Most adjusters function like Henry Hard-Nose of Rock Solid Insurance Corporation. They’re thick skinned and difficult to deal with. Below is a typical verbal exchange a month or so after you and the difficult insurance adjuster had last met in an attempt to settle. At that time he had taken the position that the injury to your shoulder was not as serious as your attending physicians Medical Report stated it was. (Question: Do they fight what your attending physician wrote in their report? Answer: Yes, absolutely! Take it from Dan, who was on that firing line for over 30 years).
The
following is a typical verbal settlement exchange after your last meeting had
ended “up in the air” - - slowing floating around out there in outer space.
You
first - - and here’s the counter argument you should make: “Look, with all due
respect, you are not a doctor. You’re no medical expert who has the know-how to
second-guess my doctor. When we last met you said my shoulder was ‘only a
bruise’ as opposed to a dislocation. I have again talked to my doctor and he
remains firm about the accuracy of his original diagnosis. He states that I
absolutely suffered a dislocation of my shoulder. But, even apart from his
analysis, I’m the best judge of my own injury - - that is, how painful my life
has been, and the suffering I’ve had to endure“.
At
that point Hard-Nose will always attempt his usual tactic of interrupting your
logic but stiffen up, wave him off and say, “Look, let me finish. You owe me
that because it was your insured who flew through a Stop Sign and bashed into
me. You and I both know he’s one hundred percent at fault and if this talk
about settling for my “pain and discomfort” gets any more one-sided I’m gonna
be left with no choice but to hire myself a lawyer.”
Hard-Nose
will stiffen up! Now, you proceed, “How is it sir, that its been over three
months since this accident and there are times when I still suffer excruciating
pains? How is it that I can’t lift things like I used to? The truth is it hurts,
it bothers me and it has disabled me. I’ve been enduring it but it’s been awful
and it has disrupted my life terribly. My shoulder is not a ‘mere bruise’ to me
sir. Neither does my doctor say it is. He states that my shoulder was
definitely dislocated and it will take several more months to clear up”!
All
of the above is an example of your central approach to the predictably
belligerent, difficult-to-deal-with adjuster. You should be firm and aggressive
but not hostile. Yours should be a thoughtful presentation that relies on the
power and persuasiveness of a sound demand adequately documented and properly
communicated.
The
three crucial questions you must ask Hard-Nose are:(#1) How much will you pay
me for the damage to my motor vehicle and all other provable property damage?
(#2) How much will you pay me as a fair settlement for my provable lost wages
and medical expenses? (#3) How much will you pay me for my disability and my
“Pain and Suffering”?
In
most instances Hard-Nose will head for the hills - - unwilling to give you a
straight answer. He’ll sidestep and do a slow waltz by asking you a loaded
question like, “Okay, what do you think your claim is worth?”
Such
a question is predictable because Hard-Nose prefers that you’re the one who
makes the settlement demand first. Why? Because you may ask for less than what
he was preparing to offer! And also because, if you make an excessive demand,
he won’t have committed himself to an offer which will have left no room for
further negotiations. In other words, Hard-Nose is in his best position to
exercise “command and control” over the manipulation (and setting) of the
dollar amount to be paid when it’s you that makes the settlement demand first,
rather than he making the settlement offer. Don’t provide him with this
advantage!
To
win this crucial “game” he must suspect you’re close to obtaining a lawyer to
handle your case so you should insist on the offer (one that’s realistic and
made in good faith) to come from him before you make your demand. Why? Because
at that point it’s all about who gets to control the value of your claim - -
you or Hard-Nose?
It’s not sufficient for Hard-Nose to merely come up with a phony offer. You must insist upon, and hold out, until he makes the first offer and that it’s a realistic one. Then, and only then, is when you should respond with your own first counter-demand. Up until that point never let him know what you’d be willing to settle for. If you do you’ll lose control and that could cost you big bucks!
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