Car accidents are the most common type of accident in the United States, and that’s why auto insurers make up a large part of the insurance sector. If you need to pursue a car accident settlement after suffering injuries in a crash, you might be wondering about the role of your insurance company — or the other party’s insurance company — in your claim’s progress and outcome.
Insurance companies are responsible for conducting thorough investigations of motor vehicle accidents to determine who is at fault and what financial compensation should be paid to the injured parties. However, insurers are profit-based businesses. Their goal is to save money, not to deliver a full and fair car accident settlement to you.h
The skilled legal team at Stokes Stemle, LLC can level the playing field for you. Our Alabama car accident attorneys can manage all communications with the insurance company and negotiate for maximum compensation on your behalf after a crash. That way, you can focus on healing.
Our personal injury law firm has consistently received five-star ratings for top-quality legal services and client satisfaction. Let us help with your car accident insurance claim, too. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Determining Fault and Liability
The laws governing fault and liability in car accident claims vary by state. Some are no-fault states, meaning that both parties involved in an auto accident must file a claim with their own insurance companies first, regardless of who was responsible for the crash.
Alabama is a fault state for car accident insurance claims. A driver who is found responsible for a collision can be held financially accountable for the accident victim’s medical bills and other losses. But who determines liability? It depends.
An insurance company will assign an adjuster to the case. The adjuster will examine evidence like police reports, eyewitness statements, security camera footage, and their own research to determine who they believe is liable for the accident. If you hire an experienced car accident lawyer to handle your claim, your attorney will conduct an independent investigation to see if their findings align with the adjuster’s determination. You could be entitled to compensation if the other driver was at fault.
Many times, insurance companies and lawyers disagree over liability. An insurance company might also employ tactics to delay, minimize, or push the blame for the car crash onto the injured party. Having quality legal representation is crucial in these situations to dispute unfair claims of fault. If no party can agree on who is liable, car accident victims may choose to file a lawsuit and let a judge or jury decide.
Negotiating Settlements
If you prove the other driver is to blame, you can request compensation from their insurer. You could submit the claim to your insurance company, who will negotiate a settlement on your behalf, or contact the at-fault driver’s insurance company directly. However, negotiating a settlement on your own is not usually in your best interest.
Insurance adjusters often ask victims questions designed to elicit responses that may reduce or deny claims. Insurers are also notorious for making lowball settlement offers initially, hoping to get claimants to accept the money before they understand the actual value of their car accident cases. An experienced car accident attorney can review your losses and calculate an appropriate value that considers your past, current, and future costs.
Dealing with Denied Claims
It is not unusual for insurance companies to put profits over people. Regardless of how much money it may cost them, Alabama law requires insurance companies to act in good faith when investigating your car accident claim. They must act reasonably when investigating, processing, and paying claims.
If an insurance company has denied your claim and you believe that the company acted in bad faith, an experienced Alabama car accident lawyer may be able to help you recover compensation.
How to Protect Yourself When Dealing with Insurance Companies
Always be cautious when interacting with an insurance company after a car wreck. You can protect your legal rights and personal injury claim by:
- Reading your policy thoroughly – You need to understand your insurance policy. Don’t be afraid to ask questions if you’re unsure about your coverage or don’t know the policy’s exclusions.
- Watching what you say – No matter how friendly an insurance adjuster seems, they are not your friends. They look for loopholes to minimize settlements, often by using statements that claimants make against them. The less you say to them, the better off you are. You can always refer them to your car accident lawyer.
- Refusing quick settlement offers – It can be tempting to accept the first car accident settlement offered by the at-fault driver’s insurance company, especially if you don’t want to deal with the hassle of going in and out of court. However, the first offer likely represents the lowest in a range of figures the insurer might agree to. Don’t accept the first number insurance companies offer you just to get it over with. Once you settle, you can’t ask for more money later. Taking the time to consult a personal injury lawyer could put more money in your pocket in the long run.
When you work with Stokes Stemle, LLC, we will:
- Independently investigate the car accident to recover crucial evidence
- Work with experts as needed to establish the fair value of your claim
- Negotiate with insurers to protect you from their attempts to undervalue your car accident case
- Demand a fair settlement accounting for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses
- File a car accident lawsuit if the insurance company refuses to settle
Common Challenges in Insurance Claims
Insurance companies look for all kinds of ways to avoid paying out car accident claims. They might:
- Question your claim’s validity
- Deny your claim based on policy exclusions
- Dispute the value of your claim
- Dispute the cause of the accident
- Delay their investigation
- Stall when making a decision
The only way to effectively fight back against these disputes is to contact a car accident attorney who can hold the negligent driver’s insurance company accountable through the threat of litigation.
Contact Our Opelika Car Accident Lawyers for Help
Dealing with insurance companies after a car accident can be an exhausting process. Stokes Stemle, LLC is here to help.
Our law firm is committed to providing personalized service to injured people. When we work on your car accident claim, you get customized legal strategies tailored to the unique circumstances of your case. Best of all, we work on a contingency basis, which means we don’t get paid unless you do.
Call us at 334-310-4181 or contact us today for a free consultation with our Opelika auto accident lawyers.
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