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Why Speaking To Your Insurance Adjuster Could Damage Or Even Lose Your Case

You will face many tough decisions after you are involved in an automobile accident in Louisiana. Your own insurance company should become immediately involved in your claim and an insurance adjuster will normally contact you to discuss the details of your accident including what caused the accident and if you were injured or suffered any type of damage. While sometimes it is fine to discuss your accident at length with your own insurance company, very often this can cause serious damage to your claim or even lose your claim for you if you end up in court. This is true for several reasons.

First, any communications that you have with your own insurance adjuster could ultimately be turned over to the insurance company of the other driver that caused your accident. If you are required to file suit against the other driver, any statements that you gave or comments that you made or evidence that you provided to your own insurance adjuster could ultimately be used against you by the insurance company of the other driver. This is particularly true in regard to tape recorded statements that you may give to your own insurance company. Whatever communications you have with your own insurance company, you must assume that these communications will be made known to everyone and you will need to explain to them or deal with them at a later date.

Another reason communications with your own insurance adjuster could ultimately hurt your claim relates to the UM provisions of your own insurance policy if this type of coverage is available to you. (Even if you think you do not have UM coverage or your own insurance company tells you you do not, be sure to read our article to learn why you may still have UM coverage.) Under the UM provisions of your own insurance policy, your insurance company is ultimately responsible to pay you for any damages or losses which you are not able to obtain from the other driver's insurance limits. In other words, if your damages exceed the amount of insurance coverage available to the driver that caused the accident, your own insurance company then becomes responsible to pay your additional damages under the UM provisions of your own insurance policy. Because of this obligation, very often your own insurance company is beginning to defend this type of claim from the very beginning of your accident. (Don’t fool yourself—your insurance adjustor knows from the beginning of the claim if UM is provided to you.) This is done by taking a recorded statement from you and confirming, or having you admit, that you did not suffer any type of serious injuries or damages during your accident. These types of recorded statements can then be used against you if you ultimately have to file a UM claim against your own insurance company.

Be very careful when dealing with your own insurance company following a serious automobile accident. You should speak to a qualified vehicle accident lawyer to discuss all aspects of your case before you even begin to discuss your case with your own insurance company. Although your claim may seem like a simple accident, you should know the role that all the parties are playing before you begin discussing your own claim with your insurance company.

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