After a vehicle accident, drivers often rely on insurance policies to help them recover. Vehicle repairs and medical bills may be extremely expensive, and you might be unable to work for a while, making it even harder to afford these costs. Unfortunately, insurance companies are known for making lowball offers.
Insurance companies often make lowball settlement offers because they know that many claimants do not realize they do not have to accept the first offer. They also rely on claimants being unrepresented by lawyers and desperate for any financial assistance. You can avoid a lowball settlement by refusing the first offer, making strong counteroffers, and having evidence on your side. Your first step is to hire an experienced attorney.
For a free, private case assessment, call our Dallas car accident lawyers at The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797.
Why Do Insurance Companies Offer Lowball Settlements in Texas Car Accidents?
Insurance companies are known for being challenging to deal with, and you may encounter lowball settlement offers after a car accident. Understanding why insurance companies make such paltry offers can help you figure out how to get a better settlement.
Vulnerable Customers
A major reason why insurance companies tend to make lowball settlement offers is that they know their customers are in very vulnerable positions. After a car accident, a claimant may be in significant pain and facing mounting medical bills and vehicle repair costs. They may be so desperate for financial compensation that they will take the first offer without asking questions.
Lack of Representation
Another major reason for insurance companies’ lowball settlement offers is that many claimants are not represented by attorneys. When you pursue an insurance settlement on your own, you might not be fully aware of how the legal process works or that you are entitled to more money than the insurance company offers.
An attorney can help you push back on low offers and take further legal action if the insurance company refuses to play fair.
Confusing Policy Terms
Insurance policies are infamously convoluted. The language and terminology in insurance policies are often intentionally hard to understand, making it easier for insurance companies to reduce or deny claims. Claimants may have difficulty enforcing the policy terms if they do not understand them. This is a big reason why an experienced attorney is crucial to your case.
Should I Hire a Lawyer to Help Me Get a Good Insurance Settlement for a Car Accident?
Insurance claims are so commonplace that many people do not even consider hiring an attorney to help them. However, if your claim is particularly complex or involves very high damages, you should speak to an attorney as soon as possible.
When to Hire a Lawyer
You should hire a lawyer as soon as possible for several reasons. First, your attorney can help you gather important evidence to support your claims for a better settlement before the evidence becomes lost. Second, you need to hire a lawyer with enough time to spare to file a lawsuit if settlement negotiations fall apart. In Texas, a personal injury lawsuit must be filed no later than 2 years after your initial injuries.
How an Attorney Can Help
Your attorney can first help by gathering the information and evidence you need to negotiate for a better settlement.
Next, your attorney can prepare a lawsuit while you negotiate with the insurance company. Having a lawsuit ready to go may be enough to pressure the insurance company into offering a better settlement. You may also more easily transition into a lawsuit if and when settlement talks break down.
How to Negotiate a Better Insurance Settlement After a Car Accident
Negotiation skills are key to avoiding lowball settlements after a car accident. These skills are important to consider when hiring a lawyer.
Do Not Accept the First Offer
A good rule of thumb when negotiating a settlement is never to accept the insurance company’s first offer. It is common for the first offer to be much lower than your claims are actually worth. The insurance company hopes you accept this lowball offer, but it is prepared for you to counteroffer. Remember, their goal is to minimize your settlement as much as possible to help them save money.
Make a Counteroffer
To get a settlement that actually covers your damages, you may need to make a counteroffer. Remember, whatever your counteroffer is worth, the insurance company will likely return with another, lower counteroffer. As such, you should make a counteroffer that is worth much more than your claim’s true value. This way, when the insurance company tries to minimize the settlement, it may be reduced to something reasonable and adequately cover your damages.
Have Strong Evidence
Even though settlement talks do not take place in a courtroom, you still need strong evidence supporting your claims. Strong evidence of your injuries and damages may convince the insurance company that a larger settlement is necessary.
Your insurance policy is also considered evidence. If the lowball settlement initially offered violates the policy’s terms, you can point directly to those terms and enforce the policy. At that point, the insurance company may have no other choice but to offer a better settlement.
What Evidence Do I Need to Avoid a Lowball Insurance Settlement?
The evidence you need to avoid a lowball settlement from an insurance company after a car accident will vary based on your specific injuries, claims, and the factors surrounding the accident. Your lawyer should be able to help you determine what you need and how to obtain it.
Your Insurance Policy
As said before, your insurance policy may be a crucial piece of evidence in your case. It is a contract between you and the insurance company that spells out what kind of claims must be covered and the circumstances under which compensation must be paid. In some cases, a lowball settlement offer may violate these terms, and the insurance company may be in breach of the contract.
Medical Records
When trying to get a better car accident settlement from your insurance company, our Texas car accident lawyers need evidence of your injuries. Medical records may be crucial to proving how badly you were injured and the costs of medical care.
Police Reports
While a police report is typically inadmissible in court because it violates the rule against hearsay, it may be used during settlement negotiations. In fact, the police report may contain opinions and conclusions drawn by the police that would otherwise not be permitted in court. These conclusions may help us persuade the insurance company to offer a better settlement.
Avoiding Confusion During Insurance Settlement Negotiations After a Vehicle Accident
Insurance is often confusing enough without having to negotiate settlements. To avoid lowball offers, it is important to demand clarifications and ask the insurance company why it makes its decisions.
Ask for Clarifications
When possible, ask the insurance company for clarification. If a settlement offer for yor car accident seems too low, ask the insurance company to explain its decision. If they cannot come up with a reasonable explanation as to why the offer is so low, it is probably too low, and you should demand more.
Review Your Policy
You should also ask to review confusing policy terms with the insurance and your lawyer. If the insurance company seems to be using certain terms or conditions in your policy against you, make them explain how those terms and conditions work. Once you are clear on the terms and how the rules work, you may be better able to use them to your advantage.
Do Not Rush to Settle
You may be in serious need of financial compensation, but it is important that you do not rush to a settlement. Insurance companies are counting on you rushing to accept a bad offer because you need the money and do not know any better. It is best to hire a lawyer and take your time reaching a settlement. This way, you can make sure the final settlement is enough to cover your costs and damages.
How to Counteroffer a Lowball Insurance Settlement for a Car Accident in Texas
When making a counteroffer to a lowball insurance settlement, you should carefully consider how you make your offer and how you evaluate your claims.
Making a Counteroffer
A counteroffer serves to reject the insurance company’s first offer and return with one of your own. When making a counteroffer, it is important that you are clear and direct about your intentions. Firmly reject any lowball offer and explain what kind of compensation you believe you are entitled to. If you are unclear about your counteroffer, it might not effectively reject the insurance company’s first offer, leading to confusion.
Know the Value of Your Claims
It is crucial that you know what your claims are really worth when making a counteroffer. Next, you should make a counteroffer that is above this value. For example, if your claims are worth $100,000, make a counteroffer asking for $150,000. There is a very strong chance that the insurance company will make a lower counteroffer.
Ideally, your negotiations should go back and forth like this until you reach a final sum close to the real value of your claims.
Have a Back-Up Plan
Always be prepared with a Plan B. The insurance company, for whatever reason, might decide not to budge on its lowball settlement offer. In that case, we must be ready to take the case further and file a lawsuit. If the insurance company has violated the terms of your policy, you can sue them for being in breach of contract. We may also sue them for dealing in bad faith.
The threat of a lawsuit must be an empty one. While negotiating your settlement, we must have evidence and paperwork ready so that we can quickly file the lawsuit. When an insurance company knowns a claimant and their lawyer are serious about suing, it may be more willing to negotiate the settlement.
FAQs About Dealing with Lowball Insurance Settlements After Texas Car Accidents
What if an Insurance Settlement for a Car Accident is Too Low?
If an insurance settlement offer is too low, you may reject it and negotiate for a better one. This is often a challenging process, and you should hire an experienced attorney to help you.
How Can I Get a Better Insurance Settlement for a Car Accident?
Your attorney can help you make a counteroffer for a much higher settlement. The key to getting what you need is having evidence to back up your claims. Medical records, police reports, and evidence from the car accident scene may be necessary.
Why Do Insurance Companies Offer Lowball Car Accident Settlements?
Insurance companies are more interested in saving money than in helping their customers. This is a major reason why so many people find it difficult to deal with insurance companies. Remember, your policy is a contract, and the insurance company must abide by its terms.
What Do I Need to Get a Good Insurance Settlement After a Car Crash?
One of the most important things you need is a copy of the insurance policy. The policy spells out the terms you and the insurance company must abide by when determining a settlement, and you can use it to make them pay what they owe you.
Can I Negotiate with My Insurance Company for a Better Settlement?
Yes. Settlement offers are not take-it-or-leave-it situations. You may push back on a lowball settlement offer and ask for more. When you do, you must be prepared with evidence to support your claims for greater compensation.
Should I Hire a Lawyer to Help with Insurance After a Car Accident?
Yes. People often believe insurance claims are far less complicated than lawsuits, but this is not true. Insurance claims can easily become complex and fraught, and you should hire a lawyer to help you.
Call Our Texas Car Accident Lawyers Today
For a free, private case assessment, call our San Antonio personal injury lawyers at The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797.