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Truck accidents often result in catastrophic injuries to all those involved. Unlike accidents involving two passenger vehicles, the power and size of commercial trucks virtually guarantee that one or both parties will suffer serious injuries. In addition to addressing injuries and property damage, parties injured in a truck accident must take the added step of dealing with insurance companies—an experience that can be difficult to say the least. In this article, we discuss dealing with insurance companies after a truck accident in Nassau County.
The Challenges of Dealing with Insurance Companies
As noted above, truck accidents often result in catastrophic injuries, property damage, and serious financial losses. Unlike regular car accidents, truck accident claims typically involve multiple parties, including drivers, trucking companies, and their insurance companies. In addition, insurance companies are known for making it difficult for injured parties to obtain fair payouts, making it essential to work with an experienced attorney if you’ve been injured in a truck accident.
Why Insurance Companies Make Things Difficult
There are several reasons that insurance companies make things difficult for claimants, including:
Profits: Insurance adjusters are often more concerned with making profits than providing fair compensation to injured parties.
Complex liability issues: Since truck accidents often involve more parties than typical car accidents, this can create complex liability issues that make it difficult to obtain fair compensation from insurance companies.
Intimidation tactics: Finally, insurance adjusters know that most accident victims are unfamiliar with the claims process. Therefore, they often pressure victims of truck accidents to accept low settlement offers.
How to Deal with Insurance Companies After a Truck Accident
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, there are certain things you should avoid doing when dealing with insurance companies, including:
Commenting on your condition: Adrenaline can mask injuries following a truck accident, making you temporarily feel healthier than you actually are. In addition, some injuries don’t present symptoms until long after the accident. Therefore, you shouldn’t discuss your physical condition or how you feel with insurance companies following a truck accident.
Accepting fault: Even if you believe you are at fault for the accident, you shouldn’t communicate this to insurance companies. The reason for this is simple: you may be wrong. You should let the evidence determine fault—not your personal opinion.
Hypothesizing about the accident: You should also avoid speculating about what caused the accident when dealing with insurance companies. Again, this is something that can be determined in an investigation.
Providing a recorded statement: Insurance adjusters often ask injury victims to make recorded statements. However, you should never agree to this because insurance companies often use these statements against injury victims in an effort to deny them fair compensation.
Contact a New York Truck Accident Attorney
If you’ve been hurt in a New York truck accident, you should contact an experienced truck accident attorney today. At Dell & Dean, PLLC, our experienced New York truck accident lawyers will work diligently to obtain financial compensation on your behalf. Please contact us today to arrange a consultation with a New York truck accident attorney.
