April 7, 2011

Starting Your Car Accident Claims the Right Way

The best way to get more money from your auto accident settlement is to begin your compensation claim the right way.

Below are the steps you will want to follow when starting your auto accident claims versus another driver’s insurance:

Be Aware of Blame Questions

At the beginning of your auto accident claims, the insurance company can ask you questions that will try to make you liable for their insurer’s car accident.

For instance, one of more popular questions given by the insurance companies is : “How could you have avoided the accident?”

If you read it carefully, you will see that this question presumes that you were the person who was the cause for the auto accident. That the accident may have been prevented if you had been driving more carefully.

In the beginning of the car accident injury claim, the issue of fault is still unknown. The insurance company can’t certainly know who is to blame for the accident unless they assess the auto accident report, get in touch with witnesses, examine the evidence etc. That takes a lot of time and research.

By asking this question this early in the claims process, the insurance company is setting you up to take blame for the car accident.

The more fault they can give you, the lower your car accident claim.

To avoid this trap, simply answer to this question: ” I could not have prevented the car accident since your driver hit me.”

Whether or not you could have averted the accident does not matter at this point. If the accident was your fault, the evidence will clearly show it.

But at this stage, don’t assume you’re already the cause for the accident. Doing so will only hurt you and reduce your likelihood of getting more money. So always make sure you listen very carefully to how the insurance companies phrase their questions to you.

The critical thing you are aiming to do at this point …

Focus on the Other Driver

Right after tell the insurance company about the accident, stress how the other vehicle owner was involved.

Avoid saying: “I was in a car crash with your insurer”. Instead, say things like:

“Your insurer crashed into me” “Your insurer hit my car coming from the back” “Your insurer crossed the red light and wrecked my car.”

By shifting the emphasis on the other vehicle driver, you are steering clear of getting fault for the car accident. This helps improve your odds of getting a higher settlement.

It’s very important to realize that you should NEVER lie to the insurance companies about your car accident. If you do lie, the evidence will clearly expose you and you can face serious charges.

If you start your auto accident settlement the right way, you increase your likelihood of getting more money from your insurance claims.

Learn more ways to increase your car accident insurance claims and personal injury settlements