For most people injured in automobile accidents, negotiating with insurance companies can be daunting. Unless you have prior experience negotiating in board rooms, business, or maybe just with street vendors, you’ll be at a disadvantage. Insurance adjusters negotiate with other people for their living. If you’re having trouble negotiating your auto accident injury settlements, here are some tips that you can use when confronting the insurance adjuster.
One very important tip when you are negotiating is that you should make small concessions, not very big ones. Making very large concessions can send the message that you’re holding back and that you’ll still settle for a much smaller sum than you are stating. This leaves you in a much weaker bargaining position. Making small concessions on the other hand, demonstrates that you’re flexible and trustworthy, but you also feel that you deserve the amount that you are stating. You can ask for concessions in return easier as well because you’ve demonstrated good faith and the insurance adjuster is more likely to see you in a positive instead of a negative light.
Also, make sure to take your time when it comes to settlement negotiations. The quicker you try to accept a settlement, the more likely you are to settle for less money. Insurance adjusters will almost always offer someone looking to settle quickly significantly less than someone who’s willing to wait them out. If you really feel like you need to stall for time and can’t come up with an excuse, there’s three different tactics that you can easily use. First, you can tell the adjuster that you’d like to sleep on the amount before you accept it. You can also tell them that you’d like some time to consult a lawyer and make sure that everything is in order. Finally, you can say that you’d like time to let your injuries heal and see the full extent of your damages before you agree to a settlement. Using these negotiation tactics, you’re sure to get the money that you deserve to reimburse you for your injuries.
For more information on insurance negotiations, check out the Auto Accident Settlement Center, which has information on topics ranging from when to accept your settlement to how to collect information after an accident.
Tags: auto accident claims, insurance adjusters, negotiating with insurance companies, negotiation tips, settling with insurance comapanies