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5 Reasons Not to Accept an Insurance Settlement Before Talking to a Personal Injury Attorney

If you’ve been injured in an accident, it’s more likely that an insurance company will offer you a settlement than that they won’t. While they may be persuasive and they may sound as though they have your best interests in mind, the reality is that you want to speak to a personal injury attorney before signing anything. Read on to read five reasons this is true and then reach out to Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 for a free legal consultation.

  1. The insurance company does not have the same goals as you
  2. Whether it’s your own insurance company or the insurance company of someone you were in a car accident with, the insurance company has a single goal: Making money for their shareholders. The way they do that is by taking in more in premiums than they pay out in settlements. It’s not personal – it’s basic economics.

  3. Most first offers are lower than you deserve
  4. It’s rare to see an insurance company offer a good offer as their first offer. The reality is that damages can be calculated in a number of ways. You can count on an insurance company to use the formula that results in the lowest damages. An attorney can look over their offer and let you know if it’s reasonable.

  5. You often don’t know the full amount of your damages
  6. Once you sign a settlement, you no longer have the right to sue. As a result, it’s essential that you don’t agree to a settlement until you’re sure about your long-term damages. Remember that injuries aren’t always immediately clear, and the extent of those you know about may take months to understand. The same is true of other types of damages. For example, you may end up having to take off more time from work than you expect.

  7. An insurance settlement is relatively final
  8. When you sign an insurance settlement, you’re not just signing for the amount they’re offering – you’re signing away additional damages. No one wants to settle for $2,000 and then learn the next day that their damages are actually worth upwards of $10,000. It’s always worth it to discuss your options with an attorney before agreeing to anything.

  9. You don’t have any upfront fees
  10. Many of our clients have dealt with devastating injuries. Others have lost a significant amount of their property. Many aren’t able to work or can’t work as much as they used to. This could make a person feel that they don’t have the resources to file a personal injury lawsuit. The good news is that nothing could be further from the truth.

Why? Because at Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas we are proud to offer free consultations. If we meet with you and we decide to work together, then we’ll take your case on a contingency basis. This means that you don’t owe us a penny until we recover money for you. To learn more about what your options are, call us at 909-982-0707 today.