Is Blue Cross Blue Shield good at handling complaints?

Across the states we hold records for, Blue Cross Blue Shield recorded 758 confirmed complaints against 5,423,413 policies in force. That is a complaint index of 9.74, where 1.00 is the market average, so it earns a PolicyGrades grade of F.

What do people complain about Blue Cross Blue Shield for?

The most common confirmed complaint reason recorded against Blue Cross Blue Shield is “Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer”, with 364 complaints.

How do I file a complaint against Blue Cross Blue Shield?

Complaints go to your state department of insurance, not to us. They are free to file, and a complaint the department confirms is what appears in these figures the following year.

Blue Cross Blue Shield complaints

Across the state records we hold, Blue Cross Blue Shield recorded 758 confirmed complaints against 5,423,413 policies in force — a complaint index of 9.74, or 9.7 times what its share of the market predicts.

Better than 2% of the 94 companies large enough to grade this period.

Blue Cross Blue Shield writes through 15 separate licensed companies. Regulators file complaints against each one individually; the figures here combine them, because that is what a customer of Blue Cross Blue Shield actually experiences. Every entity is listed at the bottom of this page.

By type of insurance

Coverage	Grade	Complaint index	Complaints	Business written
Health insurance	F	9.75 9.7× the market rate raw 11.02	758	5,383,763
Life & annuity	—	1.00 about market average raw 0.00	0	39,650
All lines	F	9.74 9.7× the market rate raw 11.01	758	5,423,413

What people complain about Blue Cross Blue Shield for

Reasons as recorded by the regulator on complaints it confirmed. A complaint is "confirmed" when the department found the company was at fault — not merely that someone was unhappy.

Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer 364

Denial Of Claim 287

Balance Billing; Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer 231

Delays (Policyholder Service) 199

Delays (Claims Handling) 150

Denial Of Claim; Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer 147

Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer; Usual And Customary 117

Usual And Customary 94

Blue Cross Blue Shield state by state

Insurance is regulated state by state, and a company's record can differ sharply between them. Each grade below is relative to that state's own market.

State	Grade	Complaint index	Complaints	Most common reason
Texas	F	9.74 9.7× the market rate raw 11.01	758	Unsatisfactory Settle/Offer

How to file a complaint against Blue Cross Blue Shield

Complaints are filed with your state department of insurance, not with us and not with the company. It is free, it is handled by a regulator with authority over the insurer's licence, and a complaint the department confirms is exactly what produces the numbers on this page next year.

Find your state's complaint form →

Licensed companies included in these figures

Published so the grouping can be checked. NAIC codes are the identifiers regulators use, and are the basis on which these entities were matched.

Anthem Blue Cross And Blue Sheild Ohio Anthem Life Insurance Company NAIC 61069 Blue Cross And Blue Shield Of Illinois Blue Cross And Blue Shield Illinois Blue Cross And Blue Shield Of Florida Blue Cross And Blue Shield Of Georgia Blue Cross And Blue Shield Of Texas, A Division Of Health Care Service Corporation NAIC 70670 Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Illinios Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Alabama Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Texas Carefirst Blue Cross And Blue Shield Health Care Service Corporation, A Mutual Legal Reserve Company Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Pennsylvania Independence Blue Cross Premera Blue Cross Seattled Washington

Where these figures come from

State insurance department filings. See data sources.

Figures cover 2023–2025. Grades are rebuilt when regulators publish new files.