If you have suffered an injury in a car accident, your first concern should be seeking medical care and ensuring you make a full recovery. In addition to this, you may also worry about repairing or replacing your car and addressing issues such as lost wages and future damages. An insurance company will likely approach you under the guise of helping you resolve these issues.
There are a few things you should know about insurance companies’ intentions. Insurers’ first priority will always be profit, and as such, they may try to avoid providing fair compensation after an accident. The following are a few of the tactics they may use in order to do so.
1. Demanding recorded statement
It is not uncommon for insurance companies to call car accident victims and request that they give a recorded statement regarding the events of the incident. In some cases, aggressive claims adjusters may go so far as to demand a recorded statement and imply that it is a requirement for you to provide it. They will likely use anything you say against you, and there is typically no legal obligation on your part.
2. Using deceptive tactics
Much like an adjuster might make you believe you must provide a statement, an insurance company may misrepresent the facts of your case in order to downplay the compensation that you are due. They might claim that the policy only covers certain damages, for example, or make you complete more paperwork than is necessary for your claim.
3. Offering a lowball settlement
One of the most common ways an insurance company will avoid fair compensation is by simply offering a small settlement sum and pressuring you to accept. According to The Nest, the first offer is only a fraction of what your case is potentially worth. It is unwise to accept any settlement offer before consulting with an attorney and weighing all options.