Insurance claims adjusters go by a variety of different titles depending on the companies they are working for, but they all do essentially the same job. A claims adjuster essentially determines an insurance company’s potential liability for an accident and then seeks to resolve the claim for as little as possible.
Since an insurer is always aiming to pay as little as possible to resolve all claims it handles, it is usually the adjuster’s goal to get victims to quickly accept lowball settlement offers. Similarly, an adjuster is frequently rewarded for denying a claim altogether, which results in an insurance company paying nothing.
It is important for people to understand that no matter how friendly or seemingly genuine a claims adjuster might appear, these insurance company employees are never on a victim’s side. Instead, they are focused on finding ways to undermine and undervalue your claim.
You do not have to deal with adjusters by yourself though. By hiring an attorney to represent you, you can let them handle all of the correspondence with the insurance company on your behalf.
Call us or contact us online now to schedule a free consultation with Demas Law Group if you were seriously injured in a car accident in California. Our firm can represent you in all conversations with insurance company representatives and fight to make sure you get all of the compensation you are entitled to.
What to Say to an Insurance Adjuster After a Car Accident
Claims adjusters typically use a number of time-tested tricks of the trade-in dealing with personal injury victims. One of the first things a victim is likely to be told when an adjuster first reaches out is how the insurance company understands and accepts its responsibility, and there will be no need for a victim to have to pay a lawyer.
In some cases, adjusters will tell victims that they will be able to keep more of their settlement for themselves if they don’t hire a lawyer. This is often a sneaky tactic and could prove to be a serious mistake for the accident victim. After establishing that they do not have legal representation or intend to hire a lawyer, an insurance adjuster will often try to get a victim to make a recorded statement.
You should decline to make any recorded statement to a claims adjuster until you have legal representation. Even seemingly innocent questions posed by adjusters are incredibly misleading and are designed to elicit responses from victims that could be damaging to future injury claims.
Negotiating Your Accident Claim
The claims adjuster often has the power to negotiate a settlement to a victim’s claim. Some insurance companies hire third parties to handle the investigation and settlement of injury claims.
Whether an adjuster works directly for the insurance company or is an independent contractor, the general negotiation process is almost always the same. In many cases, an adjuster quickly makes a lump-sum settlement offer that is almost always much less than what a victim is entitled to.
Victim needs to understand that they have the right to reject any offer made by a claims adjuster. Do not be surprised to have an adjuster defend decisions to pay less than you expected for certain claims because of “preexisting” medical issues, conditions you should have allegedly corrected, or an accident supposedly being your fault.
You have the right to make a counteroffer to the original proposed settlement. It can be beneficial to make your demands in writing and address all of an adjuster’s specific points of reference in their own decision when making your counteroffer.
Negotiating with an adjuster can be challenging, but victims have options when negotiations reach an impasse. A victim could either speak to the adjuster’s supervisor, contact the California Department of Insurance, or hire a Sacramento personal injury attorney.
How to Avoid a Rejected Insurance Claim
Insurance adjusters often handle several different claims every single month. A victim has only one claim, so the victim should remember that they almost always have a better understanding of what actually happened.
A victim can typically bolster the chances of being offered a better settlement by providing an adjuster with the types of evidence necessary to prove the damages caused. Photos of injuries and copies of medical records can be very beneficial.
Victims need to keep in mind that estimates provided for medical coverage in many settlement offers exclude very real costs already incurred as well as significant future expenses. Uninsured motorist insurance can be very beneficial for this but occasionally runs into serious issues.
A person should also make sure any claim filed with an insurance company is completed according to the insurer’s stated terms in order to avoid some of the common reasons for claims denial, which include:
- Incomplete application
- No valid driver’s license
- Failure to pay premiums
- Failure to report the incident within time limits
- Failure to seek medical attention
- The wrong type of claim
The surest way to avoid a rejected insurance claim is simply to hire an experienced car accident lawyer as soon as possible. An attorney will not only be able to assist in ensuring an initial claim is properly filed and contains all necessary supporting materials, but can also handle all pushback from the insurer relating to your claim.
How Demas Law Firm Can Help
When you contact Demas Law Group, we will immediately put our experience to work to help you with your car accident claim. Our lawyers will be able to handle all of your phone calls from adjusters and work to negotiate a full and fair settlement that covers all of your past, present, and future needs.
We will understand the true value of your claim and fight to make sure an insurer pays everything that it is liable for. If an insurance company proves to be unreasonably opposed to providing adequate compensation, Demas Law Group will not hesitate to file a lawsuit.
Our Sacramento car accident attorneys will discuss your case and help you understand all of your legal options when you call us or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
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