SHOULD I GIVE THE ADJUSTER A RECORDED STATEMENT AFTER A CAR WRECK?

As a Missouri car accident lawyer, this is a common question I receive.  Unfortunately, many people come to me months after their wreck, during which time they have been trying to deal with the adjusters themselves.  Adjusters always start out very friendly and will tell you that they will fairly evaluate their case and will do so much quicker than if a lawyer is involved.  Of course, many clients are just seeking what is fair and they think that the insurance company will do the same.  This often results in the adjuster requesting numerous things, including a recorded statement and also medical authorizations.  However, you have absolutely no obligation to give them any of this and it is certainly not true that they must have it before evaluating and offering a settlement for the car accident.  In fact, in virtually all circumstances, I refuse to allow my client to provide a recorded statement and I never give the insurance company unrestricted medical authorizations.  Rather, as my client’s lawyer, I present the story to the insurance company on their behalf and order all records and bills on my own and give that to them as well.  Simply put, insurance companies are in the business of making a profit.  And they make a huge profit and they do not make that by “fairly” evaluating accident claims.  Rather they do it by taking advantage of injury victims.  Thus, in order to level the playing field, we have to keep control of the negotiations, which includes dictating what information they get and when.   Certainly we want to settle the claim as soon as possible so we don’t want to hide anything.  However, we also don’t want to give the insurance companies full authority to go on a baseless fishing expedition to dig up all kinds of unrelated past medical records and make it sound as if your injuries are pre-existing.

Therefore, if you are trying to decide whether or not to give a recorded statement, please note that you are never under any obligation to do so, no matter what the insurance company adjuster tells you.  I always advise that you at least consult with a Missouri car accident lawyer.  If you’ve been injured in a serious car accident and would like to speak with a premier injury lawyer to help determine the value of your Missouri car accident settlement, please feel free to contact Joshua P. Myers at 888.956.2487.  Although based out of St. Louis, Missouri, I routinely handle seriously personal injury cases throughout the entire states of Missouri and Illinois.  There is never any fee to discuss your case.  And if I do represent you, our fees are a percentage of the recovery.  If we do not recover for you, you do not owe anything.