December 21, 2023Alan Ahdoot
Home » Blog » 5 Signs An Insurance Company is Lowballing Your Claim
Dealing with a personal injury claim can be frustrating, especially when insurance companies constantly try to undermine your experience.It is normal to get a lowball insurance settlement offer after a personal injury accident.
It’s common for insurers to lowball claimants in hopes of minimizing their payouts. Although these practices are unethical, some continue to engage in them as part of their overall strategy.
With this in mind, you must learn to spot these red flags when dealing with your claim. This way, you can protect your rights and ensure fair compensation for your injuries.
In this blog, we’ll discuss five signs that an insurance company is trying to lowball your settlement and explore how you can counter them effectively.
Join us as we uncover the deceptive tactics insurance providers use during negotiations.
5 Signs That An Insurance Company is Lowballing You
Here are five common signs that an insurer is lowballing your settlement:
Quick Settlement Offers
Contrary to popular belief, immediate settlement offers are not a good sign. These indicate that the insurance company is trying to close your case as quickly as possible at the expense of your rights.
Personal injury claim assessments take a lot of time, especially if they involve catastrophic injuries. Such cases require careful examination and thorough investigation.
When an insurance company rushes to give you an immediate settlement, it’s a clear attempt to resolve your claim before you even realize its true value.
Downplaying Injuries
Most adjusters will try to downplay the extent of your injuries to avoid paying for your medical treatments in full.
They could argue that your injuries are not as severe as you say they are. Some would even suggest that a pre-existing condition caused them. Insurers use these strategies to reduce the payout and force you to accept their low settlement offer.
Lack of Transparency
Before accepting an insurance company’s settlement, ask them to explain and justify their proposition. If they can’t tell you how they got their proposed amount, they’re trying to lowball your settlement.
Transparency is a hallmark of a fair insurer. They should give you a breakdown of the factors and considerations included in their computation.
Shifting Blame
Some agents will try to shift some blame to you, arguing that you’re partially at fault for your injuries. Sometimes, they will go as far as to dismiss evidence proving their client is liable for your injuries.
This strategy is very common in states that follow the principle of pure comparative fault, like California.
Under California’s laws, your damages will be reduced depending on your percentage of fault. By shifting some of the blame to you, the insurance company could get away with paying less than they should.
Using Coercion & Pressure
Coercion is another tactic that insurers use to lowball settlement offers. Insurance companies will take advantage of someone’s lack of experience and coerce them to accept the first offer they give.
They’ll argue that the initial offer is non-negotiable, making you believe you have no other choice. In reality, you have every right to call their proposal into question.
Some will even create a false sense of urgency, implying that their offer is only available until a certain date. They will pressure you to accept the settlement as soon as possible, preventing you from consulting a lawyer.
Why Do Insurance Companies Lowball Offers?
There are plenty of reasons why insurance companies give unreasonably low offers. However, not all of them are done in bad faith.
For example, some insurers use artificial intelligence to calculate the value of a claim. There are programs that insurance companies use to compute settlements. It’s a strategy that major providers use to help their agents process multiple claims simultaneously. Unfortunately, the offers they create are rarely fair.
These applications typically base their calculations on internal algorithms, which heavily depend on similar cases the company has previously handled. So, whenever an agent uses them, the nature of the claims they’re analyzing is stripped down and oversimplified.
Situations like these are why it’s important to have a lawyer evaluate your settlement offers. They can offer insights into the nuances of your case that the automated system might have overlooked.
More importantly, they bring a human element to the evaluation process, allowing insurers to factor in non-economic damages like emotional distress and pain and suffering in their computation.
What to Do If An Insurance Company Lowballs You
So, how do you respond to a lowball settlement offer from an insurance company?
- Stay calm and professional. Negotiations will always be a frustrating process. However, it would be best not to let your emotions consume you. Being uncivil will only create more damage to your claim.
- Politely ask them questions about their offer. Ask them to explain how they reached their proposed amount. What factors did they consider when evaluating their claim?
- Present them with evidence, if possible. Keep records of your medical expenses, proof of lost income, and any photos you have from the incident. Give them all the documents that you have on your claim so that you can make a case for a reevaluation.
- We also recommend putting your response into writing. If you contest the insurer’s offer, do it via email or letter. This way, you’ll have proof of the negotiations should you decide to file a lawsuit.
- Remember that you’re not obligated to accept a low settlement offer. No law requires you to settle your personal injury claim. You have every right to take your case to trial if you believe it’s best for you.
Uphold Your Right to A Fair Settlement
Ultimately, a lowball insurance settlement offer from insurance companies is one of the harsh realities of personal injury claims. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be avoided.
If you want to uphold your right to a fair settlement, hire one of Adamson Ahdoot’s personal injury lawyers.
Adamson Ahdoot is one of California’s most trusted civil litigation firms. With over 100 years of combined experience handling various personal injury claims, we can help you negotiate with the other party’s insurance company.
Our team is dedicated to fighting for your right to justice and fair compensation. We’ll stand by your side and examine every settlement amount you receive, carefully.
To learn more about how we can help, call us at (800) 310-1606 or visit our website.
