When you’ve been in an accident, you’ll be assigned an insurance claims adjuster, who will be tasked with investigating your claim and offering you a settlement. The settlement value is how much the insurance company is willing to pay out on your claim.
Keep in mind that the first offer is almost always going to come in on the lower side, and you are under no obligation to accept that first offer. The adjuster works for the insurance company, so they are going to try to save them as much money as possible.
Here are some tips for dealing with low offers from an adjuster:
- Determine if it’s actually a reasonable offer: To determine a reasonable settlement range, you’ll need to know all the costs of your accident, including medical bills, vehicle damage, rental fees, towing fees and potential future costs, including ongoing recovery costs. Using this information you can calculate a reasonable sum that you can compare against the initial offer.
- Make a counter offer: If your offer seems low, you can negotiate with the adjuster. Reject the initial offer in writing, and submit a counteroffer with a range you think is fair to compensate you. Provide additional information to justify your offer and your reasoning for rejecting the first offer.
- Work with an attorney: If you don’t want to handle negotiations yourself, you’re better off working with an experienced attorney who can handle this process for you and maximize the compensation you get.
For more information about how to handle insurance payout negotiations, contact an experienced Bradenton, FL personal injury lawyer at Goldman, Babboni, Fernandez & Walsh.