You were in a car accident, you’ve given your statement and exchanged insurance information with the other vehicle involved. You may have been injured, or maybe the other vehicle’s driver was injured. Either way, you have probably been traumatized as to what happened and what will happen next.
64,597 car crashes occurred in Utah in 2019. Some of these crashes came to the Ault Firm in search of help and we delivered, letting them know what to expect and guided them through what comes next. If you have been in an accident in Salt Lake County, Utah, contact us for a free consultation.
Insurance Adjuster
An insurance adjuster’s job is to handle all aspects of a car accident claim. They schedule damage inspections and review crash reports and medical records of the injured party; then, they place a monetary value on the claim. One of the first things they do as part of the adjuster’s claim investigation is interviewing the claimant and all other witnesses to the crash.
Requests for a Statement
Before you even get home from the crash scene, you may receive a call from an insurance adjuster. As soon as the insurance company is alerted that one of their insured customers has been involved in a car crash, they assign an insurance adjuster to investigate the claim. In order to keep insurance adjusters from devaluing your claim, we advise you to refuse to answer. Here’s why:
- The insurer can use your statement against you – If you happen to tell the adjuster that you weren’t injured but later find that you sustained whiplash from the accident (usually suffered after a few hours to days following the accident). They will use this to question your credibility.
- The insurer will use anything you say to reduce your compensation – If you admit to having looked at your phone for a split second, they will use this to assign part of the fault to you, which in turn, will reduce the compensation for your claim.
- They may trick you with contradictory questions – An insurance adjuster could ask you the same question but in different ways, making you have to answer differently and create inconsistencies in your claim.
If you have decided to give your insurance adjuster a statement, here are a couple of things you can do to protect yourself and get the compensation that you truly deserve.
- Do not admit fault/guilt for the crash.
- Do not answer any questions you don’t know the answer to.
- Do not give any information unless it is requested.
- Keep your answers brief.
- Don’t sign anything unless you’ve had an attorney look through it first.
What Information Do You Have to Provide?
First, the adjuster will ask for your permission to record the phone interview. Then they will ask for simple information such as your full name, address, and date of birth. They will then ask questions covering things such as;
- the damage to your vehicle,
- the weather conditions during the accident,
- if you had any passengers at the time of the accident,
- drug or alcohol use,
- effectiveness of safety device deployment,
- if you took evasive maneuvers,
- if you sustained any injuries,
- and if you had medical treatment.
At the end, they will ask if you have anything else to say to be put into the record.
