Insurance Interaction Mistakes Following a Houma Car Accident

Insurance companies are interested in protecting their own client and their own financial interests. This is why it is a major blunder to try to deal with the other driver’s car insurance company without counsel after you have been in an accident. The insurance company tries its best to limit your claim, even if the other driver is fully at-fault for the accident.

If you have been in a car wreck, the best way to avoid insurance interaction mistakes following a Houma car accident is by calling an experienced lawyer who will fight by your side.

Call an Attorney Before Giving Recorded Statements

Attorneys have experience dealing car accident claims and keep the injured party’s interest at heart first and foremost, unlike the insurance companies. Giving a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company before consulting with an attorney is a crucial insurance interaction mistake following a Houma car accident. The insurance company adjuster’s job is to minimize the injured party’s claim of liability and damages. An injured person can give a statement that comes back to haunt them later in the proceedings.

Being Contacting by the Other Driver’s Insurance Company

Insurance companies typically contact people who have been injured in car accidents by telephone. They may also tell the injured person they are recording the conversation. Insurance companies usually try to have a conversation immediately after the accident in an attempt to minimize the amount of the claim. Sometimes the soft tissue injuries can be much more painful the day after or the week after a car crash than the first day. That is why the insurance companies have an interest in speaking to the injured party immediately, before they may feel as if they have been seriously injured. If a person claims to be seriously injured after already speaking to the insurance company on record saying they suffered no major injuries, it can have a devastating effect on the injured party’s credibility.

Do Not Cash a Check From the Other Driver’s Insurance Company

Another insurance interaction mistake following a Houma car accident is cashing a check from the other driver’s insurance company. In a motor vehicle crash in Louisiana, if a check is issued, accepted and a receipt and release signed, that is the end of the case. It does not matter if the sum of money is for $500 and the claim is worth $50,000. When the injured person takes the money and signs off on it, it signifies the end of the case between the parties. By making a payment and requiring the execution of a release document, insurance companies put claims to rest.

Some of the tendered checks may have restrictive endorsements on them, indicating that when the check is endorsed that is the end of the claim. Those can be particularly harmful also but not nearly as much as a separate release document required to be executed in exchange for the check.

Gathering Evidence

The later someone contacts an attorney, the more evidence disappears, witnesses disappear, videos of the events can disappear. It is also likely that the insurance company is immediately doing its part of the investigation. They will likely contact the injured party and will be acting adverse to their interests. The insurance adjuster immediately seeks evidence that shows the injured party somehow was at fault, or for anything that can minimize their claim of damages.

Insurance interaction mistakes following a Houma car accident can be devastating for the injured party’s recovery. If you were injured in a car wreck, make sure you call a professional attorney who could help you get the proper compensation you need.