Navigating Insurance Claims After a Car Accident in Westchester County

Have You Been Involved in a Car Accident?

If you’re injured by a negligent driver in a car accident, New York law entitles you to be fairly and adequately compensated for your injuries, lost wages, and related damages. To win that compensation, you may need to be represented by a Westchester County car accident attorney.

Injury victims should discuss their rights with an attorney, but if you’re not injured in an accident, and if the only damage is damage to your vehicle, it may be more convenient and easier to seek compensation directly from the other driver’s auto insurance company.

How do you negotiate a property damage settlement with an auto insurance company? How much compensation should you seek? How should you calculate that figure? And why should you contact an attorney at once if you’ve been injured in a car accident?

How Do You Begin Negotiations With an Auto Insurance Company?

If you’re in an accident but haven’t been injured, and you decide to negotiate a property damage claim on your own, it starts by contacting the at-fault driver’s auto insurance company and completing the required paperwork.

New York is a pure comparative negligence state for auto insurance. Even if you are found partially responsible for the accident, you can still collect payment for your damages. 

Most property damage claims are settled quickly. Once you contact the insurance company, complete the forms, and present adequate supporting documentation, the negotiation process usually requires only several phone calls and maybe a meeting or two with a claims adjuster.

How Are Property Damage Settlements Negotiated?

Before you call the insurance company, determine what you think your property damage claim is worth, and decide on the minimum settlement amount that you’ll accept. Insurance adjusters usually begin negotiations by offering a settlement amount far below the figure you’re claiming.

Respond to that offer by asking for slightly less than your first claim figure but more than you’re being offered. You and the adjuster may go “back and forth” several times, but never ask for less than your minimum acceptable settlement amount. You may need two or three meetings with the adjuster before you reach an agreement.

When you first speak to a claims adjuster, he or she will probably explain any weaknesses or flaws in your claim, and you may need to revise your claim figure. Be patient and confident, and do not allow a claims adjuster to intimidate or pressure you.

Is the Adjuster’s First Offer Too Low?

In insurance negotiations, a company’s first offer is often a “low-ball” offer. The adjuster may be assessing your reaction or determining if you’re a pushover. Ask for the precise reasons why the offer is so meager, take notes, and arrange a second meeting or conversation.

When a final agreement is reached, verify the agreement immediately with a letter to the adjuster. State the amount of the settlement, the damages it covers, and the date you expect to receive your settlement.

Are You Dealing With Insurance Bad Faith?

If you are not compensated in a reasonable amount of time, you have the right to bring a lawsuit against the insurance company for unfair settlement practices or bad faith. Unfair practices and bad faith may include:

1. constantly requiring more information from you to delay the process
2. offering to settle your claim for only a fraction of its value
3. delays without explanations
4. providing you with only false or disingenuous reasons for your claim’s denial

Retaining a lawyer who has insurance bad faith experience may be all it takes to prompt a reasonable settlement. When you prevail with a bad faith claim, you may be compensated for the settlement amount you were denied as well as any additional amount ordered by the court.

What if You’ve Been Injured?

If you’ve been injured by a negligent driver in a traffic accident, don’t even think about negotiating on your own. Your health is too important; you can’t be replaced like a vehicle. You must be advised and represented by a Westchester County car accident lawyer.

Take your case to a car accident lawyer immediately after you’ve been treated for your injury or injuries. Don’t even speak to the at-fault driver’s insurance company. That’s your lawyer’s job. Anything you say to the insurance company could be twisted and used against you.

Your attorney will investigate how the collision happened, determine how seriously you’ve been injured, review the evidence, medical records, and police report, and speak with any witnesses. Your attorney will then begin negotiating for the insurance payout you are entitled to by law.

Will Your Case Go to Court?

Most injury claims based on car accidents are resolved in private negotiations, but if fault for the crash is in dispute, or if no reasonable settlement amount is offered in the private negotiations, your Westchester County car accident attorney will take your case to court.

At trial, your attorney will explain to a jury how (and how severely) you were injured and why the other driver is liable for your injuries. Your attorney will then ask jurors to order the at-fault driver’s insurance company to compensate you for your medical bills and related damages.

New York’s statute of limitations for most personal injury claims based on car accidents is three years from the date of the accident, but you cannot wait three years – or even three weeks – to speak with a Westchester County car accident lawyer. Schedule a consultation at once. Your lawyer should see the evidence while it’s fresh and speak to the witnesses before their recollections fade.

Let The Law Offices of Joseph A. Marra, PLLC Handle Your Personal Injury Claim

A personal injury attorney at The Law Offices of Joseph A. Marra, PLLC will determine which party or parties are at fault for your injury, and we will fight – aggressively and effectively – to win the compensation you need and to bring your injury claim to its best possible resolution.

If you’ve been seriously injured by a negligent driver, no amount of cash can truly “compensate” you, but The Law Offices of Joseph A. Marra, PLLC will ensure that justice is served and that you’re able to move positively and constructively into the future.

If you’ve been injured due to another driver’s negligence, or if you are injured this way in the future, promptly obtain the legal assistance you need by calling The Law Offices of Joseph A. Marra, PLLC at 914-344-5145.