if you have recently been involved in a motor vehicle collision, you probably have a lot of questions about how the auto insurance claims process works and you may not be quite sure how best to proceed.
let me say at the outset that in cases involving serious injury, it is always best to retain the services of an attorney. but you may have questions to which you would like the answers, prior to involving an attorney.
you are probably being deluged with advice right now from many directions and it is possible that you have received telephone solicitations from "runner" law firms promising huge settlements if you will just allow them to handle your case; for a fee, of course, ranging from 33 to 50 percent of your settlement. (soliciting business in this manner is called "running" and i strongly recommend that you avoid law firms which engage in this practice.) you may have contacted one of the personal injury law firms advertising "free consultation". these are usually good, reputable firms, but most of them do not furnish any actual advice until you have signed a fee contract.
if you have been in touch with an adjuster from the other person's insurance company, then you have probably received assurances that they are going to take care of everything for you; but you may be feeling a little uncomfortable with such assurances coming from someone who is working for the other side. the insurance industry publishes pamphlets and websites that purport to inform you about the claims process, but they are written from the industry point of view which is to settle claims as quickly and as inexpensively as possible. they will encourage you to cooperate fully with the adjuster which is rarely in your best interest.
it is also a sad fact that many times your own insurance agent will not give you timely information. this is because he has a monetary incentive (in the form of his "loss ratio") to minimize the claims reported under collision, medical payments and uninsured motorist coverages. the best way for him to do that is to discourage you from reporting the loss to your own carrier and to urge you to deal exclusively with the other person's liability carrier. you need to know how your own insurance fits into this process.
for several years, i was a licensed independent adjuster in georgia, and i have authored, published and offer for sale a highly informative and comprehensive report titled "understanding automobile insurance claims". prior to being an insurance adjuster, i was for many years a police officer in georgia, and i have investigated literally hundreds of auto accidents. this report explains in detail the claim handling process and answers the questions most commonly asked by persons who are injured in these mishaps. the report will enable you to make informed decisions about your case without having to obligate yourself to share the proceeds of your settlement in order to obtain the answers to some basic questions.
an important benefit of the report is that it will help you avoid some mistakes that can irreversibly damage your position in the claims process.
in order to avoid asking you to "buy a pig in a poke", so to speak, i would like to give you a description of the information contained in the report. this is not a five-paragraph "fluff piece" like so many internet information products are; my report contains over 15,000 words and prints out at 32 pages, single-spaced. it is in a "question & answer" format and answers the following questions:
what should i do if i am at fault?
what if the other person is at fault?
what must i do first?
what kind of treatment should i obtain?
what if i can't afford to go to a doctor?
do i need a copy of the police report?
what if i am contacted by someone i don't know who attempts to refer me to an attorney or a chiropractor?
how do i report the claim to the other driver's insurance company?
how can i find out how much insurance the other driver has?
what is meant by "limits of liability"?
what are the duties of the other driver's insurance company?
what, exactly, is an adjuster?
should i give the adjuster a recorded statement?
should i sign a medical authorization for the adjuster?
what about the damage to my car?
what if my car is a total loss?
what if my car is totalled and i owe more on it than it is worth?
what is meant by "substitution of collateral"?
does the adjuster have to furnish me with a rental car?
when should i use my own insurance?
what is collision coverage?
what is uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage?
what is medical payments coverage?
do i have to repay medical payments benefits?
what is the meaning of a "subrogation agreement" from my health insurance company?
should i use my own auto insurance?
what is meant by "stacking" uninsured motorist coverage?
what is an insurance agent's "loss ratio"?
will i be compensated for lost wages or loss of business income?
when should i settle my claim?
how do i figure out how much my claim is worth?
how do i make an offer of settlement to the insurance company?
how do i negotiate the settlement with the adjuster?
what is different about catastrophic injury and death cases?
what is "the unliquidated damages interest act"?
what is meant by "bad faith"?
what are statutes of limitations?
what is sovereign immunity?
what is ante litem?
what is meant by the "consortium" claim?
what is a hospital lien?
what if i am injured in an auto accident while at work?
are there cases where i must use an attorney?
how do attorneys charge?
are these fees negotiable?
what is a release?
with my report you will not have to rely upon the advice of an adjuster who is working to protect the interests of the other driver and his/her insurance carrier. for $7.00 (about the same price as the police report), you will be able to deal with the adverse adjuster from an informed position, and to make an informed decision about when to turn to an attorney.
although in places the report refers to certain sections of the official code of georgia annotated, this report does not constitute legal advice, as only a licensed attorney can offer legal advice. my report merely tells you where you can find the law (on the internet and elsewhere) so you can read it for yourself.
since all my experience was gained in georgia, this report is written from the perspective of claims adjusting in georgia and the law which is cited is georgia law. the emphasis is placed on procedures in georgia and parts of this information apply only in georgia. however, insurance laws are more or less similar from state to state and the information in my report will be helpful in most places. insurance policy provisions and conditions, as well as claim handling procedures, are pretty much standard throughout the industry.
to order online by credit card:
to order online by check:
as soon as payment is accepted, the order site will automatically send you to the web site that contains the report and the site enables you to print the report. thus, you can have this report and the answers to your questions in a matter of minutes.
if you prefer to order offline, send $7.00 in cash, check (made payable to "cash")or a blank money order to:
horace case
po box 744
powder springs, georgia 30127
be sure to include your email address. as soon as i recieve your order i will send you an email containing the url for the report.
if you have any problems, email me
please accept my best wishes for a successful resolution of your claim, whether you order my report or not; and thanks for taking the time to read my letter.
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