If an insurance company is offering you a settlement after a car accident, you may be tempted to take the money and put the accident in your rearview mirror. However, there are several reasons why it’s a good idea to pump the brakes and check with an attorney before signing the dotted line.
Lowball Settlements
Settling a case early is a bad idea for several reasons. First, you may be falling for the oldest trick in the book: a lowball settlement offer.
Lowball settlement offers are offers that insurance companies make to get rid of their liabilities (the people they owe money to) at the lowest price possible. Lowball settlement offers often work because people are confused by their insurance coverage and assume companies are legally obligated to provide maximum recoveries.
In other words, insurance companies take advantage of people, and they may be taking advantage of you.
Recovery Plans
After accidents, many people visit doctors to check for injuries. Once diagnosed, they often forget to look into their recovery options because various forms of recovery (physical therapy, chiropractic services, etc.) are expensive. However, insurance companies are often on the hook for these costs.
Unfortunately, insurance companies will only cover these costs if the injured document them properly. Therefore, if you never talked about your recovery options with the insurance company, the settlement offer likely doesn’t include these future costs.
Talk to an Austin Auto Accident Attorney Today
As you can see, it’s never wise to take a settlement offer from an insurance company before talking to a trusted personal injury attorney. Briggle & Polan, PLLC offers free consultations for all potential clients, which means you can have us review your settlement offer at no cost to you!
Ready to get the facts about your case? Call (512) 400-3278 now for a free consultation.
