Everybody needs a challenge once in a while.  It gives you the adrenaline rush and sense of urgency that really makes you day much, much more interesting.  And what better way to truly test your mettle than to test it against a large insurance company with a dedicated legal department.  If you want to make your auto insurance claim as difficult as possible, follow these easy steps.

#1 – Don’t Immediately Get Medical Attention

In the insurance industry, it is considered that an auto accident injury is sustained when you go to seek treatment at a professional medical facility.  This is usually the emergency room, but can also be a chiropractor or massage therapist.  Many people seek attention directly after the accident, but you shouldn’t.  By waiting a few days you give the insurance company a loophole where they can say the injury was suffered in the days following the accident.  This will put the burden of proof on you to prove that the injury was sustained at the crash and not later.

#2 – Don’t Take Pictures of the Crash

If you don’t take pictures of the crash, you can’t threaten to use them in court if an insurance settlement falls through.  You also don’t have a record of the property damage to your car.  This puts you in a much weaker bargaining position where you can truly test how tough you are against those big, bad boys over at the insurance company.

#3 – Neglect to Write Down the Details of Accident and Persons Involved

This tip will really test what kind of a person you are.  Make sure that you don’t write down any of the details associated with the crash.  This ensures that every time you are questioned by the insurance company during their investigation into your injury claim you have to remember every detail of the crash, no matter how long its been since the accident.  The real test is making sure that all your details remain exactly the same sot that the company can’t cast any reasonable doubt on your story.  Not for the faint of heart to be sure.

#4 – Admit Guilt

What better way to put yourself at a disadvantage at the bargaining table than by admitting guilt?  Make sure you are adamant about it and admit that it was your fault to the police officer, bystanders, and other passengers and drivers involved in the crash.  It will definitely give you several interesting conversations with the insurance company when you try to recover some damages.  Not only that, once the police report the accident as your fault, your insurance premiums will skyrocket.  For womens car insurance this is a great way to close the gap with men, who regularly pay a much steeper price in insurance.

#5 – Throw Away the Police Report and Other Papers Related to the Auto Accident Claim

Paper documentation is for the weak of heart.  Throwing away the papers that are relevant to your accident may allow the insurance company to say there’s no way that you can prove that you are owed the amount of money you say you are.  But this just gives you a chance to play the ace that you’ve literally been keeping up your sleeve and say “I got your proof right here” and flash the guns.

#6 – Stay Silent to Your Insurance Company

Sure, you could tell your insurance company that you’ve been in a crash so that they assign someone to investigate it, but that would just defeat the purpose of taking on the insurance company yourself.  Besides, they’ll be happy to hear about it from the other driver’s insurance.

#7 – Don’t Hire a Lawyer for Big Cases

This seems almost like its implied if you’ve followed our advice so far, but this is where many people falter.  If you’ve been actively trying to screw up your auto accident claims, don’t let some fancy, smooth-talking lawyer convince you that you need his help to get a fair settlement to your claim because he has experience in negotiating with them.  You’re doing just fine on your own, thank you.

If you followed our advice, you no doubt are about to have many sleepless nights wondering how you are going to pay for the medical or property damages related to your auto accident.  It may seem like you will never get the auto accident settlement you want.  But what you’re losing in sleep you’re gaining many times over in excitement!

There are over five million auto accidents every year that result in two million injured people and close to twenty thousand dead.  If you are unfortunate enough to be adversely affected by an auto accident, one of the options you have to resolve your claim is to pursue an auto accident settlement.  However, attempting to negotiate with an insurance company can be extremely hard, frustrating, and confusing all at the same time.  Fortunately, there are several different things that you can do to increase your chances of a settlement in your favor.  Unfortunately, like most things this will take some time, effort, and research on your part.

Attorney or No Attorney?

The first major decision that you will have to make when dealing with car accident claims is whether or not to hire an attorney to work on your behalf.  This will many times depend on the size of your case and the cost of the lawyer.  If your case is complicated or involves a large settlement amount, it will most likely be worth your money to hire an attorney to litigate the case and negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf.  However, if your case is fairly straightforward and easy to understand or involves a fairly small settlement amount, it may not be worth the money to hire an attorney.  Whatever you can in the settlement from having the attorney negotiate for you will most likely be offset by the attorney’s fees.

There are several things that an attorney will do for you during an auto accident injury settlement.  They will take care of gathering all the necessary information and submitting it to the insurance company.  They can also more accurately determine the amount of pain and suffering damages you can ask for and also are aware of all the rules that are designed to protect your rights in the case.  Attorneys may also know several people in the insurance company you’re dealing with, increasing the odds of a settlement in your favor.  Finally, and most importantly, attorneys have lots of experience with insurance negotiations.  This experience will let them negotiate harder and will ensure that you will mostly likely get more money in any settlement than you would if you negotiated for yourself.

You will have to weigh the pros and cons of hiring a lawyer on a case by case basis.

Filing an Auto Accident Insurance Claim

Before you get to the settlement phase of any negotiation, you must first file an insurance claim after the auto accident.  What you do in this step and how thorough you are with the information you collect will directly affect how much money you will be able to receive in any settlement.

First, immediately after a crash make sure you take pictures of the accident and the surrounding area.  Make sure you keep these backed up and private as an ace up your sleeve to use in any negotiations with the insurance company.  Also get a copy of the police report and any tickets that assign blame for the crash.  Finally, think you may be injured in any way make sure you visit the emergency room.  Whether or not you seek care from a professional is how insurance companies determine if you were injured or not.  If you do not seek care immediately they can make a case that the injury was caused by something other than the car crash.

If you need continuing treatment for any injuries sustained in the crash make sure that you keep copies of all of your medical records.  Also keep records of any lost wages from work and time and money spent traveling to and from the treatment facility.  All of this documentation will come in handy during negotiations.

If your car was damaged in the crash, make sure you take it to a body shop that you trust and that you keep all records of what was repaired.  Some insurance companies have certified body shops that you can take your car to so that in the event the repaired part fails you are covered.  If you decide to go to a different body shop, it would be wise to have a second shop double check your car to make sure it is repaired correctly.

Negotiating Auto Accident Settlements

If you have done the steps above and kept thorough records of everything dealing with your crash, you will be in a much better position to negotiate your settlement with the insurance company.  Remember that an insurance settlement is really a negotiation between you and the insurance company.  You and the insurance company are essentially deciding on the price that it will take to keep you from taking your case to court.  The negotiation strategies that are used in business, politics, and other arenas will work here, so if you are an experienced negotiator, you will have an advantages over other when it comes to this stage.

The first thing you should do before heading over to meet with the insurance company is to determine a range that you think is acceptable to you to settle the claim.  This is your “win set”.  The insurance company will have made one of these up as well, and it will undoubtedly be lower than yours.  In general, your goal should be to move the insurance adjuster’s win set so that it is inside yours and you get the greatest possible settlement.  The insurance adjuster will be trying to do this as well, but to get your to agree to the least possible settlement.  There are various tactics you can both use.

Remember in automobile accident settlements you are selling to the insurance company your rights to take them to court over the auto accident you suffered.  Any information that you can present that would strengthen your case in the eyes of a jury and cause them to reward you more money will strengthen your bargaining position and usually cause the adjuster to bump up his price.  This can include photos of your crushed car, evidence that the other party was under the influence, and other factors.  Having all your paperwork in order also strengthens you position because there are less holes that the insurance company can poke into your argument over technicalities.  When negotiating, always have the insurance company make the first Finally, hiring a lawyer also strengthens your position.  Not only is the lawyer more experience at negotiations, hiring a lawyer also sends a message that you are not afraid of taking the case to trial if the settlement offered by the insurance company is not adequate.

The insurance company will also have several tricks that they will use to make your car accident compensation lower.  The first is the long amount of time you must usually wait to receive any money.  This is not always the case, but companies are aware that most people will need the money from their settlement to pay off medical bills and make up for lost wages.  By making you jump through more hoops during the settlement process and delaying their actions, they make you more and more desperate for money and more likely to accept any settlement they offer.  They will also attempt to cast any doubt they can on your claims if you do not have the adequate paperwork.  This is why it is very important to collect the right paperwork during all the different phases of your accident and settlement.

Auto Accident Settlement cases can be very difficult for the average person to deal with, and the inexpensive car insurance companies most people have can be the most difficult because they need to keep premiums down.  If you are having trouble dealing with the insurance company and aren’t sure if you’re getting the right amount for your claim, make sure to contact a lawyer and seek professional legal advice.