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One of the key responsibilities of an attorney is to clearly define the dispute and to explain how that may or may not establish the basis for a legal claim. Even simple two-party disagreements can rapidly become more complex than the average person can handle. A good example is the age-old favorite car accident where driver A is trying to get coverage from driver B's insurance company because driver B is at fault.
Any Germantown personal injury attorney will tell you insurance companies stay in business by denying claims. They don't hit their profit projections by writing checks. The average attorney knows this because if attorneys had a national sport, insurance companies would be their rivals. The real question is what is driver A supposed to do if driver B's insurance company won't cooperate? Ultimately, it all comes down to preparation.
Silent
The first rule is very simple and one that your attorney will be grateful you followed if you are in an accident that wasn't your fault. Keep your mouth shut. You have no legal duty to get into a freewheeling discussion about the accident with either your counterparty or the police. Remain silent and only divulge what you are legally required to divulge.
Evidence
Photograph everything. Get shots of license plates, road conditions, damage, the interiors of the other cars, police badges and everything else you can see. Being the only person able to visually reconstruct the accident scene four months later will give you a towering legal advantage that your Germantown personal injury attorney can put to immediate use.
Counsel
Some will advise you to draw close to your insurance company and rely on their goodwill and benevolent concern for your well-being to guide you through your dispute. People who live in the real world will tell you to hire an attorney and let them do the talking when it comes to notifying insurance adjusters. The driver A and driver B dispute outlined above becomes exponentially easier to navigate when you realize (if you are driver A) your attorney is going straight after driver B's insurance company, not yours.
If you are not at fault, your counterparty's insurance company is the first stop for the liability train, not yours. There is no reason for you to even engage your own insurance company unless there is a legal reason to do so. Your Snider & Horner attorney knows this, which is why they will be able to keep you from inadvertently hiking your own premiums for no reason.
The other thing to remember is it doesn't matter if driver B wants to involve their insurance company or not. If necessary, your attorney will file suit to protect your interests. That's the whole point of a liability insurance policy.
The key to avoiding a tangled mess is to be prepared. Gather evidence, keep your mouth shut and let your attorney do the talking. It's always better to have someone who has actually studied insurance law take charge when arguing with billion-dollar insurance companies.
If you believe you have a legal claim, especially in a car accident situation where you were not at fault, contact Snider & Horner today at (901) 730-8880 and let us evaluate your situation.
