Guest claims representative made me feel stupid

[DoodlesMom]

So I am admittedly ignorant when it comes to matters with guest relations and guest claims but I didn't expect to be made to feel stupid. This would be a really long post if I tried to go into deep detail so I will try to keep it short and sweet. Something happened to me last week at Disney that caused me to get hurt (not my fault). I didn't need to go to the hospital or a doctor but it was because of sheer luck and an aversion to doctors. I am bruised and sore but nothing's broken. I was told by several witnesses that I should go to guest relations. After a couple of hours I decided that I should because I wanted to suggest some things to prevent that from happening to someone else. I relayed the incident to guest relations and figured that would be it. She then handed me a card for guest claims and told me that I needed to call them. She didn't make it sound as though I needed to call them to try to pursue an actual claim but more like that was just the process and that I should do it. In fact she told me multiple times to call them. I finally spoke with someone today and she totally made me feel like an idiot. I'm not trying to sue Disney! I did not go to the doctor and I don't expect to have any long-lasting effects from what happened. That said, what happened to me was scary and unnecessary and I don't want it to happen to anyone else with a possible worse outcome. The guest claims person made it sound as though if I wasn't suing Disney or expecting money that I was being dismissed. How does someone get taken seriously without looking like you're after money?? She said an adjustor would be calling within 24 hours but I'm not really sure why. I don't want to be made to feel foolish again either. Any suggestions?

 

[DoodlesMom]

Does anyone have experience with this at all?

 

[samsteele]

No experience with WDW claims but as this was clearly something that disrupted your vacation and you've had a bruising experience with what sounds like WDW's claims department when you were led to believe you were dealing with guest services, have you considered bringing your travel agent into the loop? A good TA may be able to kick your concerns up the chain at WDW & if a large TA agency or an agency with a good relationship with WDW, may be able to facilitate a resolution.

 

[mousehockey37]

If your incident was serious enough, it's kinda like an OSHA incident at work. It has to be documented and investigated in the event that should you come back 6 months from now, contacting them that you're having long lasting side effects from an accident/incident, they have their butts covered. If it was serious enough that you should've probably sought medical attention but didn't, well, that's up to you, however, Disney is still a business and consumer safety should always be a top concern.

So, I'm willing to be that the person calling you is going to ask you a good amount of questions and they'll want every little detail that you can remember. If this was an injury that Disney was possibly liable for, they're doing their due diligence to cover themselves.

Don't take any offense to it, they're not trying to make you seem like someone who's just after money (They have enough of those people sadly that do make them respond the way they do), but they are going to listen, and take notes... lots of notes.

ETA: OP, if they have someone calling you for something like this, this was no little thing. What the heck happened?

 

[rkstocke5609]

Take whatever they offer as compensation for them making you feel stupid..

 

[rlk]

This wasn't at Disney, but years ago, my son sustained a concussion from riding a roller coaster at Hershey Park. We left the park and I spent the night in the hospital with him. When we let the hotel we were checking out early, they told us we needed to report the incident. They brought us to the health center so my son and I could be questioned about his injury and it was all documented. About a week later, I received a call from a Hershey Park representative going through protocol. She asked how my son was and left a number to call with any questions. I wasn't looking for any compensation, so I didn't have contact with any Hershey Park reps after that first phone call.

 

[verdure]

A few years ago at Disneyland (CA) I slipped in a rain puddle because I was messing around. How I managed that is still a mystery. It almost never rains there! The puddle was natural and I was really the only one at fault. My mom still made me go to first aid. My ankle was a little swollen and since I was a teenager the cast member/nurse gave me a little good-natured "scolding" since my mom told her about my history of improper theme park footwear. They filled out an incident report I think, then gave me a wheelchair until the swelling went down and sent me on my merry way. Everyone was extremely nice and never made us feel like we were criminals or money seekers.

Not gonna lie OP, I'm curious about what happened to you. It sounds like it's maybe major and I hope you're ok without a doctor's visit.

 

[gt4094b]

It sounds like the card you were handed was the first notice of loss (FNOL) intake line. The guest services personnel are likely not trained/taught how to handle insurance claims. During the call, what happened was that you filed a general liability claim against Disney's insurance company. The FNOL will then be sent to the adjuster who will then determine Disney's liability.

 

[DLgal]

Disney isn't going to make changes so something that happened to you "doesn't happen to anyone else" unless there is a lawsuit and they are forced to do so. Simply telling Guest Relations about an accident isn't going to be met with an "okay, thanks for letting us know, we will look into it so that doesn't happen to anyone else." First of all, that would be an admission of liability on their part, which they are instructed to NEVER do. Second, that's simply not how injuries on private property work. Everything that they are made aware of has to be filed and documented appropriately, by state law. You need to go along with whatever follow up your call produces. Be honest and tell them what happened. Maybe it WAS Disney's fault. You might be offered some compensation, and if so, take it and let it go after that.

My son slipped in a zero entry pool at Great Wolf Lodge. He skinned his knee and was bleeding so we went to first aid just to get a band aid. I had to fill out 2 separate forms, first explaining how the injury happened and second accepting the first aid that was provided to us and agreeing to not seek any further damages for liability. I mean, that seemed like overkill, but that's the process.

My husband, at the same GWL, broke his hand while riding a waterslide. He didn't seek medical attention until the next day, but we never contacted GWL about it because he hurt himself by not following all the rider rules (he wasn't holding onto the handles at all times, and his hand smacked down on the hard plastic handle just right so it broke a bone in his hand). Since we never contacted GWL, nothing came of it. Our insurance paid for his medical care without question, even after he told them it happened at a waterpark.

FWIW, since you say it was "not my fault", then it must have been Disney's fault, so maybe they DO owe you some compensation.

 

[gt4094b]

"You might be offered some compensation, and if so, take it and let it go after that."

This may be good advice, but it may not be. The OP needs to determine how much he/she feels that they have been damaged. The adjuster's job is to get you to go away for as little money as possible, not necessarily to present you with a "fair" offer. The adjuster works for the insurance company to reduce their cash outlay.

 

[bryanb]

Nobody should ever make you feel stupid, and that's really unfortunate. To understand how to approach them, you have to first know that Guest Claims is not your typical Disney department. They do deal with legitimate issues (and a lot of shady guests too) and it takes a skilled professional to do that job well.

If you want to report a concern, I'd send an email. By the way, I don't agree that Disney only changes because of lawsuits. Disney values safety as the first part of its work culture, and every cast member is told to look out for safety first. The fact that it aligns with good business and not getting sued doesn't change the fact that safety actually is a priority. I would also mention the experience you had with the guest claims cast member. It's impossible for us to know what was going on there, but at a minimum you should feel like you're being treated with the respect that you deserve -- regardless of whether you're asking for compensation or not.

(Edit: left off a few words)

 

[Shanti]

Disney isn't going to make changes so something that happened to you "doesn't happen to anyone else" unless there is a lawsuit and they are forced to do so.

Safety is a big part of Disney's brand and they take it seriously. It's part of their bread & butter. A customer report of a significant safety issue that they were previously unaware of will very likely be looked into by them, and if it's a valid issue, they will likely make the necessary changes to fix the problem, whether they ever directly admit that to the customer or not.

 

[DLgal]

"You might be offered some compensation, and if so, take it and let it go after that."

This may be good advice, but it may not be. The OP needs to determine how much he/she feels that they have been damaged. The adjuster's job is to get you to go away for as little money as possible, not necessarily to present you with a "fair" offer. The adjuster works for the insurance company to reduce their cash outlay.

The OP already indicated she was not looking for any financial compensation. My advice was based on that statement.

 

[regul8ter18]

I Have Celiac Disease and got glutened my first meal even after talking to the head chef. I was sick most of the trip and even missed all my Marathon weekend Races. I called and filed a claim. The first person I talked to to file the claim was kinda short with me and kept questioning what happened. Think she was trying to see if my story would change after a few minutes. A few days later I got a call from a claims investigator and again had to go over what happened again but over all he was much better than the first person who filed my claim.

 

[Disneyfanatic1991]

I know this is an older post but thought I may chime in anyway. I am a general liability claims adjuster and work in a corporate setting for a risk management team much like that of Disney’s. I am not affiliated with Disney but it is a very standard process.

I want to say that in no means when I contact someone that was injured through my company do I ever mean to make them feel interrogated, (even though I do ask tons of questions).

Regardless if medical attention is sought from an incident or not it is my duty to get to the bottom of what caused the incidents occurrence and was my insured “negligent” to have caused it or were they able to “prevent it from happening within reason”. In my line of work you do have to take general statements if they are seeking a claim or not.

You may feel like you have not made head way but I can assure you we look into every aspect of the matter. If through the investigation, at least for my company, we see there is an issue to have caused the occurrence, or even if not negligent something can be changed to prevent injury, we forward the concern to our safety dept. in order to have it looked into.

Please be understanding when filing a claim or concern because not everyone is honest and we do have to look into every detail so that we can make sure to prevent these things from happening and to create a safe environment for consumers.

I hope my response does not cause any sort of argument (as typical with forums), that is not my intent; just thought with my experience I could shine some light into the mater and help anyone going through this have a better understanding!!

Comments Sidenote: I disagree 100% with always being compensated for an injury claim. It is not feasible to compensate every claim that’s entered without negligence on behalf of the company. That is a major point that many claimants do not understand.

 

[seashoreCM]

You should report suspected injuries as quickly as possible.

By the way many companies have a policy that employees need to report injuries no matter how slight.

Yes, you should expect to be grilled with questions. Reporting it promptly helps getting information recorded while it is still fresh in your mind. Note that it is common for the same questions to be asked again at different dates in the futures. Inconsistent answers to the same question often suggest a fake claim.

 

[SirStorm]

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[CalSea12]

This kinda bugs me and makes me think of 5 years back when I brought my 3 year old to WDW for her birthday. We were eating breakfast at Akershus when the server (very young male) brought my daughter a cupcake that had a lit candle and placed a card behind it, he placed it right in front of her. Before I had the chance to grab it away she reached for the card and gave herself a long streak of a burn.

The manager came and ushered us to a first aid and left. They treated her burn and sent us on our way. Five years later and my daughter still has a burn scar on her arm... I feel 100 percent Disney dropped the ball and now my daughter has to pay for it forever. I really hate the Disney does nothing wrong mentality.