QuestionOn 1/27 I was broadsided by a driver as she made a right turn from the median in front of me. No, that is not a typo, she made a right turn from the center median. She got out of her car and started screaming at me in a foreign language. I called CA Hwy Patrol and they came out and got all the information for both of us. I picked up the report today and it does in fact show her as the cause of the accident.
My car sustained $4k in damages, I have had to take 3 days off from work and I have whiplash. Its not severe enough to be debilitating but it does hurt. By obtaining the police report I got her age (17) and her insurance information. I contacted her insurance carrier (Farmers) today at the suggestion of my insurance company. She had yet to report the incident (14 days after it occurred).
My insurance company will get payment for the car repairs and rental car (combined total $4500) from her insurance but I am wondering what a reasonable settlement amount would be for this incident. I had to pay my deductible and the 3 days off work puts actual costs at $800 so far. Would I be out of line to expect $3k in settlement?
AnswerHi Shannon,
Dr. Settlement teaches maximum insurance settlements, and one of the first lessons I teach is to have patience and get treatment for even dull aches; they can grow if not attended to.
You asked: "Would I be out of line to expect $3k in settlement?"
ANSWER: You would be out of line in even thinking about a settlement only 13 days after sustaining whiplash injuries that still hurt. Take care of your injuries and get medical or chiropractic attention for them ASAP. Even if you have not yet seen a doctor, it is never too late to REPORT PERSONAL INJURIES FROM AN AUTO ACCIDENT http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0104.htm
Look, a broadside hit with $4K in damages is not of course a tremendous impact, BUT it is MORE than sufficient trauma to cause a moderate whiplash injury. And those can be tricky in that the little dull ache you feel now CAN AND WILL grow into a real pain when you put your body to physical stress within a few weeks. Hence, get your care NOW.
DO NOT SETTLE YOUR CLAIM UNLESS YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT SOFT TISSUE INJURIES WILL NOT REAPPEAR ONCE YOU STRESS YOUR BODY WITH PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES OR JUST DAILY LIVING AND WORKING. That Plays Right Into an Insurance Tactic Regarding Inducing Early Settlement of Injury Claims.
Let's just finish up this topic of early settlements Shannon, so you get the full picture of the advantage to the adjuster and the risks to you. Insurance companies like to settle early because the general damages—claims for pain and suffering—are always minimal at first, but continue to grow with continued medical/therapeutic care over the months. Therefore, the insurance adjuster will try to settle before the claim merits a larger pain and suffering element. This makes good sense for the insurance company. A claim that is still active after 4 months, with an injured claimant still undergoing treatment, will settle for a lot more pain and suffering money than a claim that is settled after three weeks of treatment.
In soft tissue cases such as this, the full extent of most injuries is not known immediately after finishing early rounds of treatment, because the injured person has to undergo some of the wear and tear of everyday life, including the pounding her body will receive from a day's work. Even jobs that appear not to be physically demanding can be hard on an injured body.
For example, have you ever stood all day with few breaks, as a store checkout clerk or a jewelry salesperson does? Or sat all day at a computer, as a secretary or phone service center employee does? Many jobs will interfere with healing, and you have no way to know how your body will respond until you have experienced sufficient physical exposure to load-test the ligamentous scar tissue as you heal.
Plus, who will pay for your medical care incurred AFTER you settle? What if you were to settle now and six months later when you are suffering physical summer activity and the pain starts to become too much, and you go to a chiropractor only to discover that you can expect a course of treatment that will cost a lot of money? After you settle your claim, all further treatment is YOUR responsibility. Except in specific, unusual situations, you cannot go back and re-open a settlement.
Here is page from my website that shows in detail why you should never make an early personal injury insurance claims settlement http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0211.htm
And, of course, once you settle, THAT IS IT: you will never see another dime in pain and suffering money. By the way, did you know that getting an early settlement is a favorite trick of the insurance adjusters? Please see my website wherein we show Insurance Claim Adjuster Secret Tactics http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0092.htm
I know that you think this is going on too far with this one topic, Shannon, but I HAVE TO TELL YOU that this is a REAL danger that I have seen many times. So just have patience a bit longer and commit yourself to read the following:
There may be a dull ache at night following a day at work, or some physical activity or pain the next morning. DO NOT LET LITTLE PAINS GO UNATTENDED SINCE YOU DO NOT KNOW WHETHER THEY WILL CONTINUE OR GO AWAY. We all hope and believe that such little pains will disappear soon. But on the other hand, we have no way of knowing since this is the way some soft tissue injuries can behave.
So, when this happens, even if three or four weeks or more post-accident, do not hesitate to SEE A DOCTOR AND ATTRIBUTE THE PAIN TO THE ACCIDENT WITHOUT EQUIVOCATION. It is NEVER TOO LATE TO REPORT PERSONAL INJURIES FROM AN AUTO ACCIDENT http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0104.htm
"No medicine: no money"; medical costs increase worth of personal injury insurance claims http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0045.htm
Now, as for that value, make sure that you think in terms of "new money" or NET IN YOUR POCKET. For example, if $3K is the personal injury settlement amount, then that is going to include all of the medical expenses and lost work and transportation expenses. Since your own insurance will likely have paid the medical bills, they will want their money back. This is called subrogation. It comes out of the settlement award. Introduction to Subrogation— http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0459.htm Forced Payback to YOUR OWN Insurer From Your Personal Injury Award.
So be sure to think in terms of what is going to go to YOU when you start to negotiate.
There are a lot of pages of free legal information www.SettlementCentral.Com helps settle insurance claims. Why not take a look at some of these and get a flavor of how to go about settling your own personal injury insurance claim?
Here is a series of pages that you can review. Take what makes sense to you and don't worry about the rest. Just get a flavor of how the system works without spending a ton of time right now.
Just skim this one and don't spend much time on it: overview Tort Law Personal Injury Legal Claims http://www.settlementcentral.com/page3000.htm
Managing Medical Care After Auto Accident: http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0203.htm
Medical Care Documentation-the Key to Successful Personal Injury Insurance Claim Settlements http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0217.htm
Keys to a MAXIMUM INSURANCE INJURY CLAIM SETTLEMENT http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0089.htm
Use a Confidential Personal Injury Diary for TOP DOLLAR Insurance Claim Settlements http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0208.htm
Outline of questions to be expected from insurance claims adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0190.htm
Detailed listing of questions to be expected from insurance claims adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0207.htm
By the way, did you know that getting an early settlement is a favorite trick of the insurance adjusters? Please see my website wherein we show Insurance Claim Adjuster Secret Tactics http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0092.htm
Responding to Settlement Offer From Insurance Claims Adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0244.htm
Do It Yourself Advantages, or do these claims need an attorney? As for an ATTORNEY, this does not seem to be a case that involves any legal issues in dispute nor any large or complex damages. Why should you pay someone one-third to do what you can do yourself? Do-It-Yourself Personal Injury Claims; Eliminate Personal Injury Attorneys' Fees; Save Thousands of Dollars Settling Your Own Insurance Claim http://www.settlementcentral.com/page3011.htm
Without having to join my website, I have given a lot of free information on handling insurance claims without having to join as a member. Read the module at "5 Easy Steps to Do-it-Yourself Insurance Claim Settlement" http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0102.htm
This stuff is not rocket science, but it will take some effort on your part to read and cut and paste letter examples and to communicate. But hundreds of people are doing it each day, and they are getting good results.
What if you get only two-thirds the way to your settlement goal? Well, you can get as big a settlement as you can and then turn it over to an attorney and save a lot of fees. Thus, you could go it alone just to get an insurance settlement offer, and then take that insurance settlement offer to a personal injury attorney, thus exempting the amount of the offer from her fees. Do It Yourself Personal Injury Settlement Offer Reduces Personal Injury Attorney Fees http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0109.htm
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Learn about how to communicate with the insurance adjuster: FINAL TOPIC—COMMUNICATE IN WRITING AND "DEMAND" NOT "ASK"
FINAL TOPIC, Shannon: Effective communication with insurance claims adjusters. Establish Firm, Professional, and Positive Relationships With the Insurance Injury Claims Adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0059.htm
Always communicate with the adjuster in writing, showing your own analysis of value. It is OK I guess to have one call or so, but no more. Always have your information and ammunition in writing to give to the adjuster.
Let him know that you are FIRM IN YOUR RESOLVE to get what you are demanding (NOT "asking", since that invites a counter-offer, but instead "demanding" as fair and reasonable compensation) by asking him what the options are to resolve the matter fairly should he not agree to a reasonable claim value. In other words, let him know that you will go through with a court filing if need be.
Remember these tips, do your homework, print out your evidence, show resolve to get your fair settlement, and you will DO JUST FINE.
I trust that my extra time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you take the time to locate the FEEDBACK FORM on this site and leave some feedback for me.
Best Wishes,
Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
http://www.SettlementCentral.Com
