The all-new How Law Works podcast featuring Fairfax, Virginia, attorney Ben Glass as its resident legal expert has just produced a podcast on what to do if you’ve been in a car accident.  You can find it on iTunes, where you can also subscribe to future episodes of How Law Works.

Dealing with the insurance adjuster and figuring out the problematic paperwork can be tricky for someone who is not sure how to handle the aftermath of a car accident.  Attorney Glass has produced a book for Virginia consumers on how to deal with these very issues, which you can order for free at TheAccidentBook.com.

You’ll learn how to prevent wrecking your accident claim and what tricks to look out for from insurance companies.  It’s important to be prepared for the potential of a car accident.  Of course, if you have been in a car accident and need advice on how to handle the claim, you can send your questions to the office of Ben Glass by contacting him on his website or by making an inquiry through JustAskBenGlass.com.

1) Should I talk to the insurance adjuster?

This is very much a discretionary matter.  It may depend on the complexity of your case or just how comfortable you are with the situation.  You should certainly talk to your own insurance people, since they will be the ones representing you if the case goes to court.

However, if it the other guy’s insurance adjuster calling, remember that you are not obligated to speak to them.  Be polite and feel free to decline.  The call is likely being recorded, which means that anything you say can be used against you.  They aren’t necessarily out to trick you into saying the wrong thing, but the possibility is there.  Just be cautious.

2) Should I sign the forms they send me?

The two to watch out for in this case are the medical authorization and lost wage forms.  By signing these, especially the medical authorization form, you are basically offering yourself up as an open book in terms of your medical history.  Obviously, this is not a good idea.  There is no good reason to allow other guy’s insurance company to go probing around willy-nilly.

3) Who will pay my medical bills?

This is a confusing matter for people after an accident.  The last thing you want is for your bills to go to a collection agency while you are in the middle of trying to get a settlement, which can certainly take some time.

Submit your bills to your health insurance provider first.  Also, submit them to your car insurance provider under the medical payments provision part of your policy if you purchased that coverage.  This can get the cash flowing and allow you to pay your bills as they come.

4) How do I find a lawyer?

You go out and read The Truth About Lawyer Advertising by Ben Glass.  You can find it at the TheTruthAboutLawyerAdvertising.com.  He guides you through the process of not only how to find a lawyer, but how to find the right lawyer for your case.  It’s an extremely valuable resource that comes free to Virginia residents but can also be ordered online at Amazon.com.

The less money they give you, the more money they make. Insurance companies are out to make money. Although adjusters may seem friendly and give the impression that they are trying to help you get as much money as possible, remember that they do not get ahead in their careers without giving you the least amount of money possible for your particluar claim.

Hiring a Lawyer is not what the Insurance Companies want you to do. They will tell you things that they wouldn’t dare say to an attorney, because they know that no experienced lawyer would believe it. If you hire an attorney, insurance companies know that in the you will get more and they will retain less.

Adjusters for Insurance Companies are very skilled. They will attempt to play you and make you feel like the offer they have given you is the best you can expect to get. They will pretend as if they don’t care whether you accept their offer or not. Insurance Companies will act as if it does not matter to them if the case goes to court. Remember, they DO want to settle your claim out of court, regardless of how they act.

You may be eligible to receive compensation for things you don’t even realize, such as prescriptions, damage to things inside your car, the loss of your car, and mileage to doctors appointments. There are many things that your insurance adjuster probably will not inform you of. They will work as diligently as possible to get you to sign the documents and get your particluar case closed so they can move on to the next unsuspecting customer.

Insurance companies are in the business of gaining interest on every dollar they have. The longer your claim drags out, the more money the Insurance Company gains in interest on your settlement. So unless they can settle the claim inexpensively, they will try to drag it out. Insurance companies will always try to pay you the least amount of money that they can get away with. With the help of a personal injury attorney you will be equipped to get w3hat you deserve.

Insurance Adjusters will make you feel as if you are making a mountain out of a mole hill. It is important to remember that you are the victim and you are the one suffering the pain. Make sure you know your rights and how to go about making sure that you receive what you are entitled to.

Driggs, Bills, and Day are Utahs personal injury attorneys. For over 18 years they have been helping people who have been injured in car accidents, trip and falls, dog bites and wrongful death cases. The Utah Advocates can be found at http://www.utahadvocates.com

Unfortunately, Virginia claims adjusters sometimes use tricky tactics to rush you into a settlement.

One of these sneaky tricks is to send you a letter claiming “if we don’t hear from you in 21 days we will close our file and consider the matter concluded.”

Don’t fall victim to this bit of trickiness.  In Virginia, you have two years to file a lawsuit on your behalf due to the car accident.  It’s just a way for the adjuster to rush along the process and prevent a lawsuit by getting you to accept a settlement.

Always know your rights and don’t automatically trust the claims adjuster.  He or she does not have your best interests in mind.  You can learn more about this by ordering a free copy of The Accident Book, a free resource for Virginia residents.

If you are considering litigation after the accident, you should consider contacting a local attorney to prepare yourself for the work ahead.  Don’t rush into a decision and remember that you have a two year time limit when making your choice about pursuing legal action after a Virginia car accident.

If you have any more questions, use the free legal questions sites Just Ask Ben Glass.

Now I’m going to discuss with you about the 4 most frequently asked questions that new car accident victims in Chantilly, Va. have. First, should I talk to the adjuster? Our normal advice is no, at least not until you have looked at one of our books or spoken with an experienced accident law firm in your area.

The justification is that these adjusters are trained in questioning and they’re seeking to reduce or do away with your entire claim. You certainly don’t want to talk to them while you’re under the influence of any medication while you’re still in a healthcare facility or anything like that. Again, always be well mannered, you can tell them that you are still treating and that you’ll get back to them later.

Second thing people want to know is “should I sign the forms?” Typically an insurance adjuster will be sending you medical privacy waivers. These authorizations tend to be very broad and they deliver to the insurance company all sorts of health care information of yours and what the insurance company does is they get through this and then request even more records. So they might have ten or 15 years of your private record without you ever knowing that, we suggest getting your own information first making sure they’re accurate and getting those records to the insurance company.

The second form they’ll I often ask you to sign is a release. They may send you a check just know that once you sign an over-all release, that’s it. If you need care later or if there’s some undiscovered injury and you need an operation or something else further down the line that insurance company is not going to cover it.

Our next new accident claimants want to know, “Who will pay my doctor bills as they are accumulating?” Here’s our advice. Number one, use your own health insurance policy first. It’s primary, it should pay the bills, the last thing you want to have happened is to have the medical doctors and hospitals go unpaid and have them send you off to collections. Second you may have a type of coverage on your own car policy called “MedPay” coverage.

Typically, people will have an amount of $2000.00 or $5000.00 or $10,000.00. Call your own insurance broker, your car insurance agent. Ask if you have med pay or Medical Payments coverage and submit all of your bills to them as well.

Finally of course the insurance company for the person you triggered the accident and caused your injuries is responsible for the bills. The issue is they’re not going to pay for the bills until the end of the claim, they’re going to give you one lump sum settlement and your doctor is saying “You can’t wait for 2 or maybe 3 years to get that money.”

The next question we typically get is what about all those lawyer advertisements, what are they really saying? And I understand if you’re looking, if you’ve been in an accident and you’re looking for a attorney you’ve probably have come across hundreds of yellow page ads, websites all the same pretty much the same thing. That’s why I wrote this publication, The Truth About Lawyer Advertising, it’s our little consumer guide that will lead you to ask the perfect questions and show you exactly how to check out lawyers, so you can find the right attorney for your case.

This is a question facing plenty of Virginia car accident victims.  You have been the victim of an auto accident and have been offered a settlement.  So, should you take it or leave it?

Unfortunately, there is no hard and fast formula to make this decision.  You must consider the following factors:

• How much time am I willing to devote to my accident case?
• Do I feel like I am being given the short end by the adjuster?
• Will the settlement really cover the cost of the damage and my injuries?
• Is this something that I just want to get out of the way?

Everyone will have different answers.  If you find yourself still seeking answers, you may want to consult an attorney (but before you do that, order this free information guide about lawyer advertising).  He or she may advise you to seek a greater settlement or to prepare to take your case to trial.

Obviously, the one consideration of what to do if the insurance adjuster offers you a settlement after your Virginia car accident can branch into many choices.  Stay calm.

It is your job as a consumer to do your research and to be prepared.  If you have other insurance related questions, you can always ask attorney Ben Glass for free.  It is a no-obligation resource that doesn’t cost you a dime.

If you want more advice on what to do after a Virginia car accident, order the free guide 31 Tips From Ben and take a look at more informational videos available to you.

Q: If an insurance adjuster calls me after my accident to ask me questions, can I talk to him?

A: Of course you can, but we don’t always recommend it following a serious accident.

To learn more about this topic, check out the full FAQ here.

The insurance adjuster may have made a personal house call and appeared to be so nice and friendly, but don’t get the wrong impression.  The insurance adjuster is not your friend.  Would a friend try to lowball your settlement offer? If so, you need new friends.

Even if the insurance adjuster appeared to be willing to help and made you promises about your future medical bills, you need to be cautious.  The adjuster works for the insurance company, so it is logical to assume that he or she will be looking out for the employer’s interests and not yours. You are not the one who writes his or her paycheck – you’re just another case number and a file that needs to be closed.

Insurance adjusters are skilled and they know what they are doing.  When the insurance adjuster called you or showed up on your doorstep, he or she knew that it was important to build your trust.  The insurance adjuster may have alluded that an attorney would not be needed, that you could settle directly with the insurance company.

After a Virginia car accident, you need to make sure that you and your family are protected.  If the insurance adjuster has made you an offer that you do not feel is fair, or if you are in the beginning of the claims process, you need to order a copy of Fairfax accident attorney Ben Glass’s book, Five Deadly Sins That Can Wreck Your Injury Claim.

Here’s a good article on handling your car accident claim that I found at another site. I thought it was good enough to reprint here (with permission.)

If you have been in an auto accident then you will likely have to file an auto accident insurance claim. This can prove to be quite a task dealing with insurance adjusters and the things that come with it. When filing an auto accident insurance claim there are some things you should know that will prove to be essential to you.

Contact your insurance company very soon after the accident. This is the first one to call in case of injury also. Take time to read what pertains to your auto accident insurance claim when you first receive your insurance policy this will help clear up any misunderstandings before accidents happen and will give you an idea of what your auto accident insurance claim entitles you to instead of having to worry about it while your going through the trauma of an accident.

When you writing your statement include as much details of the auto accident as possible. You can reinforce your claim by taking pictures of the vehicle and any injuries that may have been sustained due to the auto accident. Take down names and numbers of any witnesses that may be able to help in proving your auto accident insurance claim when the time comes. Remember to take notes on any other persons or vehicles that were involved in this accident because this is very important to your claim.

Keep all records pertaining to your claim. Write down when you have a conversation with the insurance officer, agents or anyone else that is involved with this auto accident insurance claim. Remember to keep all the bills and receipts that you may incur during this time. It is important to be honest with your insurance company because if you are not you could be disqualified due to fraudulent reasons. An auto insurance claim has been turned down many times on these same bases.

Another important thing to remember is that you may make more than one auto accident insurance claim, so check any other policies you may be holding to verify this. Take time out to review all your policies. You may be entitled to file more that one auto insurance claim, so make sure you claim for all that you are able to claim for.

When making an auto accident insurance claim there are some things that you must remember to do. Make sure you do them all and keep records.

For a website all about Car Insurance visit Peter’s Website Car Insurance Answers at http://www.car-insurance-answers.com/ and find out about Car Insurance as well as Cheap Car Insurance at http://www.car-insurance-answers.com/cheap-car-insurance.html and more, including Online Car Insurance Quotes, Car Insurance Rates and UK Car Insurance.

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Picture this scenario: You're driving home from work one afternoon. You slow to a stop at a traffic light, only to have the driver behind you slam into the back of your car. Your vehicle is seriously damaged, and you suffer head and neck injuries as a result of the collision. In this situation, you would definitely expect to be compensated for your damaged car and painful injuries, right?

Unfortunately, the people most likely to disagree with your right to fair compensation are also the ones most often in charge of it – insurance companies.

In an ideal world, insurance companies would do just that – insure that their customers are fairly and promptly paid in the event of an accident. However, in the real world, insurance companies are large, multi-million dollar corporations who have more loyalty to their shareholders than their policyholders. In other words, the primary goal of any insurance company is profit. And how does an insurance company maximize profit? By minimizing payouts to you, the injured customer. This is the first thing you must realize when dealing with an insurance adjuster – they are not interested in giving you a large payment; instead, they are trying to convince you to take the smallest payout possible.

So how do you proceed? How do you fight for fair compensation against a massive, well-funded corporation?

To begin with, don't provide any details that you don't absolutely have to. Remember those crime shows on TV where the police tell the suspect that 'anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law?' The same idea applies here. The insurance companies will try to use anything you give them to reduce your compensation.

Secondly, hire a competent attorney. When an insurance company sees that you have legal representation, they'll know that you mean business and be forced to treat you with more respect. In addition, you attorney can keep you from making a mistake or being unduly disturbed while you recover from your injuries.

That being said, don't be rude to your insurance adjuster. It costs nothing to be polite, even while being careful to avoid providing too much information. Insurance adjusters have to deal with angry, upset, and hysterical clients every single day – they will appreciate a little courtesy. Who knows? With their goodwill, you just might find it a little bit easier to get the compensation that you deserve.

For more information on how to proceed following an accident or injury, visit the website of the Milwaukee personal injury lawyers of Habush, Habush, & Rottier, S.C. at http://www.habush.com.

Joseph Devine

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