Why are facturas and RFC so important for settling your claims?

Claims processes with insurance companies differ from one country to another. Mexico is no different. When it comes to using your policy, specifically for reimbursement, there are two very important things you need to be aware of that will make your claim process a much faster and smoother one:

Factura

A factura is like the receipt you get when you pay for any goods or service. The difference is that a factura has an official number that insurance companies in Mexico require to reimburse you. Every institution in Mexico, in any industry, can issue a factura when you ask for it.

When you ask for a factura, you are protecting yourself against extra charges for services or products you did not request or are not aware of. So every time you pay for a service or product, ask for your factura at the moment of your purchase.

Getting facturas is very time consuming if not requested at the time of purchase.  When you ask for a factura, most institutions will need you to provide your RFC, which brings us to the second topic we’ll speak of in this article:

RFC

The RFC is a code issued by SAT (Sistema de Administración Tributaria, for its acronym in Spanish) that identifies a person in Mexico.

When Americans and Canadians (or any other foreigners) don’t have an RFC, that will not stop them from receiving a factura when they ask for one. You can still get your factura by using the general RFC code, which every institution in Mexico should be aware of. In other words:

- ¨Hi, I’d like a factura of this (service/product) please¨

- ¨Of course. Can you please provide us your RFC code? ¨

- ¨Oh, I don’t have one, but please issue my factura with the general RFC code¨

Having your facturas along with your receipts will save you A LOT of time in your claim process in Mexico.  The same process is in place for settling all insurance claims (Auto, Health, Travel, Home, Boat, etc.)

If your Mexican insurance policy covers you out of Mexico and you have a claim abroad, you can forget about facturas and RFC codes. Also, if your coverage is being provided by direct payment, your insurance company would take care of all the paperwork and you may only need to sign a few papers. But as long as your claim occurs in Mexico and through reimbursement, you may want to take a look at this article. We hope you find this information helpful.

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