Do Attorneys Settle Claims Faster?
How Hiring A Lawyer May Slow Down Your Claim
If you think a lawyer will get you a faster insurance settlement, you may need to think again.
When faced with the task of making a claim after being injured in an accident, one of the biggest fears people have is that the insurance company is going to unnecessarily delay their settlement. The solution, they believe, is to hire a lawyer who will strong-arm the insurance company into “coughing up the money” that they would rather hold onto.
The truth is almost the exact opposite. In fact, if you want a quick settlement of your claim, you may well be better off “going it alone” and making your claim by yourself. There are a number of reasons:
1) The attorney isn’t you. He/she cannot settle a claim without your express consent. So even if the insurance company has made a solid offer, it has to be conveyed to the lawyer, then to you. Then you have to give the lawyer your consent, and that has to be passed along to the insurance company. It may seem like a straightforward process, but in this age of answering machines and phone tag, simply communicating agreement can take days, if not weeks.
2) Along the same lines, the insurer needs certain information before they can make a settlement offer. This can be anything from your version of what happened in the accident, to the amount of your medical bills, to how much income you lost from not being able to work. You can provide this information directly to them if you handle your own claim. When an attorney is involved, it takes much longer. The back-and-forth required just to get to agree on the basics of the claim can take months or years after medical treatment has ended.
3) You’re not the firm’s only case. Your claim is your top priority, but it may not be theirs. Most law firms handle numerous claims at any one time. Unless you have a high-dollar (ie, millions of dollars) or high-profile case, you may well get put on the back burner, even by the firm that is supposed to representing you.
It’s in the insurance company’s best interest to settle as quickly as possible. A claim adjuster doesn’t want your claim hanging around and taking up time any more than you do. Also, for every day a claim stays open, the company has to count the unpaid amount as a liability, which takes away from the bottom line. And contrary to popular opinion, the fastest way to settle a claim is not to underpay, but to be fast and fair.
As a result, especially when there is not a lawyer involved, insurance companies typically try to bring out a good offer early in the settlement process because it moves things along more quickly. They want to avoid getting an attorney involved, partly because of cost and partly because of time. And believe it or not, most insurance adjusters, when they go home at night, like to feel they treated everyone fairly during the day.
On the other hand, the insurer cannot push you to settle if you’re not ready. There are limits on how much time you have to settle, but they are based on state law and not the company’s dictates. A lawsuit is only necessary if you and the insurance company cannot come to an agreement.
The amount of time you have to “bring suit” is called the Statute of Limitations, and in most states, it is about three years from the date of injury. Filing the lawsuit itself is the only thing an attorney can do that you cannot. So until the Statute of Limitations approaches, you may be equally or even better able to negotiate your settlement than an attorney.
So before you run out to hire a lawyer, consider the benefits of working directly with the insurance company. Remember, time is on your side.
