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After the injured victim of an accident contacts the insurance company of the responsible party, that same company’s adjuster normally calls the claimant. Most adjusters make an initial offer during that first call.
The claimant can respond to that initial offer, initiating a series of negotiations. As the claimant and the insurance company come approach the point where an agreement can be reached, the claimant gets the adjuster’s final offer. How do the adjuster’s actions lead to the making of that final offer?
Actions of adjuster before making offer:
Investigates the claimant’s case. Reviews any documents that have been provided by the claimant’s lawyer.
What questions do adjusters ask at this point in the settlement process?
• What is the likelihood that the claimant/plaintiff might win at a trial?
• How much money would a jury be apt to award the plaintiff?
What information gets examined during the adjuster’s investigation?
How many of the plaintiff’s medical bills came from doctors? How many of them came from an alternate health care provider? Adjusters’ offers tend to be larger, if the most of the plaintiff’s medical bills have come from doctors.
How many bills came from a facility that was providing a type or treatment? How many bills came from a facility that completed a diagnostic procedure? Adjusters’ offers tend to be smaller, if the plaintiff devoted a great deal of time to obtaining a diagnosis, while devoting limited time to obtaining a treatment. What information can be found in the police report, or in an incident report. Does that report state clearly that the defendant was responsible for the accident?
How can a plaintiff/claimant predict the size of the adjuster’s offer?
Adjusters usually calculate the case’s final value, using the collected information. Then, the adjusters’ next move entails selecting some percentage to use in a second calculation. That involves multiplying the calculated figure by the chosen percentage. Obviously, that multiplication results in a figure, one that is less than the first calculated value. That smaller figure becomes that one that gets used, during the making of the final offer.
How does the percentage used in the final calculations get determined?
The adjuster studies several factors. One of those relates to the claimant’s representation. If the claimant has not hired a lawyer, that percentage will be higher, in order to yield a smaller figure. Adjusters’ experience has taught them that a claimant/plaintiff without a Personal Injury Lawyer in Hamilton finds it hard to produce a strong objection to a final offer. Lawyers’ experience has taught them how to respond. Consequently, the presence of a lawyer pushes the person making the offer (the adjuster) to increase the offer’s size. The plaintiff’s lawyers push for presentation of a generous offering.