How Insurance Companies Try To Minimize Your Settlement

I’m sure some of you have heard this before: Delay, Deny, Defend.

That’s the classic playbook I see used daily by insurance companies.

Delay: I’ve had clients come to me after struggling to reach their adjuster, or after finally getting in touch only to hear that more time is needed to “determine liability.” Then, when liability is eventually accepted, the insurance company argues that it’s been too long since the crash to cover necessary medical treatment. I’ve even seen insurance companies hire on-staff attorneys to defend cases I’ve filed, only to switch to a different attorney right before trial, forcing a delay because the new attorney needs “time to review the file.” These are all calculated efforts to delay justice.

Deny: I’ve seen cases with clear liability — like a failure to yield to oncoming traffic — where the adjuster tries to argue that my client was speeding, even when there’s nothing in the police report to support that claim. I’ve also had adjusters deny paying medical expenses because they believe pain should have resolved within eight weeks, just because they say so. And yes, I’ve even had a case where an insurance company didn’t want to pay because my client had a higher BMI. Seriously, that happened. These adjusters will try every trick in the book to deny your claim.

Defend: I’ve seen insurance companies spend $20,000 on medical experts to argue that $12,000 in total medical bills were “too high” or “unreasonable.” I’ve had cases where they tried to dodge liability because their insured passed away from unrelated causes, making it harder for me to pursue the claim through their estate. I’ve even had them come to mediation, seemingly in good faith, only to offer no more than what was on the table before the mediation even started, wasting everyone’s time and money.

I’m not saying all insurance companies are bad. There are some good ones out there. But the tactics I’ve described are what I’ve personally seen, and they’re more common than you might think. If you’ve had a frustrating experience with an insurance adjuster, I’m here to help. I’ve seen a thing or two, so I know how to handle a thing or two.