Should I Take the Insurance Company’s Offer After an Accident?

If you have been involved in a crash, you know how long it can take for the insurance company to make an initial settlement offer. While you may be eager to collect your money and put the entire ordeal behind you, generally, you should not take the insurance company’s first offer after a crash. That is because an initial settlement offer is usually small, not factoring in future medical costs or diminished earning capacity.

While you may think that accepting a low settlement is better than walking away empty-handed, do not let the insurance company take advantage of you. Once you accept a settlement offer, you will sign a release and waiver prohibiting you from accepting further compensation for losses related to your accident. In making this decision in haste, you could very well be denying yourself the compensation to which you are entitled.

HGSK Injury Lawyers has successfully helped countless clients by negotiating a fair insurance settlement. If you are unsure about the worth of your accident case, our Philadelphia car accident attorneys would like to hear from you.

Future Costs Are Unknown

Most car accident attorneys will recommend that you do not take a settlement until you have reached maximum medical improvement or MMI. MMI is the point at which you will no longer make significant improvement, even with continuing treatment. MMI is determined by your treating physician. Once you have reached MMI, you will have a much better idea of your future treatment costs and ability to work. This will allow you to ask for reasonable compensation.

Insurance Undervalues Pain and Suffering

An initial settlement offer will typically not account for noneconomic damages, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and mental anguish. Noneconomic damages are not based upon some superfluous amount but rather calculated based on an individual’s economic damages and injury severity scale. Even if you do have full tort coverage that compensates for pain and suffering, by the time of an initial settlement offer, the entirety of your economic damages are yet to be fully realized.

Insurance Wants to Minimize Their Damages

While your accident may have resulted in lost income, medical expenses, and vehicle damage and repairs, insurance will want to pay out as little as possible. A common insurance tactic is to wait as long as possible to offer you a settlement, by which point they are banking on you being desperate enough to take it. Moreover, stalling gives you less time to take your case to court, which is limited to two years in Pennsylvania.

Even when filing a PIP or MedPay claim, the insurance company may dispute whether or not your medical expenses or lost wages (in the case of PIP) are related to your accident. To avoid too much pushback, you will want to make sure that your damages are well documented in the forms of pay stubs, medical records, treatment documents, and reports from your treating physician.

When you retain the legal services of HGSK Injury Lawyers, you can leave the heavy lifting to us. We will contact healthcare providers to get the documentation you need to ensure a seamless claim. In the aftermath of a crash, your priority should be healing, not negotiating with the insurance company. Our legal team is proud to represent your interests and help you get the compensation you deserve.

Insurance Negotiations at a Standstill? Contact Our Philadelphia Car Accident Attorneys Today

If you or a family member have been subject to a collision, the legal team at HGSK Injury Lawyers is ready to assist you. Our Philadelphia car accident lawyers know the frustration and disappointment that comes with an insurance claim, dedicating our work to helping injured parties seek justice. Securing multiple million-dollar settlements for car accident victims each year, we maintain an unparalleled level of success compared to other personal injury firms. To learn more or schedule your free consultation, contact us online or give us a call today.