How Do You Settle An Injury Claim?

By: JacquelineBrewster

When you have been involved in a car accident and you want to settle an injury claim you should be aware of a few things. For example, if you are not interested in taking the case to court but rather settle then you have every chance to do this before things develop. The initial settlement discussions will take place with an insurance adjuster that is supposed to investigate all the facts and then formulate a fair settlement.

Evaluating the evidence is the most important thing that he/she will have to take care of. The adjuster will have to take a close look at all the reports related to the claimant’s injuries and damages. There is lots of evidence that will need to be processed by the insurance adjuster such as the medical bills and treatment plans that you had to follow, the loss of wages, the personal financial loses that you had to suffer and so on.

Even if you are under such tight scrutiny you should not offer information about previous injuries and former events voluntarily. The defence will use them in order to undermine or to lower you compensation claim. However, if you had a minor previous injury but because of the accident the seriousness of the injury developed then you should underline this fact.

The insurance adjuster will not take care of the settlement for you nor will he/she make the first settlement proposal. If you have been the victim then you are the one that has to make the first settlement proposal. After this is done, negotiations will begin. Of course, the sum of money will change a few times in the course of the negotiations this is why you should have a bottom line in mind. Try to determine the minimum amount that you would accept. This doesn’t mean that you have to stop negotiation when you hear that amount but you should try to push things forward and see where they end up.

You never have to give the exact figure that you want to receive as you first settlement offer. This is pointless because you risk losing money. The adjuster will think that this sum is intended for negotiations so you should start higher. Don’t ask for an absurd sum of money because you risk turning off all negotiations. With the help of a solicitor you will surely be able to receive the right compensation for the pain and the suffering that you have sustained.

Article Source: http://yourfinance.co.za