Anyone that has filed a personal injury claim should expect to hear from the adjuster in a brief period of time. That would be the adjuster from the other party’s insurance company.
Actions to take after being contacted by the adjuster:
• Get the adjuster’s name, along with his or her address and phone number.
• Do not decide to vent your anger. Keep your temper under control.
• Offer to share only a limited amount of information. Explain that you cannot offer more details, because an investigation of the accident is currently underway.
• Do not provide any details of the accident; there may be technicalities that you will have to discuss with your lawyer. Do not mention those to any adjusters. For instance, it could be that one of your passengers was injured. If that same passenger was a senior citizen, your lawyer will have to help with the technicalities.
• Do not give any statement; wait until you have spoken with a personal injury lawyer in Cornwall.
What you should say about your injuries:
Do not go into detail about your injuries when you have that first contact with the adjuster. You can offer a more complete description of your injuries at a later time. Still, it does not hurt to mention the pain that you might be feeling. Because there is no test for pain, your early comments can work to re-inforce whatever statements you might make in the future.
When you should speak-up:
If the adjuster’s comments indicate that he or she may have received some incorrect information, do your best to clarify the situation. Make certain that the other party has not saddled your case with a weakness that it does not have. For instance, if the other party created the dent in your vehicle by changing lanes, but then claimed that you had tried changing lanes, you must state the facts.
Do not hesitate to ask questions, if that will help you to discover what the other party’s insurance company already knows. Once you have discovered what information the other party’s insurance company has already collected, you can share that knowledge with your lawyer.
What you should do after you had that first adjuster-victim conversation:
Prepare a letter that you can send to the adjuster’s address. In that letter, state the amount of money that you think you should receive in the form of compensation. Be prepared to receive another one of the adjuster’s phone calls. Then the two of you can negotiate, regarding the amount of money that the other party’s insurance company stands ready to give you.
Most adjusters try to get an accident victim to agree to an early settlement. Do not fall into that trap.