Car accidents come with significant financial consequences. Therefore, it would bring you comfort knowing that your damages will be covered after a crash, especially if you have been paying your insurer on time. After an auto accident, it is expected that a suitable settlement will be granted after submitting all the necessary documentation. However, this may not always be the case.
Insurance adjusters are employed to reduce the insurance company’s payouts as much as possible. The little they compensate, the more profit they make. Therefore, fairness is never their priority, regardless of your loyalty as their client. This said you must partner with our qualified car crash attorney to acquire compensation that is up to your losses’ actual value.
Tactics Used by Insurance Adjusters to Deny Claims
Table of Contents
Insurance adjusters deal with many claims at a given time. Therefore, they have little time to evaluate yours carefully. They may apply these tactics to be done with it and move to the next caseload as soon as possible.
1. Offer a first settlement
Also known as quick settlements, insurance adjusters use them to trap clients who know little about fair compensation. These may be clients dealing with car accident claims for the first time. These settlements may look good on paper but are never up to the claim’s actual worth.
Car accident victims who may not have the financial bandwidth to deal with the injuries sustained may also be susceptible to these offers. According to the National Safety Council, medically consulted injuries following car accidents totaled 5.4 million in 2021. The financial pressure to settle medical bills may force such victims to accept a first compensation offer without questioning the amount.
2. Questioning your injuries
Ideally, insurers can only compensate you for injuries directly related to the crash. Suppose you broke your arm before the crash. During your claim’s evaluation, your broken arm’s expenses will not be included because it was not caused by the auto accident. However, some adjusters can imply that the crash did not cause your injuries. This interferes with the credibility of your claim. Without the help of a car injury attorney, you may end up receiving an unworthy settlement.
Some insurance adjusters can also question the severity of your injuries, especially if the crash was minor. The truth is minor accidents can also have significant health repercussions. Besides physical injuries, they can also result in internal injuries, such as internal bleeding. Internal injuries are fatal and may require a series of costly treatments, including surgical procedures. After a car wreck, always get your injuries checked by a professional medic. It is also essential o hold onto your medical documents as proof. This is the best way to deal with this tactic.
3. Questioning the party at fault
Most insurance policies cover the insured individual only if they are at fault for the crash. Therefore, establishing fault for insurance adjusters is critical. If there is a chance that the other party was liable for the accident, your insurer may deny your claim. Establishing fault is more complex than it may seem. While liability may be apparent in some cases, others may need a thorough investigation and evaluation.
After a car accident, you must gather evidence from the accident scene. Use your smartphone to capture short clips and photos of the wrecked cars, the injuries sustained, and any markings that may have been caused on the road. It is also essential to document eyewitness reports. All these will come in handy when dealing with insurance adjusters.
4. Misinterpreting your words
Insurance adjusters are cunning individuals. Their act of kindness should not cause you to spill the beans, whether you caused the accident or not. Their sympathetic tone when communicating with you is used as a trap to push your tongue to slip so they can use your words against you.
For instance, suppose you heard a phone notification while driving and decided to glance at your phone quickly, leading to a crash. Even if the other party was entirely at fault for the collision, admitting to having glanced at your phone during the crash can affect your payout significantly. Additionally, you should refrain from using phrases such as ‘I am sorry.’ It may sound harmless, but an insurance adjuster can interpret it as an admission of guilt.
5. Giving wrong advice
Insurance adjusters are in the business of paying claims but not in your best interest. Adjusters prefer working with clients and not their lawyers. It is easier to manipulate accident victims than their legal representatives. Convincing a desperate client their claim can only amount to a little settlement is easier because they would not question this decision. I mean, insurance adjusters are fair, right? However, a qualified car crash attorney knows the exact value of a car accident claim. Therefore, an insurance adjuster can advise against hiring an auto accident lawyer, leading to unfair compensation.
How Can Our Car Crash Attorney Help?
Insurance adjusters can complicate your compensatory process regardless of how minor the car accident is. Hire one of our car crash lawyers for the following reasons.
1. Claim valuation
Most car accident victims, especially those with little or no knowledge about insurance, may not know what fair compensation constitutes. This gives insurance adjusters the perfect opportunity to short-change them into receiving a lowball offer. However, a qualified attorney knows how to evaluate a claim to come up with a fair figure.
Ideally, an appropriate settlement should constitute medical expenses, lost wages, emotional distress, property damage, and other additional costs such as child or home care. The amount should cater to both present and future expenses.
2. Determine liability
Liability is essential because it determines your credibility to receive compensation. For example, if the other party caused the crash, you must have concrete evidence for them to compensate you. Besides the scene’s pictures and clips, more concrete evidence, including expert witness reports, may be required.
This is another level of gathering evidence that a victim may not handle single-handedly. The expertise of a lawyer may be necessary. Additionally, to hold the other party liable, you may need to gather records of their past traffic offenses to prove their recklessness on the road. Getting hands on these records requires help from a qualified lawyer.
3. Negotiate with adjusters
The best part of hiring a legal representative is it saves you from dealing with insurance adjusters. A lawyer can deal with all the meet-ups, protecting you from being manipulated into accepting an unfair payout. If your lawyer is offered a fast settlement, you do not have to worry because their negotiation skills are top-notch. Additionally, they are fearless in standing up to insurance adjusters for your best interest. They would not settle for a settlement that is not up to the actual value of your losses.
4. File a lawsuit
While most car accident compensatory cases are settled outside court, others are not. Litigation is necessitated if the parties do not come to an amicable agreement. Dealing with lawsuits requires professional guidance because of the legal procedures and requirements involved at various stages. For your case to hold in court, concrete proof must be presented systematically, something that can only be attained by a professional who has dealt with similar cases before.
5. Legal knowledge
Car accident lawyers are well versed on what the laws demand when handling compensatory claims. They are familiar with legal procedures, deadlines, and regulations. For example, car accident compensatory cases are governed by a statute of limitations. It differs from state to state. This law dictates the period by which a lawsuit must be presented in a court of law.
Your case must be filed before this time frame expires to guarantee a fair trial and appropriate compensation. Most victims may not know about the existence of such laws. Hiring a lawyer ensures that all legalities are met timely to avoid repercussions.
5. Peace of mind
The aftermath of a car wreck can be overwhelming. Besides the economic constraints, dealing with domestic issues may be challenging, especially if the injuries sustained are severe. Hiring our car injury attorneys helps you to focus on your recovery and family while they deal with the legalities of your case.
Hiring a Car Crash attorney is Affordable.
Most car accident victims fail to hire legal representation not because they cannot afford it but because they assume these charges are way above their pay grade. In reality, car accident lawyers charge nothing upfront.
They operate on a contingency basis, which means you can only pay them after receiving your compensation. The percentage payable to them depends on your agreement during the initial consultation. Therefore, do not let allow assumptions to get in the way of the compensation you deserve. Reach out to us today.
Conclusion
Dealing with insurance adjusters can be a nightmare. They can reap your right to a fair reimbursement. Save yourself the stress and contact one of our qualified Houston car accident lawyers today.
No Comments