The article today comes straight from our clients over many years. The question is a popular one: “The insurance adjuster has asked me how much I want to settle the claim for. How Much Do I Want To Settle For? How do I come about with determining what value to give them?”
Well, it’s really critical when you’re dealing with an insurance adjuster that you take into consideration the full extent of your injuries and you may not be at that point yet. If you have a broken arm and nothing more, that may be all there is. However, if you suffered numerous injuries such as ongoing physical therapy or you will need more surgery, you do not want to settle.
What the insurance company is basically asking you is this: “Can we pay you and close out this file?” You do not want them to do that until you are absolutely sure there isn’t something big coming up related to your injuries. Once you settle, you will be required to sign the legal documents. Those documents prevent you from coming back and brining any future claims.
So, before you can answer the question of: “are you finished with all of your medical treatments?”, you need to find out the full extent of your damages so you know where you stand. There are a couple of things that can help you out at this point with your insurance company who may be pushing you to settle.
First, speak with a Georgia personal injury lawyer with experience. You want someone who has worked with many different insurance companies and knows how they operate and knows how to handle the situation. He can offer information to help you and you may find that it’s of benefit to bring in a lawyer at this point in your case.
Next, make sure you are getting accurate information from your care providers on the extent of your injury and what needs to be done long term. Ask questions. Ask if there will be other surgeries. Ask about your healing time. Ask if you will be able to go back to work full time as you were before or if there will be limitations, for how long and what those limitations will be. Make sure you understand your physical situation better than the insurance company because they will paint a different picture.
You also want to make sure you know what your lost wages are and whether you will lose any in the future. You really cannot determine that until you have completed all of your medical care. And then at that point in time, you want to make sure that you have all your bases covered. You want to make sure that all the T’s are crossed, all the I’s are dotted before you know how much you want to settle for. It’s always a good idea to speak with a Georgia personal injury attorney to find out exactly what damages you may or may not be entitled to based upon the facts and specific situations of your car wreck. There will be things you may not have considered.
So, to circle back to the original question – how much do I want to settle for? It all depends on whether you are healed, your medical treatment is completely over, your wages have all been paid or will be included and any other payments you may have coming are considered.
If you have a worker’s compensation claim and need Ty’s help, reach out by visiting our contact page.
Other articles you may want to read:
Top 10 Things NOT to Say To Your Worker’s Comp Adjuster
