If you have done any shopping in a place where customers always bargain with the seller of the item they desire, then you should be familiar with the tactics used during the negotiating process. You will act like the seller and quote a high price, knowing that you are willing to come down from that price. Your price is the amount that you hope to receive from the final settlement.
The insurance company will act like the buyer. The insurer does not want to pay a lot of money to the victim. The insurer will offer a ridiculously low figure for the settlement, knowing that the insurance company can afford to pay more than what has been quoted.
How to review each offer
As the victim, you should reject the first offer. You ought to provide a reason for your rejection. Study the figure that sums up what has been offered. Ask the questions that will help you to find the principle basis for your rejection.
Is the insurance company offering something that takes into account all of your current expenses. Think about all the time and money that you have spent on treating your injury. Consider what facts should have been obvious to the examiner at any IE (insurance exam).
Do not forget to think about the long term costs of your injury. How will it affect your career? Can you return to your original job? Are you prepared to handle another job in that same field, one that would be as rewarding as the one you had previously? If you cannot give a yes answer to those last two questions, then insist that they offer you with a higher value proposal.
Disclosers made or withheld
If you have hired a Personal Injury Lawyer in Lindsay, then you should know whether or not the responsible driver was insured. You should know if that same driver could be charged with a traffic violation. Those facts could be used to push for a larger amount of compensation.
Is a fair settlement always fair?
Naturally, you will work towards obtaining a fair settlement. Realize, that some insurers refuse to disclose all the factors that are being considered. You might agree to a figure and then learn that the insurance company kept quiet about a weakness in your case. After you have agreed to a figure, it can use that weakness as a reason for saying that it will not reward you with all the money that you have requested.
At that point, you must either take that final figure, or plan to meet a representative from the insurance company in court. If you have done the best you could during the negotiations, then you should not feel guilty about accepting the proposed settlement. Ideally, you have prepared for that insurer’s move, when you agreed to an offer that you felt to be fair.