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Negotiating An
Insurance Claim Settlement
You have had an accident. It was not pleasant being in the
vehicular accident and it is not fun dealing with the insurance companies
involved either. Here are some tips on how to negotiate an insurance claim
settlement.
The first thing you need to do when getting ready to negotiate with an insurance
adjuster is to
have your facts straight. Have all of your
information from the accident organized and easy to get to. Having your
paperwork such as the
police report
from the accident,
pictures of the damaged cars, pictures of your
injuries and
medical bills and reports readily available
is essential.
Possessing all of these important documents is very helpful in your negotiating
strategy. Having the information in from of you allows you to be reminded of how
exact things happened at the time of the accident. It also allows you to state
certain dates and times specifically when on the telephone with the insurance
adjuster.
Many times the insurance adjuster will request copies of the documents you are
referring to. Since you have them
organized
and close by they are easily accessible for you to scan for emailing, fax or
even make copies to send through the postal service. By having your
detailed information
with you as you discuss the settlement with the insurance company it shows them
that you are on the ball. It also shows that you are not a person to not be
taken advantage of.
Once you are past the trading of documents with the insurance company phase it
should be time to do the actual negotiations. This is the time in which you put
all your factual knowledge to work. You also will begin working with the
insurance adjuster for your case.
When the negotiations begin the insurance adjuster will most likely
try to bully you. It will not necessarily be in a
mean way but instead by
intimidating you.
The adjuster will speak about how long they have been in the business and how
many settlements they have dealt with. They will compare your accident damages
and injuries to other incidents that they have negotiated.
Do not allow the adjuster to coerce you in to a low settlement amount. Your
settlement should not be compared to other ones the adjuster has done. Let him
or her know that upfront. You are not there to discuss other cases but your
accident and injuries and how it has affected you.
You should have an idea of the amount you want to settle for. You should have
researched how much the damage to the vehicle will cost to be repaired. Make
sure you are getting good replacement parts and not used or junkyard pieces. The
insurance company might want you to use a certain repair shop. Before agreeing
to this check out the establishment and make sure it is someplace you want
working on your car. Most of the time it will be a quality place the insurance
company wants you to use but it is always best to make certain the shop has a
good reputation.
A second part of your settlement will be in regards to repayment for the days
off of work you had to take. The paperwork from the company you work for should
have the amount you are going to ask the insurance company to reimburse. If your
company paid you by using your vacation, sick or other days off you will still
want the insurance company to reimburse you because you most certainly did not
want to spend your vacation days recuperating from a car crash.
Finally probably the biggest part of your settlement will be concerning the
injuries that were caused by the accident. You will need all of your
medical records,
bills
and reports
when negotiating the amount you will need to cover not only the current bills
but any future medical expenses. It is always best to have the doctor write up
something about your injuries and what further treatments you will possibly
need.
To cover the pain and suffering that the accident injuries caused you will also
need to have an amount in mind that you will settle for. The amount that is the
norm for the settlement of pain and suffering is three times the medical bills.
This is why it is so important to have all of your medical bills totaled up so
that the pain and suffering amount will not be calculated too low.
If you go into negotiations regarding your insurance claim with the factual
documentation organized you are already ahead of the game. Do not allow the
insurance adjuster to intimate you. Stand up for what you know you deserve. In
the end you should be able to negotiate with the insurance adjuster and get the
settlement you are justified in receiving.
Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes. It should not be
interpreted as a recommendation to buy or sell any insurance product, or to
provide financial or legal advice. This information is provided for information
purposes only.
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