What is Conciliation?
Pursuant to the system established by the New York Insurance Department in its regulations, a request for arbitration goes through two phases. The first phase is a conciliation phase, in which each party submits all their evidence. After receiving notice from the AAA of a new request for arbitration and a copy of the papers from the applicant, the insurance company has 30 days to present its own evidence and its basis for denial of the claim. Once the documents have been received, there is a conciliation period of up to 90 days, during which a conciliator reviews the evidence and discusses with the parties – by email, fax, letter or separate phone conversations – whether the case might be settled at this early stage. The conciliator is experienced in the handling of disputed insurance claims and can recommend to the parties what might be the likely results of the claim when it reaches arbitration. The conciliation process is not a numbers game of splitting the difference. Conciliation
Conciliation is a process in which the parties to a dispute, with the assistance of a neutral third party (the conciliator), identify the disputed issues, develop options, consider alternatives and endeavour to reach an agreement. The conciliator may have an advisory role on the content of the dispute or the outcome of its resolution, but not a determinative role.
