Secrets of Accident Claims Against GEICO Revealed

GEICO offers some of the best car insurance rates in Alabama and insures tens of thousands of Alabama residents. It is no wonder you might need to deal with GEICO if you ’ ve been involved in a car accident. Alabama is an at-fault cable car indemnity department of state. This means your injury claim will be paid by the insurance company for the at-fault driver. If GEICO insured the driver who caused the accident, you and your accident lawyer will deal with GEICO and its claim adjusters. here are some secrets for handling accident claims with GEICO and ways an injury lawyer can help you obtain the recovery you deserve .

Accident Claims in Alabama

After your accident, you will exchange policy information with the early drivers involved. If the at-fault driver has a policy from GEICO, your injury claim will be filed with GEICO ’ mho claim division.

Your case will be assigned to a claim adjuster, who will determine the liability of GEICO ’ s insured. The claim adjuster will besides assess the value of your claim. This march can be difficult and frustrating, but injury lawyers know some of the secrets that can help you to get a fair offer from GEICO at the end of it .

GEICO Has a Financial Interest in Denying or Reducing Your Claim

GEICO is not in the policy business to pay out on claims. Surveys confirm this. GEICO has a below-average rat for handling claims. alternatively, GEICO is in the indemnity business to make money. GEICO is the second-largest car insurance company in the U.S. It collects over $ 35 billion in premiums every year. GEICO would not be one of the most profitable car insurers if it paid all those premiums out for claims. GEICO ’ s fiscal interest is to spend angstrom little as possible in give claims. At the like time, it can not violate its duty under its indemnity contracts to pay when liability is testify. So GEICO will pay lone after you and your lawyer exert the clock and attempt to prove your claim .

GEICO Cannot Require You To Give a Recorded Statement

early on in the call, GEICO will request a read argument from you. A claim adjuster collects a recorded instruction from you by asking you questions while recording your telephone call. GEICO will claim that a read statement is necessary in ordering to process your claim. But the claim adjuster can use other information to process your claim. Your lawyer will document your claim with checkup records, patrol reports, and even photos of the accident scenery if you have them. GEICO will speak to its cover and collect a statement about the accident. This information should sufficiently document the accident without your statement. A claim adjuster may insist on a record statement…not for your profit, but because it can give GEICO potent evidence — namely your words — to deny or reduce your call. For model, a claim adjuster may ask you about your injuries to try to prove that they pre-dated the accident. even a apparently innocent remark about your arthritis can be twisted into denying your claim. If you want to give a commemorate instruction, consider hiring an wound lawyer to represent you during the call. A lawyer can try to keep the statement focused on the relevant issues without giving the adjuster ammunition to use against you .

GEICO’s Initial Offer Will Be Low

If GEICO does not deny your claim, its initial offer will be gloomy. Often, the offer will be lower than your document medical bills, even when you are entitled to wax compensation for your out-of-pocket medical expenses.

For exemplar, your lawyer might include $ 15,000 worth of aesculapian bills with your claim. GEICO ’ s foremost offer could be a first gear as 20 % of your expenses, or $ 3,000 in this example. A low volunteer benefits GEICO in a few ways :

• GEICO saves money on your claim if you accept the low offer.
• GEICO’s claim adjuster has room to negotiate if you do not.

thus, in the example above, if the call adjuster doubles the initial offer to $ 6,000, you might feel like you accomplished a bunch. But the offer is still $ 9,000 less than your document aesculapian bills, without tied considering your lost wages or pain and suffering .

Getting a Fair Offer From GEICO Will Require Negotiation

Negotiating with GEICO will not be comfortable, but it may be necessity in order to get a fair settlement. GEICO ’ s claim adjusters are skilled negotiators. They employ negotiating tactics designed to pressure you into accepting a liquidation that is lower than the measure of your case. These tactics may include :

Stretching Out the Process

Alabama limits how a lot time insurance companies take to process claims. however, if the insurance company disputes indebtedness, it can slow claims to a crawl. Delays in processing your claim can frustrate you and push you to accept a low crack just to end the hale position .

Putting on the Financial Pressure

You will need medical treatment to recover from your injuries. Your injuries might prevent you from working. GEICO knows this and they will try to wear you down so you will accept an offer to ease your fiscal pain. You should view negotiation as a necessary part of the settlement process. fortunately, claim adjusters normally refrain from using negotiation tactics with lawyers because they do not want to expose GEICO to an unwinnable lawsuit .

GEICO Does Not Fight Losing Lawsuits

If your lawyer proves clear indebtedness, GEICO will settle your case. GEICO does not fight losing lawsuits. Juries can be irregular, and GEICO ’ randomness greatest concern is to be hit with a large damages award. Although a claim adjuster will fight to reduce the colony amount, the claim adjuster must make a good faith effort to resolve the case when indebtedness is clear. GEICO does not pay lawyers to lose cases. And it surely does not want to expose itself to bad faith indemnity claims.

If settlement talks stall, your lawyer can file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver. GEICO must defend its guarantee. It will need to balance the risk of a huge jury prize against increasing its liquidation extend. In most cases, the case will settle before it reaches test .

How a Lawyer Can Help Resolve Accident Claims with GEICO

Resolving an accident claim can frustrate you. accident lawyers can help by evaluating your case. This evaluation will tell you when GEICO ’ s offer is fair. Accident attorneys know how GEICO ’ s title adjusters work. They know how to counter the negociate tactics used by GEICO. An accident lawyer may provide the easiest path to recovering compensation for your injuries when you ’ ve been in an accident .