Most insurance contracts require that you as the insured
must cooperate with your own insurance company when a claim is filed.
This means that if your own insurance company contacts you, you will
likely have to discuss the accident with them.
However, if you have already retained an attorney by the
time you are contacted by your own insurance company you should tell
them to contact your attorney to arrange any discussion or meeting about
the accident.
Generally, you are not legally required to cooperate or
discuss the accident with the insurance company for the other driver.
However, this does not usually stop the other insurance company from
attempting to contact you and obtain a statement from you about how the
accident occurred and any resulting injuries.
Be very wary about adjusters who contact you requesting a
statement from you or other information such as medical records, etc in
order to "settle your claim." For the most part, the only reason the
adjuster for the other insurance company wants your statement is so they
can attempt to build a defense against your claim or minimize their
payment of the claim. More than once adjusters have contacted
unsuspecting accident victims under the pretext of helping them settle
the claim and then turn around and use the information obtained from the
victim in an attempt to minimize the claim.
Moreover, your medical condition may not be fully diagnosed
or known when you speak with an adjuster for the other insurance company
and therefore an inaccurate picture of your damages may get conveyed.
One of the reasons adjusters attempt to contact victims early on in the
case is so they can set a reserve value which they believe the case is
worth.
Once that reserve value of the case is established, it
becomes very difficult to get an adjuster to settle the case above that
amount. If inaccurate information went into the setting of the reserve
amount, then you have effectively ensured that litigation must be filed
and the case potentially tried to a judge or jury instead of a
reasonable settlement offer being extended.
However, this does not mean that you should avoid speaking
to all adjusters in every case. If your injuries are conclusively
established as minimal or it is clear that the total insurance coverage
available is minimal, and no other coverage is available, you may wish
to talk to the adjuster to conclude the matter quickly. This could also
work to your advantage if the police report clearly places fault on the
other driver.
If you are in doubt about whether or not to talk to an
adjuster, you should consult an attorney. Once you inform the adjuster
that you have retained an attorney, they are prohibited from contacting
you directly again. They must work through your attorney to resolve the
matter. Many people prefer not to negotiate or deal with the adjuster
and would prefer an experienced attorney to handle the matter for them.
More often than not, the attorney will be more successful in getting you
a fair settlement or judgment than most people can obtain on their own
with the adjuster. This is because attorneys know how adjusters evaluate
the value of a case and know what courts will likely award for similar
injuries if the case does not settle.
Some insurance companies have recently been sued for
sending out written information to their insureds telling them not to
contact an attorney. Be careful if an insurance adjuster tells you not
to hire an attorney. This usually means that they are trying to offer
you a "low ball" settlement and do not want you to know it.
Although the decision to speak to the insurance adjuster
for the other company is really a judgment call on your part, it is
usually wise to contact an attorney before you do so to make sure you do
not inadvertently hurt your own claim.
To protect your legal rights and to ensure that you receive
maximum compensation for your injuries, call
800-437-2571 anytime for a free no obligation confidential
consultation with one of our lawyers experienced in handling auto
accident claims or use our convenient
Free Case Evaluation submission form.
Should you decide to retain our services, we will work on a
100% contingent fee basis. Simply stated, we get paid for our services
only if we recover monies on your behalf from the insurance company.
Find an
auto accident lawyer in your area
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