Should You Trust An Insurance Company After A Car Accident?
You’ve been in a serious car accident and took all the necessary steps following the crash, including quickly reporting it to your insurance company. An insurance claims adjuster has reviewed all the facts of your case and has put a settlement offer on the table for your injuries and property damage. Can you trust that the offer is a fair one?
You Don’t Have to Accept the First Offer
It never hurts to be a bit skeptical about an offer from an insurance company following a car accident. Auto insurers are in business to make money, and they make more of it when they don’t have to pay out large settlement amounts to policyholders. Hence, insurers may seek to guard their purse strings by trying to pay out as little money as possible to accident victims, which means they are not going to present their best offers first. Insurance adjusters typically have a dollar range to work with when settling claims, and they may often start at the low end of that range when making offers to accident victims.
For this reason, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to accept the first offer an insurance company puts on the table. Take the time you need to review the offer; during your review, consider whether it will pay for your ...
· Property damage
· Medical bills
· Time lost at work
· Possible future lost income
· Possible future medical costs if you need ongoing treatment.
Additionally, you may even consider reimbursement for your “pain and suffering,” which are less quantifiable general damages that you may have incurred. Pain and suffering includes stress, anxiety, physical pain and other things that now may affect your life. Admittedly, it can be hard to place a dollar value on pain and suffering.
If the offer doesn’t seem like it fairly pays for all the expenses, possible future expenses and injuries you’ve incurred, it’s okay to reject it in favor of a higher offer. It’s also okay to ask the insurance adjuster what factors they were basing their initial settlement offer on, as there may be some things they’ve missed or that you don’t agree with. You can also find more information here about how insurance adjusters settle your claim. Negotiating these things may lead to the company's coming back with a higher offer.
Negotiating Insurance Claims Settlements
However, if you are like most people, you probably haven’t been in a lot of car accidents in your life and so haven’t spent a lot of time negotiating with insurance companies. On the other hand, it’s the job of insurance claims adjusters and insurance companies to negotiate settlements, so they are highly experienced at it. And as discussed previously, insurance company personnel have the company’s bottom line in mind when negotiating.
It is never a bad idea to have a car accident attorney who is experienced in insurance settlement negotiations review your case. Kaplan Lawyers, PC can advise you as to whether the settlement amount you are seeking is sufficient to cover your losses, including helping you quantify your pain and suffering. An attorney can handle insurance company negotiations and help you get fair compensation. Insurance law varies between states, so if you decide to seek out the services of an attorney, look for one in your state or the state where the accident occurred.
Finally, if settlement negotiations stall and the insurance company is not willing to negotiate further to get you the compensation you need for your injuries and other losses, you may wish to consider a legal claim. Sometimes filing a claim will encourage insurance companies to settle with you instead of spending time and money in court. Or if they won’t settle, a personal injury attorney with experience in car accident cases is someone who is on your side and will fight for you in court.