In many cases, if you sustain an injury in a car accident, you will make an insurance claim in order to recover medical costs as well as any damage to your car. In almost all cases, the insurance company will offer you a certain amount in exchange for your losses and injuries. In many cases, accident victims are eager to sign on the dotted line because car accidents and injuries can cause severe financial pressure. Patients face sudden medical bills, loss of income, car repair costs, and many other costs as well after an accident.
However, signing and accepting the first offer can cost you more in the long run.
Insurance companies are, above all, businesses. Their main interest is in making money, not in protecting your best interests. If an insurance company can offer you a smaller claim, this is infinitely better, from the company’s business perspective, than offering a larger claim. Many insurance companies offer claims based on formulas. These formulas may be outdated or may take into consideration only some of the costs of your injury.
When you accept an initial offer from an insurance company, you often lose the right to pursue further claims for more money if it transpires that the claim money does not pay for all the costs associated with your injury. You will be left to pay the added costs out of your own pocket, and these costs can end up costing you many thousands of dollars or even more. These costs can cause a significant financial burden for you.
Unfortunately, this unfortunate position is one in which many patients find themselves. After accepting an initial claim amount from an insurance provider, patients find that they need to find significantly larger amounts from their own savings in order to pay for the medical costs and related costs. For example, burn injury patients may be compensation for initial hospital stays but may not be compensated for cosmetic surgery, even though that surgery may be important in order to allow the patient to return to regular activities. In the case of a spinal cord injury, a patient may be compensated for initial recovery, medical, and rehabilitation costs, but may not be compensated for the cost of making a home accessible, to cite another example. In this instance, a patient may need to pay thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars in order to enjoy a safe home.
The problems that patients encounter vary, but there are some things that patients can do to avoid financial problems due to their injury. One of the best solutions is to hire a personal injury attorney immediately after your car accident. A good Florida personal injury attorney is invaluable because he or she will review your insurance claim offer and advise you of your rights. Your attorney can also help you understand the possible long-term costs of your injury and can help negotiate with an insurance carrier on your behalf.