If you have suffered an injury due to any type of accident, you may have to deal with an insurance company to cover your losses. This could happen after you are in a car accident where you may be negotiating with the car insurance company of the driver at fault or if you slipped and fell at a grocery store and are dealing with their insurance. If that is your case, you will probably encounter an insurance adjuster in your dealings with them.
What does an insurance adjuster do?
An insurance adjuster is an employee of the insurance company that has the task of investigating the incident and determining how much your claim is worth. As a company employee, the adjuster is looking out for them and not for you. Therefore, their attempts will be for you to accept the lowest amount possible.
Claims adjusting is a delicate game since, at the same time, they are trying to avoid facing a personal injury lawsuit filed by you. This means that if the adjuster is unable to come to an agreement with you, it will be up to a judge or jury to make a decision regarding who is at fault and how much compensation you deserve to receive.
Although there is never a guarantee of how things will turn out during a trial, the insurance company does not want to risk having the court decide on a high amount of damages that should be awarded to you. Add to that the costs of the trial and other expenses, and the insurance adjuster will not have done a very good job for the company.
The very best job an insurance adjuster can do is to convince you to accept the lowest possible amount before sending you to your lawyer to file a lawsuit.
How does the insurance adjuster come up with the offer?
When determining how much your personal injury case is worth, an insurance adjuster looks at these items:
- What your actual medical expenses have been so far, and if there will be any more medical treatments indicated in the future
- How much money you have lost by being unable to work
- What other negative effects the injury has had on your life
- Pain and suffering
Additionally, they must consider the policy’s limits and the strength of the case.
The Policy Limits
No matter how much you think you deserve, it is very unlikely that the insurance company would be willing to go over the maximum amount specified in the insurance policy. If your damages are greater than this amount, you may have to get that money directly from the other party.
The strength of Your Case
If your case is quite solid, if your injuries are quite severe and have required extensive medical care and procedures, the adjuster knows that, should you go to court, you would probably be awarded the amount you claim. On the other hand, if you have a weak case, the adjuster knows that, should you end up in court, you might receive very little or even nothing.
Don’t try to guess which way the insurance adjuster will decide. Fight for your rights with the help and advice from a lawyer that will prepare a strong case.
When the insurance adjuster is informed that you will be working with a personal injury lawyer, you send a strong message on how convinced you are that your case is solid. Now they know they better offer you a fair settlement, or they will see you in court.
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