You’re hurt in a car accident.  You notify the responsible insurance company.  You spend months getting treatment and recovering from your injuries, taking time off work, school and other activities.  You present you medical bills and demand for payment to the insurance company only to have them come back with a lowball offer.  The answer is not to get upset, but to negotiate.

When you’re injured in a car accident, especially when the accident is not your fault, you are entitled to recover for medical expenses, as well as pain and suffering damages.  The insurance adjuster’s job is to pay you as little as possible.  Insurance companies process hundreds of claims daily.  To you, its personal.  To the adjuster, you’re just another file number. 

It’s always best to have an attorney on your side when negotiating with insurance representatives.  However, if you’re doing it on your own, try your best to keep emotions out of the negotiation.  Look at it the way the adjuster does, as just another case to negotiate, like haggling over the price of a used car.  You should have your medical bills covered, lost wages if there are any, and then something for pain and suffering.  Don’t let the adjuster talk you into settling for less because “your damages are far too high for this kind of accident.”  And remember, never take the first offer!