If you’ve been injured in an accident that was caused by someone else’s negligence, you need just compensation in order to pursue your fullest recovery. While you are counting on the at-fault party’s insurance provider to come through with a fair settlement that covers the full range of losses you experience, you may be surprised by the challenges you face in this regard. If you are injured as a result of someone else’s negligence, protect your claim and your recovery by reaching out to an experienced South Carolina personal injury attorney today.
A Note About the Insurance Company
The at-fault party’s insurance company that is handling your claim – like other business enterprises – is fully invested in making money and will do whatever it can to ensure this happens. You can count on the insurance company to invest considerable time and effort in keeping your claim as low as possible. In fact, there are five suspect practices on the part of the insurance company for which you should be on the lookout.
1. Asking for a Recorded Statement
The at-fault party’s insurance company may contact you in search of a recorded statement about the accident (in your own words). The insurance representative is likely to act like it is business as usual and may feed you a good line that leads you to believe you are required to comply with their request. This is not, however, the case.
In fact, there is no reason that you need to make a formal statement to the insurance company handling your claim. In fact, it can get all the information it needs from your personal injury attorney. It’s important to keep in mind that this ploy is simply the insurance company’s bid to get you to say something that ultimately harms your claim. And the insurance company is skilled at doing just that. Once you are lured into providing a recorded account of the accident in question, the insurance rep will coax statements out of you that are almost certain not to do your claim any good. Make it your policy to simply refer the insurance company to your dedicated personal injury attorney and leave the rest to them.
2. You Have No Police Report
In South Carolina, the police generally respond to car accidents – and many other kinds of accidents that lead to personal injury claims. While the police report is not the final word on the matter, it does provide and confirm some basic information about the accident. Further, it may help bolster your claim. Without a police report, you can expect the insurance company to take additional liberties that may extend to shifting blame away from its policyholder and toward you. If you’ve been injured in an accident that was caused by someone else’s negligence and you don’t have a police report, you need the skilled guidance of a personal injury attorney in your corner.
3. The Insurance Company Assigns a Third-Party Appraiser
If the insurance company that is handling your claim lets you know that it has called in an independent company to evaluate it, it means that the insurance company is putting some distance between itself and your claim. At this point, there is nothing you can do but wait for the third party to provide the insurance company with its decision, and you can move forward from here. The most important point to keep in mind is that you shouldn’t sign off on anything before you’ve consulted with a seasoned personal injury attorney who is well acquainted with your claim. The insurance company and the company it’s hired to handle your claim are heavily invested in keeping your settlement as low as possible, but don’t let them bully you into accepting less than the amount to which you are entitled – your health and well-being depend upon it.
4. The Insurance Company Makes an Early Settlement Offer
Another telltale sign that the insurance company may be up to funny business is when it comes back from a personal injury claim with a swift settlement offer. The fact is that you’re facing significant losses (known as legal damages) that can include all the following:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages
- Physical and emotional pain and suffering
The weight of these losses can leave you desperate for a settlement of any kind, and the insurance company is banking on this response. The fact is, however, that a lowball settlement – which an early settlement offer is almost certain to be – is not going to provide you with the compensation you need to reach your fullest recovery. Be wary of an early settlement offer, and don’t sign off on one before it’s been greenlighted by your skilled personal injury attorney. Additional suspect practices that the insurance company may stoop to include:
- Shifting fault toward you
- Calling the extent of your injuries into question
- Complicating the claims process unnecessarily
- Denying your claim before even considering it appropriately
5. The Insurance Company Drags Out the Process
The insurance company may go in the opposite direction and, instead of offering you a speedy settlement, may prolong the claims process. The insurance company is hoping that you’ll either give up in frustration or will be desperate enough to accept whatever settlement offer finally comes your way. You, however, shouldn’t do either. Your savvy personal injury attorney knows how to thwart the insurance company’s attempts to artificially prolong the claims process (which is against the law).
Discuss Your Claim With an Experienced South Carolina Personal Injury Attorney Today
If someone else’s negligence leaves you injured, the focused South Carolina personal injury attorneys at McCravy Law are standing by to help. We have a wealth of experience successfully handling challenging claims like yours, and we’d like to do the same for yours. To learn more about how we can help, please don’t delay contacting or calling us at 864-388-9100 today.
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