5 Reasons Why You Should Never Trust an Insurance Adjuster KEY TAKEAWAYS
The aftermath of an accident can be hard, insurance adjusters are the people who can get you compensated. However, insurance adjusters cannot be trusted blindly, as their main loyalty is to the insurance company. You need to know about the reasons you cannot trust the adjuster blindly. Also know that if it gets too hard or confusing, you can always get professional help from a lawyer. In the aftermath of an accident, insurance adjusters have a pretty huge role in assessing all the damages and handling your claims.
But, even if they say they are on your side, you cannot just go on trusting them blindly.
These adjusters work for insurance companies and hence their main goal is to save as much money for the company as possible.
This can be a pretty huge challenge for those who are simply looking for claims to cover their damages.
Well, according to many statistics and some real-life examples, insurance adjusters will try everything in their handbook to get away with not paying you money.
From undervaluing the damage costs to delaying payments until the last moment, we have seen it all.
But, if you’re still confused about how you can get the best claims, then you can also get some professional help from a reputable law firm like nicoletlaw.com .
So, if all this has still not made you doubt your insurance adjuster, then here are some of the reasons that will make you think otherwise.
DID YOU KNOW? The Insurance Information Institute reports that in 2021, an average of 10.6% of property claims and 11.5% of auto collision claims were denied across the US. These numbers can vary depending on the type of claim and the insurance company.
Reasons Not to Trust an Insurance Adjuster After an accident, an insurance adjuster is your only liaison with the insurance company.
They are the people who help you calculate the damages that you suffered and help you get compensation from your insurance company.
But, blindly trusting them can be a pretty huge mistake.
Loyalty to the Insurance Company You know, insurance adjusters are not there just for you.
They are loyal to the insurance company that they work for and aim to achieve a positive outcome for the company.
And, in many cases, this very loyalty results in making you settle for less than what you deserve, and sometimes this is even before you know about the full worth of your lawsuit.
So the very first thing that you should do to protect your own interests is to make it clear to yourself that your insurance claim adjuster’s priorities just might not be the same as yours.
Manipulation and Low-ball Offers There are many incidents where, after an accident, some adjusters will always try to use some petty lowballing tactics to make you settle for a lot less than the damages you’ve suffered.
This strategy pretty much aims to capitalize on the fact that you may be under stress and vulnerable immediately after the accident, and they hope that you can take the offer without hesitation or bargaining.
Not knowing this strategy would leave you in a position to accept vague offers that may be inadequate to cover your losses.
Information Gathering While information gathering is a pretty important part of calculating the total amount of damages after an incident, it is not always in the interests of the insurance company if they don’t want to part with your claim amount.
They might draw conclusions that are favorable to them and not you in any way.
This pretty much reinforces the fact that you need to be more proactive in your approach to collecting all the information for the incident before you even hand everything off to the agent.
After all, you do want to get compensated the right amount for all your damages right?
Use of Information Against You You also need to know that each contact with an insurance adjuster needs to be thought through carefully.
Anything you say or do can be used by the insurance company to lower or deny your claim.
You need to stay mindful and not reveal too many details of the accident to the adjuster.
This will help you protect your case later down the line.
Therefore, remember to avoid:
Apologizing for the accident Accepting fault for the accident Saying, “I feel fine.” Speculating about the accident Suggesting you have a prior injury Permitting the insurance company to record an “official” statement Signing any medical releases Well, like I’ve stated before, you need to remember that the adjuster’s main interests lie with the insurance company and not you.
And they will do everything in their power to get out of paying you.
Unfair Payment for the Totaled Vehicle Well, if your vehicle is completely totaled, some insurance companies might not even give you a reasonable settlement that takes into account the real market value or the damages you’ve had to suffer.
They might try to make a very low settlement offer, sending an amount that does not reflect the prices of comparable used cars in your area or the lost wages / medical expenses you’ve incurred.
Deal with Insurance Adjusters Mindfully Taking all this into consideration, it is pretty obvious that you need to always be skeptical about your insurance adjuster’s claims, and if they’re too hard to handle, you can always hire a professional lawyer.
With the knowledge of potential traps and a proactive approach to protecting your rights, you can successfully move through the maze of the insurance claims system and get a fair settlement for your case.
Also Read: Maximizing Insurance Claims with Professional Help
