How Insurance Companies Try to Deny and Devalue Your Personal Injury Claim
In addition to being painful and traumatic, the injuries that result from another person’s negligence can also lead to costly unexpected expenses. Many injury victims subsequently decide to protect their legal rights and recoup expenses by pursuing a personal injury claim. And despite what many people have seen on television, most of the time the process of pursuing a personal injury claim takes place outside of a courtroom and is instead a battle between your lawyer and the insurance company. In fact, only four percent to five percent of the personal injury cases in the United States go to trial which means that the overwhelming majority are settled long before a courtroom would be involved. However, that doesn’t mean that getting to a settlement is easy. Insurance companies use a number of tactics in order to deny a claim altogether, lower the potential value of a valid claim, or otherwise try to harm an accident victim’s case.
Understand Your Legal Rights
You may be able to pursue compensation for expenses related to a variety of unexpected injuries depending on the circumstances of your injuries. Because Florida is a no-fault insurance state, you may even be able to pursue a claim if you were the only person involved in your accident. Compensation may be awarded for:
- Emergency medical care
- Costs of prescription medicines
- Hospital bills
- Laboratory fees
- Surgery costs
- Therapy and rehab
- Wages due to lost time from work
- Pain and suffering
How the Insurance Company May Work to Prevent You From Maximizing Your Rights
No matter how polite or friendly an insurance adjuster may seem when he or she reached out to you, the insurance company exists to maintain a business and its primary goal is therefore to make money off of you. An insurance company will try to get away with paying you the least amount possible after an accident no matter how severe your injuries are and how legitimate your claim is. Tactics the insurance company may use can include:
- Using your words against you—insurance companies are notorious for twisting victims’ words into admissions of guilt or liability. This can include anything from what you post on your social media to statements you make to the adjuster.
- Asserting that your injuries were preexisting—the insurance company will also gladly search any available forum for any evidence of a similar injury in your past that can be used to say your injury preexisted the incident in question.
- Offering a lowball settlement—even if the insurance company doesn’t outright deny your claim, it may offer a settlement far lower than what your claim is worth. However, don’t allow the fact that you need immediate funds to allow you to accept a tempting, but unfair, offer.
Depend on Us to Prove the Value of Your Claim.
Proving that your expenses are legitimate can be complicated and will often require the help of legal professionals with expertise in successfully obtaining compensation for personal injuries. As the Tampa personal injury attorneys at The Pendas Law Firm, we can take a look at the circumstances of your injuries and advise you on maximizing your personal injury claim. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by contacting us today for a complimentary review of your case.
The Pendas Law Firm also represents clients in the Orlando, Miami, Ocala, Bradenton, West Palm Beach, Miami, Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale and Daytona Beach areas.
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