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You should definitely communicate with your own insurance company’s adjuster, but the insurance adjuster for the other driver’s insurance will probably be more difficult to deal with it. \u00a0Here are some of the tricks the insurance adjuster will use to try and make you settle your case for an unfair amount.<\/p>\n
1. Pretending to be your friend.<\/strong> This is the worst. Insurance companies are a big business, and they make money by denying your claim. \u00a0They pay their adjusters to give you as little money as possible. \u00a0The adjuster is on the opposite side from you. \u00a0This may be a good person who coaches Little League, donates to charity and loves dogs. \u00a0But always remember: his job is to pay you as little money as possible. Don’t buy it!<\/p>\n 2. Delaying the process.<\/strong> \u00a0Insurance companies handle millions of claims. \u00a0If they can save $100 on each one, they increase their bottom line by hundreds of millions of dollars. \u00a0They have a whole lot of money that they are investing, and they are making lots of money on those investments. \u00a0Every day that they can delay paying you is a day that they can earn interest on their money. \u00a0They also know that you are getting squeezed, and every day they can delay makes you just a little bit more desperate to settle.<\/p>\n 3. Requiring unnecessary information. \u00a0<\/strong>This is just one more way for them to cause delay. \u00a0If you’ve broken an arm in an accident, they’ll ask for medical records from five years ago that have nothing to do with your arm. \u00a0This is not right. \u00a0You are only required to give them medical records related to the body parts that were injured in the accident. \u00a0They don’t need to read about your flu shots! \u00a0But try telling that to the average adjuster. \u00a0They just want more and more paper; even if it has nothing to do with your case. \u00a0Because, who knows, maybe there will be something in those records that will help them fight your case. \u00a0And even if not, delay is always good for them- and always bad for you.<\/p>\n 4. Hiding insurance.<\/strong> \u00a0Sometimes adjusters will tell you there’s only $100,000 (or $300,000, or $25,000, or whatever their number is) of insurance. \u00a0Then after a lawsuit has been filed, you find out there’s an umbrella policy for $1,000,000. \u00a0Let’s just say we “strongly suspect” that they knew that when they told you there was only $100,000.<\/p>\n 5. Breaking promises. \u00a0<\/strong>We hear from people all the time who tell us that the adjuster made them a promise, and then broke it. \u00a0Get it in writing! Many insurance adjusters are poorly trained, underpaid, overworked, or just plain don’t care. \u00a0These are not professionals who care about their reputations. \u00a0If it’s not in writing, it means nothing.<\/p>\n 6. Acting like medical experts.<\/strong> \u00a0I’ve never met an insurance adjuster who went to medical school. \u00a0But they always seem to have opinions about your medical treatment. \u00a0They think they know when you should be better, because their computer says that ten chiropractic treatments is too much for your injury.<\/p>\n 7. Undervaluing medical bills.<\/strong> \u00a0Health insurance in the USA is complicated. \u00a0Typically, a hospital or doctor may bill, say, $500, for a procedure. \u00a0But the insurer, whether it’s PIP or health insurance or Medicare, will only pay, say $200. \u00a0The doctor accepts that as full payment. \u00a0But here’s the question: if the insurance company of the person who hurt you is going to pay for your medical bills, do they pay $200 or $500? \u00a0The answer is $500. \u00a0That’s the law in Oregon. \u00a0But adjusters will often tell you they only have to pay $200. \u00a0That’s not right, but if you let them get away with it, then they just saved their shareholders $300 at your expense.<\/p>\n