After you’ve been in an accident, your insurance company and possibly the insurance companies of the other parties involved will contact you. Typically, everyone who calls you from the insurance company will be friendly. The insurance adjusters might even make it seem like the claims process will be swift and easy and in some cases, they may even make you a settlement offer. Before accepting any settlement offer, it is important to understand how personal injury law protects you and how insurance companies work.
The Insurance Company
Despite the friendly demeanor of the person calling you from the insurance company, they are not in business to act in your best interest or be your friend. Insurance companies are in business to maximize their own profits.
One very important way they stay profitable is by paying out as little as possible. They hope they will pay less than you might be able to get awarded by having a Personal Injury Lawyer on your side. In our experience, we have always been able to dramatically increase a settlement offer that was made to a client prior to our involvement.
Your Car Accident Lawyer has a legal obligation to only do things that are in your best interest and must have your consent before taking action. The insurance company is allowed to make you offers that may not be in your best interest. Insurance companies look out for the interests of its shareholders, not the people making claims.
Insurance Settlements
Most of the time the insurance companies will offer an early settlement. But, an early settlement offer is usually very low—often much lower than what a Personal Injury Lawyer can get for you. The company would prefer to settle and close the claim quickly. The offer that is made to you is typically an insurance company’s best estimate of the least amount it can offer but still have you accept it.
If you feel like the offer you’ve been made is unacceptable, you will need to convince the insurance company that you stand a good chance of recovering more money if your case goes to court. This is very difficult to do on your own. The insurance company has lawyers with years of Personal Injury Law experience, and adjusters who know how to be very convincing. This is why having an experienced car accident lawyer on your side is extremely valuable.
Settlements and Lawsuits
The vast majority of personal injury cases settle out of court. However, it is sometimes necessary to file a lawsuit to show an insurance company that you are serious about getting all of the compensation you are entitled to under the law. A lawsuit also gives Personal Injury Lawyers additional tools to fight on your behalf.
While the chances of having your case go to court are low, filing a lawsuit is often the only way for you and your car accident attorney to convince the insurance company that it is in their best financial interest to settle the case rather than risk going to trial.
The insurance company does not represent your legal interests. Spada Law Group can protect your interests and can often negotiate with the insurance company more effectively than you can on your own. Our Boston injury attorneys have worked for the insurance companies so they understand both the language of insurance companies and how Massachusetts Personal Injury Law works.
If you’ve been injured and have received a settlement offer, have Spada Law Group review the offer before you accept. You are more likely to get a truly fair offer with the help of lawyer than you will by yourself.
