If you’re injured in an auto accident, you may be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and more. The party responsible for providing said compensation will vary depending on whether you live in a “fault” or “no fault” state.
In fault states, the party whose negligence caused the accident is responsible for compensating you. However, they technically won’t compensate you directly. Their insurer will provide compensation. In a no fault state, your own insurer will compensate you. Regardless, if you’re seeking compensation after an accident, you’ll have to file an accident claim with an insurance company, such as USAA. At first, they’ll likely sound and appear to be compassionate and understanding. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that means they have your best interests in mind. The number one goal of an insurer in these circumstances isn’t to help you collect what you deserve. It’s to settle early for as little as possible. That’s simply the reality of these cases.
Odds are good you don’t have much experience filing a claim against USAA. They, on the other hand, have plenty of experience protecting themselves financially when injured parties file claims. This puts you at a major disadvantage. That’s why you need to keep certain tips in mind when dealing with USAA. They include the following:
Again, it’s highly likely an insurer will come across as warm during your first interaction. That’s because they want you to let your guard down. Once they feel they’ve earned your trust, they’ll start asking you questions about the accident.
You don’t have to answer these! In fact, you shouldn’t.
It’s imperative to remember that USAA wants to pay you as little as they can. They might even want to justify not paying you at all. That’s why they ask questions throughout the process. They’re looking for any indication that you might not actually be insured in this scenario.
Even minor statements can reduce the amount of compensation you end up securing. For instance, maybe after an accident, you’re struggling with pain every day. You deserve compensation for that. However, perhaps during a conversation with a USAA adjuster, they ask how you’re feeling. While you may genuinely be in pain, like many people, you might also simply say you’re feeling fine when asked this question. It’s not the truth, but it’s a common automatic response. That response could come back to haunt you. USAA might use it to argue your pain isn’t significant enough to justify a certain amount of compensation.
In a well-read book explaining why insurance companies like USAA often don’t pay claims, or pay less than what injured parties are entitled to, a Rutgers insurance law professor introduced the idea of the “delay, deny, defend” tactic. It’s a common one insurance companies employ when someone files a claim against them.
The following points summarize how insurers apply it:
When you don’t have much experience filing a claim against USAA after an auto accident, you also don’t likely know precisely how much your claim is actually worth. Insurers understand this. They’ll also use your lack of knowledge in this area against you. You might assume a claim is only worth your medical expenses. That’s not the case. You may also be entitled to compensation for a range of other losses, potentially including (but not limited to):
Future medical bills: The immediate and short-term treatment you receive for car accident injuries may not be the only treatment you receive. Some injuries result in circumstances in which long-term and/or ongoing care is also necessary. You may be entitled to compensation for the cost of that care as well.
Other losses: The losses an insurer might compensate you for don’t have to all be financial in nature. For example, the pain and suffering you experience after an accident can’t be summed up with a medical bill.
Related expenses: Medical bills often won’t be the only financial losses you incur as a result of an accident. For example, depending on the nature of your injuries, you might be unable to return to work, whether temporarily or permanently. If so, you may face lost wages. Or, if an injury prevents you from driving, you may have to rely on taxis, Ubers, or other expensive means to get around. Additionally, an accident might make you unable to maintain your own home, forcing you to hire someone else to do so for you. These are all merely a few examples of other financial difficulties for which you may be entitled to compensation.
This is a key reason to seek the help of an attorney when filing a claim against USAA. Attorneys use specific methods to calculate precisely how much compensation an injured party is entitled to after an accident. Without an attorney, you’ll struggle to argue why USAA’s lowball offers are insufficient.
Accurately calculating what you deserve is just one benefit of hiring a lawyer when you’ve been injured in a collision. The following are other essential ways an attorney can help when filing your claim:
When you file your claim, USAA will assign it to an adjuster. While it will always be an adjuster’s goal to limit what USAA has to pay, at virtually all major insurance companies, some adjusters are particularly notorious for their unscrupulous tactics.
You probably don’t know who those adjusters are, though. An attorney, on the other hand, will probably be familiar with who is who at USAA. They’ll know the tactics and defenses various adjusters use. Thus, they’ll know how to defend against those tactics and negotiate effectively.
There are a number of processes you may need to complete after filing a claim against USAA. An attorney can assist you with them.
For example, if USAA denies your claim, an attorney can help you appeal it. If they delay payment, an attorney may file a demand letter indicating why USAA is legally required to release payment. If all else fails, your attorney can also bring USAA to court.
When facing the financial consequences of an auto accident, some people feel they can’t justify hiring an attorney because they don’t want to be stuck with even more bills. This is an understandable reaction. However, it’s based on a misunderstanding of how attorneys operate.
First of all, most attorneys will review your case for free. There’s no reason not to at least consult with one. More importantly, most attorneys also enter into contingency fee agreements with clients they choose to represent. With this type of agreement, you’re not taking on any financial risk, because your attorney won’t charge any fees unless they first secure compensation for you via a settlement or damages awarded in court.
Their fee will also typically be a percentage of what you receive. This incentivizes them to pursue the highest sum. It’s a key reason you’re almost always likely to collect far more compensation when you hire an attorney than you would collect if you tried to handle your claim on your own.
Once more, a USAA insurer will make lowball offers, ask leading questions, and essentially try to “trick” you into accepting less than you deserve (or saying something that gives them a justification for denying your claim).
It’s understandably stressful to communicate with an insurance adjuster when you know they’re trying to get you to slip up in some way. Fortunately, when you hire an attorney, they’ll traditionally be able to handle all communications for you. This relieves you of a significant burden. It also gives you the time and space to focus on more important matters that may have arisen in the aftermath of your accident.
Working with an attorney is also valuable due to the way these cases often become remarkably complex. The example of Foraker v. USAA Casualty Insurance Company illustrates this well. The plaintiff in this case was injured in a collision with an uninsured drunk driver. Because USAA would not initially pay her what she was entitled to after filing a claim, she and her attorney took USAA to court.
This case was unique, though, as it was split into two phases. In the first phase, a bench trial, the court determined the plaintiff’ damages added up to nearly $2 million. However, USAA argued to pay no more than $1 million, due to the plaintiff’s policy limits. Fortunately, with the help of her attorney, the plaintiff was able to convince the court to issue a ruling the legally obligated USAA to pay what she was entitled to.
The case didn’t end there, though. It entered into the next phase instead. During this phase, the plaintiff sought to collect additional damages by arguing that USAA had committed breach of contract. Specifically, she contended that USAA did not act in “good faith” and had delayed in investigating her claim. She argued that because of this delay, circumstances developed that resulted in her damages exceeding the policy limits. Had USAA not delayed, her damages would have been less, and thus, she would have had access to compensation earlier.
With the help of her attorney, the plaintiff was also generally successful during this phase of the case, securing additional compensation. It’s highly likely that in a case as detailed and complicated as this one, the plaintiff would not have been able to collect the full amount of compensation they deserved without the assistance of a professional who understood the relevant legal nuances and principles involved.
It’s worth noting that this case also serves as a key example of USAA not considering the best interests of a claimant. Many of the complexities and challenges involved in this case developed specifically because USAA put its own goals first. The plaintiff struggled to pursue compensation for years as a result. That would not have been the case if USAA had prioritized her needs from the start.
Your top priority in the immediate aftermath of an auto accident is checking yourself for injuries and getting to a safe spot away from traffic. Once you’ve confirmed both you and anyone else in your vehicle are okay, call the police right away. It’s important for an official police report to be filed. Then you can exchange personal and insurance information with the other driver (or drivers) involved in the accident. Do so calmly, and make a point of checking on their well-being too. Next, get the names and contact information of witnesses. You might also want to take pictures and/or video of the scene and your injuries.
Once you’re done at the scene, see a doctor right away. Even if you don’t believe you have any injuries, sometimes the signs of car accident injuries don’t show up right away. USAA could thus argue your injuries weren’t the result of the accident if you don’t get immediate care from a physician. After all that’s done, don’t assume USAA will take care of you. Don’t answer their questions, and consider seeing an attorney right away to avoid making the kinds of mistakes that can jeopardize your claim.
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