Lawyer Reveals Easy Car Accident Claim Process|Understanding Car Accident Settlements and Claims
How Car Accident Settlements and Claims Work
I'm going to tell you how car accident settlements and claims work. We're going to cover everything from immediately after the accident through you hopefully getting your settlement money.
Most car accident settlements are paid by the other driver's insurance company. In order for them to pay you, a claim needs to be set up. Every claim gets its own unique claim number. There are generally two ways that a claim is set up with the at-fault driver's insurance company:
- The other driver reported the claim to their insurance company.
- You or your lawyer report the claim to the other driver's insurance company.
In car accidents with significant damage to the cars, there is a higher chance that the other driver reported the claim to their insurance company. This is because they likely want their car fixed or they are nervous about you suing them to set up a claim.
What Insurance Companies Need to Set Up a Claim
The car insurance company needs a few things:
- The date of the accident
- The at-fault driver's policy number
- A short description of how the accident happened
Their car insurance company will ask you if your car was damaged. They'll also ask you if you were injured in the accident. This is so they can assign the case to the proper level insurance adjuster. More experienced adjusters handle bigger injury claims like those involving a broken bone or surgery. Settlements for those injuries tend to be bigger.
The Claim Setup Process
Once the claim is set up, the insurance company will start an investigation. Just because an insurance company assigns a claim number does not mean that you will get paid. This is one of the biggest mistakes that people who are in accidents make—they assume that the other driver's insurance company will pay them since they have a claim number. This is 100% wrong.
In order for you to get paid, several things need to happen:
- The at-fault driver's insurance company needs to confirm that there is insurance coverage for your accident.
- The policy needs to be active at the time of the accident (the other driver must have paid their insurance bill).
- There can't be an exclusion in their policy that would cause a denial of coverage.
Common coverage denials include the other car or driver not being listed on the insurance policy.
Handling Different Types of Claims
If you are injured, the at-fault driver's insurance will usually assign two different adjusters to the claim:
- Property Damage Liability Adjuster: Handles payment for damage to your car or property, like a broken cell phone or watch.
- Bodily Injury Liability Adjuster (BI Adjuster): Handles payment for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
If the insurance company clears coverage, this means that there is coverage for your claim. However, the adjuster still needs to determine two things:
- Fault, also called liability
- Your damages or injuries
To determine fault, the insurance adjuster will look at the traffic accident report and speak with several people about how the accident happened. They may ask for a recorded statement, but you are not required to provide one since you don't have a contract with them.
Assigning Fault and Assessing Damages
The insurance adjuster will assign a certain percentage of fault to the drivers or people involved in the accident. They may assign anywhere from 0% to 100% fault to each driver.
Next, they'll want to gather all your medical bills and records. They'll ask you to sign a medical authorization so they can collect your records. You are generally not required to sign this authorization.
The insurance company will set a reserve to pay your personal injury claim. By law, they are required to set aside a certain amount of money to pay your claim. This amount could be anywhere from zero dollars to a significant sum. As the adjuster gathers more information, they can either increase or decrease the settlement reserve.
Your goal is to get them to increase the settlement reserve as quickly as possible by either you or your lawyer sending them any medical records and bills that show how badly you were hurt.
Tip: It takes time for insurance companies to increase their settlement reserve, so getting your medical records and bills to them quickly usually speeds up your settlement.
Understanding Settlement Ranges
The insurance adjuster will have a settlement range they can settle your case within, but they won't tell you what this range is. If they do, they are likely not telling the truth. You or your lawyer will need to calculate your own value of your personal injury case by adding your out-of-pocket medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
To learn how much your pain and suffering is worth, watch this video or click on the link in the description below.
If you're seriously injured in a car accident in Florida and think someone else may be at fault, click on the link in the description below to see if I can represent you.
Conclusion
Understanding how car accident settlements and claims work is crucial to ensuring you receive the compensation you deserve. From setting up the claim to negotiating with insurance adjusters, being informed can make a significant difference in the outcome of your case. Don’t hesitate to seek professional legal assistance to navigate this complex process effectively.