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11 - 29 Insurance Company Tactics That Could Cost You A Lot of Money

Jersey City & Newark, New Jersey

Personal Injury Lawyer Hudson County

29 insurance company tactics that could cost you a lot of money continued:

  1. Insurance company surveillance of you. If the adjuster or the insurance company investigator is asking questions about you to your neighbors, employer, co-workers, friends or doctors without your permission, or conducting video surveillance on you, call me and let's talk. (If you see a strange looking vehicle parked near your house with tinted windows, write down the license plate and take pictures of the vehicle including its license plate...then call me).

    It is common for video to be taken of you in every day activity such as washing the car, going shopping and taking care of your children. You will probably be made when you see their surveillance video of you and your family. If they have done video surveillance on you, we will get a copy for you. Call me and I'll tell you about some sneaky tricks insurance companies have pulled on some of my clients.


  2. Adjuster offers you a tiny check. If the adjuster refuses to pay you anything for your claim or offers to pay you a small amount, call a lawyer. Just because the adjuster tells you your case is worth a small amount, doesn't necessarily mean he's right. Ask the adjuster to put his reasons for such an offer in writing.


  3. Adjuster says you do not need a lawyer. If the adjuster says you do not need a lawyer, or tells you not to obtain legal advice, you would be justified to be concerned about why the insurance company is so anxious to keep you away from a lawyer.

    Could it be that the adjuster does not want you to know the true value of your case? Could it be that the adjuster wants to keep you in the dark about your legal rights? Be careful here...you could los between $25,000 and $75,000 (or more). Before this happens to you...call me and let's talk.


  4. Delay by using an answering machine. Another tactic the insurance companies are using is giving each adjuster an answering machine. These answering machines allow the adjusters to avoid phone calls. Thus, the settlement of your case will be delayed.


  5. Delay...adjuster keeps asking for more medical records. If the insurance company claims they need "more" medical reports...and you provide those records. And, then the insurance company needs more and more records. This is a common delay tactic used by insurance companies and they know that it takes time to get these records.

    The insurance company may demand copies of your income tax returns for the past five years or some other private information about you. There may be no end to their demands. If this happens to you...call me and let's talk!


  6. Delay...seeking more dollar authority. Adjuster says he is seeking more dollar authority. Sometimes, seeking more dollar authority from a supervisor may take weeks or even months. The adjuster is hoping you do not want to wait and you will take a smaller settlement NOW instead of waiting.

    Plus the adjusters hate asking for more dollar authority. Their bosses will not be happy. The adjuster is expected to settle the case for the original dollar authority...which can be very low.


  7. Adjuster is on a two-week vacation. There is no one else to talk to. The insurance companies love this delay tactic. Most other types of businesses would have placed a substitute to help out...but not insurance companies who want to delay. The adjuster will take care of your case when he gets back...maybe...he is probably way behind in all of his cases. Again, the insurance companies love the delay.


  8. Delay by transferring adjuster. Adjuster has been transferred to other cases, and the new adjuster won't be familiar with your case, or any others, for two to three weeks or longer. It is common for insurance companies to reassign adjusters. For each reassignment, there is a built in delay.


  9. Your case has been transferred. The file has been transferred to the home office for review and won't be back for several weeks or months.


  10. Your adjuster is on weather assignment. The adjuster has been temporarily reassigned due to hurricane, earthquake or storm damage. The adjuster will talk to you about your case when he returns. Usually no other adjuster will step forward to help you settle your case, thus you are forced to wait.


  11. Permanent change of adjuster. Some adjusters simply quit or they are fired. This means YOU have to wait for a new adjuster to be assigned to your case; a guaranteed delay.


  12. Delay by being nice to you. The adjuster is trained to be nice to you and cause you to believe that you will receive the true value of your case. The adjusters know that a lot of people use the "wait and see" strategy to see if the insurance company will make a fair offer. Insurance companies know that some people do not want to get a lawyer until after they hear what the insurance company has to offer.

    This "wait and see" strategy makes the insurance companies very happy. It's like holding a carrot out in front of you and watching you jump through hoops for them. Every day of delay helps the insurance company receive more interest on the money they legally owe you.

    Plus, if they can stall you long enough and you get far enough behind in your bills and you are under a lot of pressure, then you most likely will take a tiny check out of desperation.

    Waiting and waiting is the insurance adjuster's biggest weapon against you. When you use the "wait and see" strategy, you actually help the insurance adjuster gradually weaken you...financially...physically...and mentally. The insurance companies love the wait and see strategy.


  13. Making you feel guilty. The adjuster explains to you that if everybody accepts smaller settlements, the insurance rates will be lower for the general public and the savings will be passed on to all policyholders. (yeah...right...and if you believe that, would you be interested in buying the Brooklyn Bridge.)

    Maybe the adjuster says something to you hoping you will feel sorry for the wrong-doer. It is common for New Jersey citizens to have a kind and forgiving heart. The insurance company counts on your forgiveness and guilt.

    Never, never feel guilty about being compensated for your pain and suffering, lost wages and medical bills. Tiny check or no check gives the CEO or president of the insurance company bigger salaries and bonuses.


  14. Hiding the ball. When using this tactic, the insurance adjusters do not volunteer anything to help you realize and understand your insurance coverage. You may have thousands of dollars coming to you from your underinsurance coverage. It is not the adjuster's job to help you with underinsurance.

    Also, there is a little known law that was passed July 1, 1991 that will help you with your subrogation problems. I bet the insurance adjuster doesn't tell you about that! In fact, most people in the State of New Jersey do not even now what subrogation means nor do they know about the little known law.

    Don't hold your breath...the insurance company is not on your side and they are not going to help you understand your rights.

    Injured people have lost thousands upon thousands of dollars because they do not fully understand their legal rights...and they don't even know that they have just lost $25,000 to $75,000! (or more)


  15. Bogus Claims Committee. The adjuster tells you that the claim must first go before a "committee". The adjuster may be buying time and stalling. Don't be surprised if there is no committee. Or, the so-called committee is the adjuster himself...no one else.


  16. Delay...hoping you will die. If you are elderly, the insurance adjuster might decide to stall instead of processing your claim, hoping you may die before they have to pay you. Never forget...the insurance basis is a heartless business. They are only interested in MONEY...and...PROFITS. (You will be surprised how many times this strategy is used by the insurance companies.)


  17. No one controls what the adjuster says. Many insurance adjusters operate out of their home. They are not part of the home office or in some high rise building where their conversations are overheard by fellow employees. These adjusters are alone in their homes and they talk to you over the phone. They can say anything they want and no supervisor will hear what they say. These adjusters will say and argue anything to pressure you into taking a very tiny check. As a result, you can lose thousands of dollars.


  18. Car Damage...calling in the rental car. If your car has been totaled and it cannot be repaired, your car will be considered "totaled". A common tactic for the insurance company is to put you into a rental car immediately. Then several days later they will make you a very low offer of settlement for your car. They will put pressure on you.

    At the same time they make their offer of settlement, they demand that you return the rental car within the next 48 hours. A lot of people have no choices but to say yes to the low offer for their car. Many times, the car is worth a lot more than what is being offered and the insurance companies save millions and millions of dollars.


  19. Rigged Computers. The insurance company will not tell you about their rigged computers. That's their little secret! The rigged computer has literally saved millions of dollars for the insurance companies. The insurance company creates a rigged computer...then feeds information into the computer about your case...and the computer is programmed to spit out a ridiculously low offer of settlement. Unfortunately, a lot of people say yes.

    And the insurance companies know that a certain percentage of the people will say yes even to a tiny check. The insurance company has a clear advantage...more money...more lawyers...more experience...and they have not suffered the injuries and the worries that you have suffered. The adjuster is under no pressure at all...whereas you and your family are under tremendous pressure.

    You may be counting on the insurance company to be fair with you. Always remember the insurance company wants to make big profits that they can pay their stock holders and their CEO.


Confused? Bewildered? It's no wonder; most people who haven't been practicing law for 20 years or more aren't used to dealing with insurance companies. After reading everything on this page, you know that without professional legal help you are the underdog, and this is where I come in. If you live or work in Jersey City or elsewhere in the Hudson County area, the first step is for you to contact me at the Law Offices of Anthony Carbone, P.C. for a free, confidential discussion.


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