It’s best to consult an experienced personal injury lawyer in Bowling Green, KY before speaking to an insurance adjuster. There are lots of reasons why you should not trust the insurance adjuster with your compensation claim. Read on to find out.
In This Article:
- Why You Shouldn’t Always Trust an Insurance Adjuster
- They Represent The Insurance Company
- They May Not Be Honest About the Value of Your Claim
- They May Want You to Settle for Less
- They Are Not Obligated to Offer You a Fair Settlement
- Contact Flora Templeton Stuart for Your Personal Injury Claim
Why You Shouldn’t Always Trust an Insurance Adjuster
For the past 46 years, we have worked closely with countless adjustors to get our clients a fair settlement. While most are honest and caring, some adjustors are only concerned with paying the lowest amount possible to the injured party. Adjustors vary on a case-by-case basis, and there are several reasons to be skeptical of an insurance representative, including
They Represent The Insurance Company
Insurance companies usually want to avoid personal injury lawsuits. Hence, they employ adjusters to ensure their claims settle outside of court. When dealing with claimants, adjusters must:
- Abide by the terms and conditions of the relevant insurance cover
- Abide by whatever promises they make to you
- Adhere to applicable federal and state laws
- Exercise their duty of good faith
They May Not Be Honest About the Value of Your Claim
After an accident, some insurance adjustors may offer you far less than what your case is actually worth. It may seem like a big number, but chances are you can get a much larger settlement by hiring a skilled personal injury lawyer.
They May Want You to Settle for Less
Insurance companies usually want you to settle for less, especially in soft tissue claims and minor accidents. So, when dealing with adjusters, do not get surprised when they try exaggerating your claim’s urgency. Often, adjusters make claimants feel like they must act fast to receive their compensation.
If the settlement is claimed to be a limited-time offer and the adjuster seems to be in a hurry, they want you to settle for less. Since the value of your claim is based primarily on the extent of your injuries, completion of your medical treatment is crucial in obtaining a good settlement. At our law firm, we refer our clients to physicians and therapists to make sure they get the treatment they need, documenting their injuries.
They Are Not Obligated to Offer You a Good Settlement
Adjusters are legally obligated to assess your compensation claim in good faith. Nevertheless, they have no obligation to offer you a good settlement since they do represent the insurance company. You need experienced attorneys who deal daily with insurance adjustors to obtain the settlement you deserve.
Lowballing is standard practice in the insurance business because that is how companies make money. When negotiating personal injury settlements, insurance companies typically set their initial offer so low that if you try to have to bump it up substantially, they will still make money. Personal injury lawyers should start negotiations at a higher amount than the value of the claim to get to a fair amount.
When dealing with adjusters, a few will try to deny your claim at first, even if they think it is valid or worth a lot of money. In so many personal injury claims in Kentucky and Tennessee, insurance companies tend to come to the table with measly offers. That is until an experienced and aggressive personal injury attorney from the law offices of Flora Templeton Stuart gets involved. In some cases with difficult adjustors, we file suit and immediately settle once the adjustors realize we mean business. We also request bad faith damages for adjustors who do not act in good faith. Fortunately, most adjustors are fair and do act in good faith, although it is their job to pay less money for claims.
Contact Flora Templeton Stuart for Your Personal Injury Claim
If you get injured in a motor vehicle accident or due to someone else’s negligence and the insurance company makes you an offer, you may not know how to respond. Before speaking to an adjuster, schedule a free consultation with the team at Flora Templeton Stuart.
We have decades of experience helping Kentucky and Tennessee residents settle personal injury claims with insurance companies. So, contact us today to schedule a free case evaluation with our team, or visit our law offices in Glasgow, Bowling Green, Gallatin, Greenville, Nashville, and Russellville.
