Car accidents are unsettling, and most people want to put the entire situation behind them as quickly as possible. You call the police, you file a report, call the insurance company, and you see a doctor. If you have injuries, they’re treated and you’re let go if they’re not serious. If they are serious injuries, you might undergo surgery, recovery, amputation, or even find out you’re living the rest of your life paralyzed. You could require ample time off work or even find out you’re unable to go back to work at all.
That’s when the financial losses begin to hit you hard. Medical bills keep coming. Your health insurance company might inform you there is nothing they can do about all those bills after a certain point, and your sudden loss of income is devastating. Hopefully, none of this happens to you and your accident is but a minor one. However, it doesn’t matter how serious or minor your accident is when the insurance company of the at-fault driver offers you a check.
Do you take the check?
You want to put this situation behind you, or perhaps you simply don’t know what to do now that the at-fault driver’s insurance company is offering you money. You should never take the first check offered by the insurance company. You might not realize this is negotiable, but it is. The insurance company always takes their time to offer you the lowest possible offer so they can save money. They hope you don’t know you can come back with a different, higher offer. They bank on the fact you’re going to take the money and run so you can put this behind you or simply because you don’t know better.
Call An Attorney
If an insurance company comes to you with an offer, call an attorney. Find out what you can do by calling your attorney and making an appointment to find out the right next step. Your first consultation is free of charge, and your attorney offers you valuable legal advice. Never accept a check from anyone following an accident without first discussing it with an attorney.
Why shouldn’t I accept if it covers the cost of what I’ve already spent and need?
There is a good reason not to accept this offer. The first reason is that you have medical bills that might not be done coming in yet. If you are living with serious injuries following your accident, you need a doctor to tell you what you can expect in the future. For example, you might not know how many surgeries you’ll need to get through this, or you might not know yet if you can return to work full-time following your accident.
You must know these things before accepting a check from the insurance company. It is the only way to ensure you’re getting what you need rather than getting what they offer right now. You could end up with lifelong medical bills from this injury, and you want to know this so you have time to file a personal injury suit and seek damages. Never accept the first offer, and know you can come back to the insurance company with a counter. You’ll learn from your attorney that almost everything in an accident case is negotiable.
Insurance companies train their employees to make you feel as if you’re friends with them and they care for you. They don’t. They are looking to save as much money as they can by tricking you into signing medical releases with which to view your entire medical history in hopes they can pin your accident injuries on something in your past. They are looking to offer you low settlement checks to save money. You are not their priority, but you are the priority of your attorney. Call now to find the help and protection you need following an accident.
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