Low insurance valuation in Spain: what to do if the payout is below the real damage

When the insurer’s valuation may be too low

The first insurer valuation is not always something you must accept. In Spain you can ask for a detailed breakdown, collect independent repair estimates and, if the dispute is not resolved, use the expert procedure: your expert, the insurer’s expert and, if needed, an independent expert (tercer perito).

Check my valuation — free

The key is not to sign a final settlement until you understand exactly what it closes, and not to handle the dispute only by phone. Insurance disputes depend on documents, deadlines and a calm sequence of steps.

NAVI checks your situation for free: the insurer’s offer, policy, repair estimates and underinsurance risk. It shows whether the valuation looks low and what the safer next step is.

A valuation may be too low if the insurer offers less than the real repair cost, omits part of the damage, treats replacement as a simple repair, applies depreciation without explanation, or excludes materials, labour, VAT or additional costs.

Sometimes the problem is not only the amount. The insurer may rely on a deductible, coverage limit, policy exclusion or infraseguro, meaning underinsurance. If the insured sum is below the real value of the property, the insurer may apply regla proporcional, the proportional payout rule, and cover only part of the damage unless the policy or a separate agreement excludes that rule.

So the first question is not only “is it too low?” but why the insurer calculated it this way: estimate, limit, depreciation, deductible, exclusion or underinsurance.

The insurer’s first valuation is not the last word

The insurer’s expert, the perito, values the damage for the insurance company. That does not make the calculation automatically correct or final.

If you disagree with the amount, ask the insurer for a written breakdown: what is included, what is excluded, which prices were used, which limits apply, and whether there is a deductible, depreciation, underinsurance or another restriction.

Then get one or two independent repair estimates from professionals who can actually do the work. The more detailed the estimate, the better: materials, labour, VAT, timing, photos, description of the damage and link with the incident.

NAVI helps compare the insurer calculation with your estimates and identify where the reduction is: repair price, policy, limit, depreciation or underinsurance.

Break down the insurer calculation

Who this affects

This can happen with home insurance, car insurance, commercial premises, belongings, repairs, water damage, fire, theft, accidents or other material damage.

This guide is especially useful if the insurer accepted the claim but offers less than the repair cost; sent a peritaje report with an unclear amount; asks you to sign a final settlement (finiquito) quickly; relies on infraseguro or regla proporcional; or your repairer, garage or contractor gave an estimate much higher than the insurer offer.

Important: the tercer perito procedure normally concerns the amount of material damage under an insurance contract. If the dispute is about bodily injury, a traffic accident with an at-fault driver, civil liability or compensation from another party’s insurer, the procedure may be different. Check first which route fits your case.

What to request from the insurer

Ask the insurer to send more than the final number. You need the expert report, list of damages, explanation of limits, deductible, depreciation, exclusions and other reasons why the amount is lower.

If the insurer says part of the damage is not covered, ask for the exact policy clause. If it applies underinsurance, ask for the calculation: insured sum in the policy, real value used by the insurer and payout percentage.

Write calmly and in writing. For example: “I do not agree with the proposed amount because the independent repair estimate is X €, while the insurer offer is Y €. Please provide the full valuation calculation, applied limits, deductible, depreciation and the basis for excluding each item.”

A phone call can help you understand the insurer’s position, but it rarely protects your rights. For a dispute you need letters, reports, estimates and proof of sending.

Which documents to collect

Collect the policy, general and special conditions, insurer offer, expert report, photos of the damage, videos, messages, claim number, invoices, receipts and independent repair estimates.

For home damage, keep reports from the building manager, plumber, electrician, fire brigade, police, neighbours or building administration if relevant. For a vehicle, keep the garage report, photos, inspection sheet, repair estimate, accident details, the joint accident report (parte amistoso), police documents or rental-company messages if the car was rented.

The better the documents are organised, the less the insurer can answer with generic phrases. In a low-valuation dispute, the stronger position is not the loudest complaint; it is the clearest comparison between the insurer calculation and the real restoration cost.

How the expert procedure works

If the parties do not agree on the amount, article 38 of the Spanish Insurance Contract Act provides an expert procedure. Each side appoints its expert. If one side does not appoint an expert after the other side requests it, it has eight days; if it still does not do so, it may become bound by the other expert’s report.

If the two experts agree, they issue a joint act. If they disagree, a third expert, the independent expert (tercer perito), is appointed. The report must be issued within the period agreed by the parties, and if there is no agreed period, within 30 days from accepting the appointment.

The unanimous or majority expert decision becomes binding unless challenged in court. The insurer has 30 days to challenge it; the insured has 180 days from notification. If it is not challenged, the insurer must pay the amount set by the experts within five days.

This is a serious procedure. Do not start it out of anger. First check the size of the difference, the strength of your documents, the cost of your expert and the risk that the third expert confirms the other side’s position.

Who pays for the experts

As a general rule, each side pays for its own expert. The cost of the third expert and other expert-valuation costs are usually split between the insured and the insurer. But if one party made the procedure necessary because its valuation was clearly disproportionate, the cost can fall on that party. This is covered by article 39 of the Insurance Contract Act.

That is why the economics matter. If the dispute is 300 €, a third expert may not be worth it. If the difference is thousands of euros and the documents are strong, the procedure may make sense.

If the insurer relies on underinsurance

Underinsurance is one of the most unpleasant reasons for a low payout. A person pays insurance for years, then after damage hears: “Your property was insured below its real value, so we only pay part.”

Simple example: the real value is 100,000 €, but the insured sum in the policy is 60,000 €. If the damage is 10,000 €, the insurer may try to pay not the full 10,000 €, but 60%, meaning 6,000 €. That is the proportional payout rule.

But the calculation must be checked. Is the real value correct? Is there really underinsurance? Does the policy exclude the proportional rule? Is the insurer applying it automatically without a proper explanation?

If the insurer wrote “infraseguro” or “regla proporcional”, NAVI helps explain the calculation in plain language and prepare questions for the insurer.

Check underinsurance

What if the insurer delays payment

If the insurer does not pay, pays too little or delays the decision, separate two issues: the dispute about the amount and the delay in payment.

Under article 18 of the Insurance Contract Act, the insurer must pay compensation after the necessary checks and expert assessments, and in any case must pay the minimum amount it may owe based on known circumstances within 40 days from receiving the claim notice. Under article 20, delay can arise if the insurer does not fulfil its duty within three months from the insured event or does not pay the minimum amount within 40 days after receiving the notice.

This does not mean every dispute automatically creates interest. But if the insurer delays without a clear reason, keep this argument in the written complaint.

When DGSFP helps, and when it does not

DGSFP is Spain’s insurance regulator. You can file insurance complaints and claims there. The procedure is written and can be submitted on paper or electronically.

But DGSFP does not replace an expert or a court. Before going to DGSFP, you usually need to complain first to the insurer’s customer service or policyholder ombudsman and prove that you did so. If the claimant is a consumer, you can continue after refusal, partial refusal or one month without answer; in other cases the waiting period is two months.

DGSFP also states that the final report of the complaints service is not binding on the parties and is not an administrative act that can be appealed. It may also reject disputes where the issue is technical valuation of damage or the economic amount of damage.

So a DGSFP complaint is useful if the insurer does not answer, breaches procedure, does not explain the calculation, acts opaquely or ignores your complaint. If the dispute is specifically about repair cost, the key evidence will usually be estimates, expert assessment, the peritos procedure and, if needed, court.

Safe order of actions

First, record the damage: photos, video, report, technician report, police or building manager if needed.

Then ask the insurer for the full valuation calculation and every basis for reducing the amount. Do not treat an oral explanation as final.

After that, get independent repair estimates. Ideally they should be detailed and comparable: same scope of work, materials, VAT, timing and damage description.

Next, send written disagreement to the insurer and attach evidence. Ask them to review the valuation and explain each disputed item.

If the insurer does not change position, check whether a party expert and independent expert procedure are suitable. Do not act blindly at this stage: appointing an expert costs money, and deadlines and wording matter.

If the dispute remains unresolved, possible routes include a complaint to the insurer’s customer service, a DGSFP complaint for procedural problems, or court if the amount justifies the cost and risk.

What not to do

Do not sign a finiquito if you are not sure the amount is fair. It may close the dispute permanently.

Do not accept “it is just a formality” if the document is in Spanish and you do not understand the consequences. Ask for time, translation and a written explanation.

Do not throw away receipts, old photos, purchase invoices, warranty documents or messages. They may prove the value of the property and the existence of damaged items before the claim.

Do not limit yourself to “it is too little”. The insurer will almost always ask for evidence. You need estimates, photos, reports and a clear calculation of the difference.

Do not start the third-expert procedure only on principle. Sometimes it is the right path. Sometimes a strong written complaint is cheaper and faster first.

How RightNOW helps

RightNOW helps foreigners in Spain deal with insurance calmly and step by step.

NAVI can check the insurer’s offer, explain the peritaje report in plain language, find weak points in the calculation, show which documents to collect and help prepare the first written request or complaint.

If the insurer relies on infraseguro, NAVI helps understand the proportion and what questions to ask. If you are asked to sign a finiquito, NAVI helps see whether it closes the whole dispute or only a specific payment.

This does not replace a lawyer or court expert in a complex dispute. It helps avoid early mistakes when the insurer pressures you with deadlines, documents and unclear Spanish wording.

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