As a personal injury attorney in Colorado, this author knows that hundreds of thousands of people try to settle their own auto, car, bicycle, truck, motorcycle and pedestrian accident claims, wrongful death cases and dog bite injuries by themselves without an attorney. He has forty years of experience that has resulted in millions of dollars in settlements to offer advice as to how you can obtain the maximum value for your claim.
As an experienced Colorado personal injury attorney with millions of dollars in settlements and multiple dollar plus settlements from over forty years of experience I know many of you are attempting to settle your own personal injury, dog bite or wrongful death cases by yourselves to save the cost of an attorney.
I will now tell you the secrets of how to do it but I’ll also tell you why insurance companies lick their chops and rub their hands together with glee when individuals try to settle their claims without an attorney and why, in most cases, you’ll receive a greater amount in your pocket, even after an attorney’s fee and costs if you hire a reputable and experienced personal injury attorney.
First, you need to know that insurance companies evaluate cases two ways. As soon as you begin negotiating with the insurance company yourself, they evaluate your case, unfortunately, in terms of a nuisance value matter. They’ve settled tens or hundreds of thousands of cases with individuals before for paltry amounts and they will expect they can settle your case for a measly amount as well.
Why do they look at you as if you’re chopped meat? As soon as you tell them you are negotiating your own settlement, they know you’re trying to save money. To them, that means you may even be desperate. They also know you may even be desperate. They also know you won’t be as knowledgeable about their tricks and tactics and like those tens or hundreds of thousands of people before you, they know how they can play you until you either become so frustrated you settle for their bad offer or become panicked that your time is running out.
The second way they evaluate a case, namely one presented by a lawyer, is an analysis of what the case’s true settlement value is based on the attorney’s skill and experience, how prepared the case is for litigation in the event it doesn’t settle, and the actual value of the injuries and associated pain and suffering, wage loss and other out of pocket expenses.
To settle your case for the maximum amount, you need to get the insurance adjuster to evaluate your case, in the same manner, they would as if an attorney were negotiating with them. While most insurance companies, unfortunately, simply won’t do that, here’s what you need to do to try to obtain the maximum settlement value.
First, you need to obtain all of your medical records and bills. You can’t rely on the insurance company to do this. As soon as you tell the insurance company you want them to do this or agree to have them do it and tell you much your medical bills come to and what your medical records say, you are giving up control of the situation. I can’t stress this enough.
If you have any questions, you should contact Malman Law Firm at 303-733-7900 or ilianameza@malmanlawfirm.com.