Negotiating a settlement offer from an insurance company is something most personal injury lawyers do daily. It is one of the things they do to get clients the money they deserve. However, what may appear to be simple on the surface can be a very difficult process. Negotiating insurance claims is an artfully nuanced process that takes many years of practice and experience to perfect.
Process of Claim Negotiation By Personal Injury Lawyers
A personal injury lawyer will negotiate on your behalf calmly, and collectedly to get you the settlement you deserve. Here is the process they follow according to Geelong personal injury law to negotiate a claim.
Gather Evidence
As a professional personal injury lawyer, you must gather all the evidence you can to support your client’s claim. This includes medical records and witness statements. You also want to make sure that you have all of the necessary paperwork to prove that the accident was not your client’s fault. The more evidence you have, the better your case when negotiating with an insurance company.
Calculate the Value of Your Case
It is important to calculate the value of your case. You can do this by looking at similar cases and their outcomes, or you can talk with an experienced attorney about how much your case might be worth. Once you know how much money you are asking for, it’s time to negotiate. Negotiation is a process where both sides discuss what they are willing to offer in settlement and come up with an agreement that works for everyone involved.
Submit a Demand Letter to the Insurance Company
The next step in negotiating your claim with an insurance company is to submit a demand letter. In this letter, you will outline your legal rights and why you think they should compensate you. You will also include information about any injuries or property damage that occurred as a result of the accident. The purpose of this letter is to inform the other side that you are taking legal action against them and that you expect them to pay for your damages.
Attend Mediation or Arbitration
Mediation is a private meeting between parties where an impartial third party helps them agree. Arbitration is similar, but instead of a third party helping the parties reach an agreement, they decide on their own. The purpose of this step is to find out if any issues can be resolved through mediation or arbitration, like liability and compensatory damages.
Go to Trial
If an agreement cannot be reached between both parties, which is often the case, then litigation may be necessary. The plaintiff’s personal injury lawyer will present evidence that proves that he or she was injured and that the defendant was at fault for causing it. The defendant’s attorney will try to argue that there is no proof that their client was negligent or that they caused any harm to the plaintiff. This means that both sides will present their cases in court according to Canberra Personal Injury Law. Then the court will decide who wins based on the evidence presented during trial proceedings.
Conclusion
To sum up, it’s all about leverage. A personal injury lawyer has leverage because they have the entire case at their disposal. The insurance companies and the adjusters simply don’t have access to all the facts that a good lawyer has. That’s why having a personal injury lawyer negotiate a claim for you is so vital; without their presence, you could be making an uninformed decision that ends up costing you money long term.
