After you have been involved in a Massachusetts car accident, slip and fall accident, dog bite, or any other kind of accident, you will invariably have to negotiate your claim with an insurance adjuster (assuming you are handling your claim without a Massachusetts personal injury lawyer). Adjusters are not your friends but your enemies. They are paid to pay you as little as possible your Massachusetts personal injury claim. They are usually good negotiators which means you have to be able to negotiate your Massachusetts personal injury claim effectively.
In order to do that, you need to be able to anticipate reasons the adjuster will proffer as to why your claim is not worth much in value. To that end I provide the following provided by San Jose, California personal injury attorney Edward A. Smith who tells you some things to expect the adjuster to say to you:
- You weren’t wearing your seatbelt
- Defects in your car caused the accident
- You did not receive treatment until weeks after the accident
- Medical records show that you exaggerated your injuries
- Medical records show that you had the condition before
- No police report and no witness
- No request for medical care at the scene of the accident
- You missed a lot of work time before the accident
- Minor damage was done to your vehicle
- No complaint of pain at the scene of the accident
- Some other person, or you, was responsible for the accident
Be ready for these defenses, and feel free to contact me with any Massachusetts insurance questions you may have.