You may be surprised at the speed with which you are contacted by an insurance company after an accident. It may even be the other driver's insurance trying to reach you. Read on to learn what to do when you are contacted by an insurance adjuster from the other side.
The Timing Is Suspect
You may have heard advice about not making any major decisions when you have been in a traumatic incident. Car accidents can be very traumatic for victims. Many victims are under the influence of medication or suffering from the accident when the insurer adjuster for the other side calls.
You might want to put this issue off, but the caller insists that you need to take the call right away. It turns out that you are being interviewed about the accident and must agree to it being recorded. This catches many victims off-guard and fearful that they will end up owing a ton of money for medical bills and more if they don't comply with the request.
Why Are They Calling So Soon?
The other insurer is not on your side, unlike your own insurer might be. They are not worried about your health or your state of mind after an accident. The insurer may already know that their client is responsible for the car accident, and now they need to mitigate the monetary damages.
Mitigation of Damages
This term simply means that the insurer will use that premature phone interview to put your claim for damages in jeopardy. Unfortunately, even innocent statements can be used against you when it comes to car accident claims. For example, simply saying that you are sorry that the accident occurred could be seen as an admission of fault. While accident victims are convinced that the phone call is to discuss a monetary settlement, it's really a trap to get victims to make statements that can be misconstrued or used to reduce the money owed. It may seem unfair, but the problem can be easily remedied by not speaking to them.
Don't Speak to the Other Side
You only need to speak to your own insurer and your personal injury attorney about the accident. Don't speak to the other driver or their insurer. Verify who is on the other end of the line before you talk to them. Tell the adjuster that you either already have a lawyer or that you are speaking to a lawyer shortly. Let the lawyer deal with the insurer so you can focus your attention on recovering.
For more info, contact a local firm like Frank Penney Injury Lawyers.
