The days after a car accident are confusing and stressful times for injury victims. People may be in the hospital or at home missing work while trying to recover from injuries. The pain can be severe, and yet, many obligations will need to be dealt with.
An important thing to understand is that the insurance adjusters may call, and even if it’s your own insurance company, they aren’t on your side. You are at a disadvantage after an accident.
The insurance company knows you are hurt and your life has been disrupted, and they can use it to their benefit. You can learn how to avoid exploitation by the insurance company and how a Pacific West Injury Law car accident lawyer in Enterprise may be able to help.
Tactics the Insurance Adjuster Doesn’t Want You to Know
It risks your case to deal with the insurance company alone. While they may seem to be looking out for your best interests, their real job is to reduce liability and avoid big payouts.
Many tactics are used throughout the insurance industry to improve their profitability, and we can show you what you may encounter. Here are some tricks insurance companies use to reduce or eliminate their liability.
They Accept Liability and Refuse to Pay The Bill
One scenario involves the insurance company accepting liability and later refusing to pay the medical bills. You have their verbal authorization to go get treatment for your injuries, but they later offer to pay only a fraction of the amount.
They have dragged the claim out to a point where it may be too late to hire a lawyer, and you are stuck with a tiny settlement offer that will not cover your debt.
Quick Settlement Offers
When they fear you may have a good claim or expensive damages, they may send someone to your hospital room or home. They will wave a settlement check around and ask you to sign to accept the money.
They are taking advantage of the fact that you are unaware of the full extent of your injuries, the real cost of the damages, and your questions about your income earning ability in the near future.
Once you accept the settlement you waive your rights to pursue any further legal action, even if that amount wasn’t enough. There is no cost to contact an Enterprise car accident lawyer to help you evaluate their offer.
Deadlines
Insurance adjusters present you with a deadline for accepting a settlement offer. They are trying to frighten you into accepting an undervalued settlement amount before you’ve even had time to evaluate the real costs of your damages.
Negotiations and settlement agreements should never be entered into until the medical treatment is completed. You may not heal properly or have complications down the road. These deadlines are arbitrary and that money will wait until you know what your damages are.
The Sympathetic Insurance Adjuster
Sympathetic and friendly adjusters may claim to be on your side, but they may be manipulating you into believing that the amount they are offering is more than fair. Their settlement offer is usually far below the real value of your damages, and an Enterprise car accident lawyer can fight for your right to collect the full amount.
Pre Existing Conditions
Insurance adjusters can try to make compelling claims that you must have had preexisting conditions or a previous injury. When they attempt to shift the liability onto you, they may ask you to sign a general medical authorization to allow them access to your medical records.
Your previous medical treatments are none of their business, and you are under absolutely no obligation to provide this authorization.
Disputes Over the Severity of Injuries
This happens in every personal injury claim, and they have many ways to try and discredit the injured party’s suffering. You may be surveilled by insurance investigators, or someone may dig through social media accounts.
Be sure you are following the doctor’s orders and not engaging in strenuous activity that you aren’t supposed to.
Recorded Statements
Do not agree to any recordings of your voice as they can take your statements and use them out of context to devalue your claim. Do not provide a written statement or sign anything without speaking to an Enterprise car accident lawyer first.
Our firm will be happy to review your claim and any offers in a free consultation. If we believe there is nothing we can offer to benefit you, we will tell you so. However, if we find that the offer is unfair, we can provide you with legal options, ask for more information, or offer you our services.
Delays
They know you are at a disadvantage, and that most injury victims are in desperate need of money to meet their monthly financial obligations. They can delay your claim or stop answering calls in an attempt to break you down so that you will accept an undervalued settlement.
The longer it takes to settle a claim, the more aggravated you are likely to become. They also frequently like to use this tactic to push you beyond the statute of limitations. NRS 11.190 states that you have a two-year time frame from the date of the accident to bring legal action.
Once that legal deadline has passed, they can deny your claim, and you are barred from pursuing any legal action. If the 2-year deadline is coming up, contact a car accident lawyer in Enterprise to help you get results.
Social Media Can Be Used Against You
It is important that you and your family members do not talk about your accident on social media. Make your settings private, do not accept unfamiliar friend requests, and watch out for new followers on your social media accounts.
They can be looking for evidence, and social media postings can be used against you in courtF.
For example, your mother makes an upbeat Facebook post about how much better you are feeling and posts a picture of you with a group of friends. The truth may be that it was your grandmother’s birthday party and you struggled with your pain through every second of being there.
Contact An Enterprise Car Accident Law Firm Today
The insurance company fights claims every single day, and they have a big advantage over injury victims. They understand how to play games that work to keep their profit margins high, but you can level the playing field with help from Pacific West Injury Law.
We have helped thousands of injury victims to maximize their insurance settlements after car accidents, and we understand how insurance companies work. We may be able to advocate for you. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.