If you’ve been in a Miami car accident, you can expect to hear from the at-fault driver’s insurance company. Rule number one in dealing with insurers is this: they are not on your side. Even though the insurance adjuster may sound sympathetic on the phone, insurance companies are ultimately for-profit businesses. The more claims they deny or underpay, the more money they make.
Bearing that in mind, you need to be aware of the tricks that insurers often use against accident victims. Before speaking with an insurance company, retain legal counsel. The Miami car accident lawyers of Klotzman Property Damage Law are ready to serve you.
Common Tricks Insurance Companies Use
These are just a few of the ways insurers try to unfairly deny car accident victims the compensation they deserve.
Recorded Statements
You are not required to speak with the at-fault driver’s insurance company. So if the company calls you, be careful. There’s a good chance the adjuster will ask you to give a recorded statement. The fact that it’s being recorded should raise red flags.
Obviously, the insurance company wants to record you so it can potentially use your words against you later. Insurers know that victims are upset, frightened, and anxious after being in a car accident. The victim could even be under the influence of medication.
Nonetheless, adjusters often ask victims leading questions that are carefully designed to elicit “admissions” of wrongdoing.
Don’t risk the hassle of being manipulated by the insurer so the company can cheat you out of fair compensation. Refer the insurance company to a Miami car accident attorney.
Private Investigators
The insurance company can legally hire a private investigator. And doing so makes sense because the insurer wants to know if you’re really injured. The problem is how the company uses the information the investigator collects.
For instance, you may have doctor-ordered work restrictions due to your injuries. You follow these consistently for the most part during your recovery. But suppose once, out of habit, you deviate from those limitations.
Even though you almost always followed the restrictions, this single event could be recorded and brought up against you later. Meanwhile, the numerous other times you followed the restrictions will be conveniently lost.
Your Miami car crash lawyer will take steps to keep the insurance company from manipulating evidence in this way.
Medical Releases
Insurance companies typically send medical release forms to car accident victims. Again, this makes sense. Insurers need to know how bad your injuries are since they may have to pay for them. But beware of the general medical release. A general release could expose all of your medical history.
The information revealed by the release could be used to undermine your claim. As an example, the insurance company might discover that you had a preexisting injury. The insurer could then try to shift blame away from the at-fault driver to focus instead on that injury.
Have a Miami automobile accident lawyer review any forms the insurance company asks you to sign.
Let Our Miami Car Accident Lawyers Handle the Insurance Companies!
It’s critical that you retain the services of a Miami car accident attorney to deal with the driver’s insurance company. Our objective is to handle all matters with the insurer so you can focus on your recovery.
If a settlement can be reached in your favor, we can advise you on the advantages of accepting it. But if the insurer won’t negotiate fairly, we can take your case in front of a jury.
Call Klotzman Property Damage Law today to get started.
