Articles
Insurance Companies are Not Paying
State Farm Insurance Companies, Allstate Ins. Co., American Family Ins. Co., Farmers Ins. Co., and other insurance companies have adopted various policies designed to minimize payments to claimants.
You have only one claim. Your rights and responsibilities should be respected by insurance companies. You - with your smiles and dimples - make the case.
But you must still satisfy the Court's requirements of proof in order to prevail. And the burden of boredom is even greater than the burden of proof. The key - whether for settlement or trial - is the same: persuasion through presentation. You must distinguish your claim from the 500 other claimants the individual insurance adjuster is evaluating.
Plan your approach and work your plan. Your work plan would include preparation for trial and settlement. Preparing for trial aids in settling your claim. The tasks are straightforward: investigate the claim (facts, photos, documents, interviews, written statements, etc.); satisfy all conditions precedent (notice requirements, governmental entity requirements, no-fault threshold requirements, statute of limitations, etc.). Evaluate the case: look at the nature and extent of injury, who the defendant is, whether the defendant can respond financially, the liability (and assess comparative negligence), causation, objectification of the injury, and a clearheaded anticipation and refutation of defenses and immunities.
The key to success is humanizing you. You are the case. Present the account. Picture how the incident happened through your eyes and through key witnesses. Avoid dullness. Make the injury real. Provide the law. Chart, graph, illustrate, cartoon or whatever - but show the claim, and the resultant injury.
Answer the following questions: Why do you deserve to be paid? Why does the defendant deserve an adverse judgment? What will you do with the money? What difference willmoney make in your life?
You must tell the adjuster what to do. Describe options. Provide the adjuster the information needed in order to justify payment.
Boulder Law Office: 1790 38th Street, Suite 205, Boulder, CO 80301
Denver Law Office: 1641 Downing Street, Denver, CO 80218