Proscription

What Does Proscription Mean?

Proscription refers to the dismissal of a legal action because it is filed beyond the allowable time period. In the context of insurance, it means that a claim or any other demand made by a policyholder to an insurance company is submitted after the deadline by which it should have been made.

Insuranceopedia Explains Proscription

In legal courts, a person is given reasonable time to prepare and pursue a legal action, taking into account the time needed to gather relevant documents and evidence for presentation. The proscription period sets a limit on these activities and the legal action itself, ensuring that a case can be tried and resolved within a reasonable timeframe.

Similarly, with insurance claims and demands from the insured, an insurance company provides a specific time frame within which the insured can gather receipts and other important documents to support their claim or receive a response from the company. Any action taken after this period may waive the company’s obligation to respond.

This is why acting quickly after an incident matters. For auto insurance, policyholders who know what to do after a car accident are less likely to miss a filing window. Homeowners face similar deadlines when collecting payment after a hurricane, since storm damage claims often have their own proscription periods set by state law.