above, or of any other abusive practices in claims administration, to file a complaint on the DIFS website” or “by calling DIFS . . . at 877-999-6442.”

DIFS says it wants to help you: “If you are concerned your auto insurance company is unfairly delaying or denying your claim, charging you the wrong premium, or otherwise is not performing as required under the law, DIFS is here to help.”

Improper claims administration practices in automobile insurance

In Bulletin 2025-19-INS, DIFS Director Fox said that “improper claims administration practices” – especially for “automobile collision” coverage – “may include, but are not limited to, the following conduct:”

• Making misrepresentations to claimants during claims administration
• Failing to investigate claims promptly
• Failing to make timely payment on claims that are not reasonably in dispute
• Failing to pay the statutorily required interest for untimely paid claims
• Declaring a vehicle a total loss and accepting transfer of the vehicle’s title without first completing an investigation of the claim and agreeing to pay the claim
• Inducing a claimant to transfer a vehicle’s title and subsequently canceling or purporting to “rescind” the policy based on alleged misrepresentations that could have been uncovered earlier through reasonable diligence
• Retaining the proceeds from the sale of a vehicle transferred by the claimant after the insurer has cancelled or purported to “rescind” the underlying automobile insurance policy based on alleged misrepresentations
• Investigating underwriting issues after a claim is filed without having reasonably investigated those issues before issuing the policy
• Denying claims or offering to pay substantially less than what is owed on claims when liability is reasonably clear
• Unreasonably prolonging the claims administration process or making unreasonable proof-of-loss demands to improve the insurer’s bargaining position or to identify a pretext to invalidate a claim

What happens to insurers like CURE Auto Insurance who engage in improper claims administration practices?

In Bulletin 2025-19-INS, DIFS Director Fox said that DIFS “will take regulatory action if it identifies a Code violation or a pattern of practices that violate the Code” by an insurer.

Significantly, the DIFS Bulletin states that: “An insurer may not undertake a course of conduct that fails . . . ‘to attempt in good faith to effectuate prompt, fair, and equitable settlements of claims in which liability has become reasonably clear.’” (MCL 500.2026(1)(f))

The DIFS bulletin explained that auto insurers who engage in the “abusive practices” face possible sanctions that “include, but are not limited to, fines and/or suspension or revocation of an insurer’s certificate of authority.”

What should you do if you think CURE Auto Insurance engaged in the improper and abusive practices identified by DIFS in handling your claim?

According to the DIFS Bulletin, “DIFS strongly urges any consumer who has knowledge of the abusive conduct described above, or of any other abusive practices in claims administration, to file a complaint on the DIFS website at Michigan.gov/DIFScomplaints or by calling DIFS Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 877-999-6442.”

The Bulletin also noted that questions regarding the Bulletin should be directed to:

Department of Insurance and Financial Services

Office of General Counsel

530 W. Allegan Street – 7th Floor

P.O. Box 30220

Lansing, Michigan 48909-7720

Toll Free: (877) 999-6442 

How many people has CURE Auto Insurance harmed with these abusive claims?

After front page stories by the Detroit News, as well as others by Michigan Public and the Detroit Free Press, the media and lawmakers are looking into what CURE has been doing since it entered the Michigan insurance market.

In 2024, CURE Auto Insurance is 2nd highest in claim complaints out of the top 82 largest auto insurers in Michigan

After I wrote a blog about CURE Auto Insurance, CURE first threatened me to take down the blog and then later sued me. The lawsuit itself is a transparent attempt to intimidate and silence me from disclosing material information to the public. Much of the information I wrote about was based on what my own law firm’s auto accident attorneys were witnessing first-hand, in addition to publicly available information from DIFS about the extraordinarily high number of complaints made against CURE. 

The CURE defamation lawsuit against me is literally the definition of a SLAPP lawsuit, which is known as a “strategic lawsuit against public participation” whose purpose is “to censor, intimidate, and silence critics by burdening them with the cost of a legal defense until they abandon their criticism or opposition.” Although no one enjoys being sued, I will be sure to conduct legal discovery in the case on CURE’s tactics. 

If all of this were fiction and innocent people were not being harmed, this would make for an entertaining episode of The Sopranos. Imagine Tony Soprano concocting a scheme to have an insurance company do precisely what The Detroit News detailed about what CURE has done in its exposé. 

Unfortunately, the Detroit News exposé on CURE Insurance is not fiction.  

The victims are real. 

Was Your Michigan Car Accident Medical Claim Denied by CURE Auto Insurance?

If CURE Auto Insurance has not been treating you fairly and is improperly denying your medical claim in Michigan, you can file a complaint and share your experience in any of the following ways:

• To file a customer complaint against CURE with the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS), click here.
• To file a complaint against CURE with the Better Business Bureau, click here.
• To leave a review on the Better Business Bureau’s customer reviews page for CURE, click here.
• Share your experience on Reddit in any of the following subreddits: Cure insurance claims/customer service experience, Any experience with Cure Auto Insurance?, Auto Insurance – Metro Detroit, and Any experiences with Cure Auto?, Wrong VIN On Insurance, Customer Service, Rates Doubled, Nightmare, Incorrect VIN on Insurance, and Cancelled Policy.  

Injured in a car accident in Michigan? Call the attorneys at Michigan Auto Law for a free consultation!

If you were injured in a car accident in Michigan and wondering how your CURE auto insurance coverage impacts your claim, call now (800) 968-1001 for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer. There is no cost or obligation. You can also visit our contact page or use the chat feature on our website.

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More importantly, this client-focused approach leads to better and faster settlements for our clients. Michigan Auto Law has recovered more million-dollar settlements and trial verdicts for motor vehicle accidents than any other lawyer or law firm in Michigan. We’ve also recovered the highest ever reported truck accident and car accident settlement in the state.

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