Here comes the insurance adjuster. Is he overly friendly? If so, watch out! Its OK to be hospitable. Be good-tempered and cordial - - but beware! Never forget hes paid to save his company as much money as he can. Thats the name of his game.

DONT SIGN ANYTHING: Dont overestimate the good will of the adjuster. Theyre trained to investigate accident cases in such a way, if at all possible, to make their insured look good. Many unsuspecting individuals fall prey to the adjuster who seeks to protect his companys pocketbook at the expense of a legitimate claimant.

If a company calls you and suggests they take your statement over the telephone, tell them you would prefer to meet with an adjuster. Dont agree to dictate a verbal statement into a tape recorder over the phone, and certainly not when youre in the presence of an adjuster. Dont sign a statement when you meet with him. Whatever the circumstance may be, advise whomever youre dealing with that youll be more than willing to provide a signed statement, after your claim has been settled.

HOW TO PROCEED WITH THE ADJUSTER: Be pleasant, but firm. No matter how much in the wrong the person is that hit you, no matter how they acted at the scene of the accident, and no matter what they may have verbalized to or at you, dont take it out on the adjuster. Its not the adjusters fault if his insured is an idiot.

You must never underestimate the importance of the adjusters impressions and conclusions, all of which go into your file. What he feels and reports about you have a great influence on the final disposition of your claim. If he likes you thats money in the bank. On the other hand, if he gets upset with you he has the ability to twist the facts to make you look bad. Once thats been done, it will be set in cement, go into your file and, without youre ever being aware of it and haunt you to the last dollar of your settlement.

THE ADJUSTERS CLAIM LOAD: The job performance of insurance adjusters is judged not only on how little of the companys money they spend in settlements, but also on how quickly they settle the claims assigned to them. Theyre constantly under pressure to settle your claim; to get rid of it and move on. The adjuster will never tell you, but the weight of their caseload comes down on your side of the scale. Its an advantage people are never aware of.

THE ADJUSTERS SETTLEMENT AUTHORITY: The Adjusters authority to settle claims on their own is restricted on how much experience they have. For a less experienced adjuster, perhaps $5,000 to $10,000, but for a more experienced adjuster, their settlement authority may go as high as $20,000. When bigger bucks are involved they usually have to be given permission to settle the case from their immediate supervisor.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Dont let a sweet talking insurance adjuster manipulate you into feeling good about your relationship with him and the eventual outcome of your claim. In the vast majority of instances thats not the way you should play the game because if provided with the opportunity, theyll almost always take advantage of you. Thats a fact of life. Know and understand that theyre only doing their job. Their assignment is to save money for the company who signs their paychecks - - no matter what it takes.

If you have a legitimate claim stay cool and understand what youre up against. Dont be impossible to deal with, but remain steady. Remember that the adjuster wants to look good to his company. He doesnt want your claim to end up in court, plus he wants to reduce his caseload. Be patient. At the end of the day, after the dust has settled, hell be forced to do the right thing.

DISCLAIMER: The only purpose of this claim tip is to help people understand the motor vehicle accident claim process. Neither Dan Baldyga nor (name of magazine/newsletter and/or web site) make any guarantee of any kind whatsoever; NOR to substitute for a lawyer, an insurance adjuster, or claims consultant, or the like. Where such professional help is desired it is the INDIVIDUAL'S RESPONSIBILITY to obtain said services.

Dan Baldyga's latest book AUTO ACCIDENT PERSONAL INJURY INSURANCE CLAIM (How To Evaluate And Settle Your Loss) can be found on the internet at his web site http://www.autoaccidentclaims.com or visit your favoite bookstore.

Copyright (c) 2002 Daniel G. Baldyga. All rights reserved.

Dan Baldyga

Dan Baldyga

Dan Baldyga has a lifetime of experience in the field of motor vehicle accidents, personal injury and compensation. From 1951 thru 1955 he worked his way through college employed by the Dolan-Whitney Detective Agency of Springfield, MA. His assignments included insurance fraud, missing persons, financial and background investigations and undercover operations.

Upon graduation from American International College in 1955, where he played 1st string varsity quarterback for 3 years, Baldyga was drafted into the United States Navy where and was assigned to a ?Special Unit? in Criminal Investigations. After serving in the Navy, he entered the world of insurance claims, where he began as an Adjuster, was promoted to Supervisor, and then to Claims Manager for 33 years. He then spent another five years of his career assisting company attorneys at court trials.

In 1968, Baldyga wrote the groundbreaking HOW TO SETTLE YOUR OWN INSURANCE CLAIM, published by Macmillan. This revolutionary concept (to assist laymen with their insurance claims) created a heated debate within both the insurance and legal industries -- because it revealed, the secrets surrounding the settlement of motor vehicle accident claims. This had never been done before!

Baldyga appeared on hundred?s of television and radio talk shows throughout the United States including the Mike Douglas Show where he made the observation, ?Insurance is an ultra-conservative industry that breeds unimaginative, narrow minded men?. It took a wealth of twisting and turning to dodge the verbal bullets fired at him from his Home Office.

His publications also include the 1983 novel A SAILOR REMEMBERS and his second ?How To? insurance claim book, SECRETS NEVER TOLD was released in 1998.

Upon his retirement, Baldyga decided that it was time to publish the definitive self-help guide concerning motor vehicle accident personal injury claims.

After examining mountains of statistics and confidential reports, he created BASE (The Baldyga Auto Accident Settlement Evaluation Formula). Experts have called his personal injury evaluation method ?Amazing? and ?Revolutionary.? THE BASE FORMULA is ingenious, yet matter-of-fact, simple, yet accurate, and eliminates the mystery of how to place a monetary value on ?Pain and Suffering? one has endured - - because of their personal injury!

His new book, AUTO ACCIDENT PERSONAL INJURY INSURANCE CLAIM goes into specific detail regarding THE BASE FORMULA.