Tips for a Personal Injury Settlement Negotiation

Most personal injury claims get resolved in a settlement, not in a trial. If you have filed, or need to file, a personal injury suit, then you need to know how your responses and actions can lead to the success or the demise of your claim. Here are some tips to help you navigate the process.

First of all, you need to keep organized. Whenever an insurance adjuster calls you, jot down what happened, and when the conversation occurred. Submit everything you need to on time. And when you submit anything, make sure you keep a copy of those documents for yourself too.

And hard as it may be, and as much as you may need to be compensated immediately, it is often best to be patient. Insurance companies may purposefully lowball you in the first offer, banking on the fact that you do not want to spend the time to negotiate for a better settlement. If you hold out long enough, you might get the insurance company eager to reach a settlement quicker, and a settlement that is worth more too.

On top of being patient, you may need to be regularly checking in with the insurance company. If an adjuster says they will do something in your case, then ask them to name a deadline. When you have both agreed to the timing and what will happen, put that agreement in writing, in a confirmation letter.

Once you arrive at the deadline, you may need to call in and courteously and ask after the agreed action, asking for a response within a reasonable amount of time. You do not want to call every day, but you want to be make sure you do a good job of following up on any terms of agreement you have reached with an insurer.

Finally, remember that insurance adjusters will not respond well to histrionics. If you keep calm, sticking to the facts, demonstrating that you are acting in good faith, then you may get good-faith response from an insurer. That being said, insurance companies may act in bad faith, refusing to pay you the full amount you are owed, or perhaps denying your claim entirely. When you have an experienced legal advocate on your side, you may be able to save yourself from such bad-faith actions, and saving yourself stress in the process by leaving much of the process to a legal expert.

If you have received what you think is an overly low settlement offer from insurance, then you can find the legal counsel you need on whether to accept it or to pursue negotiations when you contact the Whitley Law Firm. With an experienced Raleigh personal injury lawyer on your side, you may be able to achieve an optimal result in your claim.