Should I Agree to Settle With the Other Driver Directly After a Car Accident?

You’ve just been involved in a car accident that wasn’t your fault. The accident doesn’t seem to have been too bad. The damage is minor and you don’t think that you have suffered any serious injuries. While examining your vehicle, the other driver approaches you and offers to give you a check instead of going through the hassle of reporting the accident and dealing with insurance. Should you take it? The short answer is “no.”

Immediately after a car accident, most people are in no position to know the true extent of damages they may be facing. This is true for vehicle damage, as well as any potential injuries you may have suffered. After an accident, you are likely in a state of shock. However, once the adrenaline subsides, it is not unusual for people to begin to feel the aches and pains that they did not have at the scene of the crash.

Likewise, until you get your vehicle into a repair shop, you will also not know the true extent of damage to your car. More often than not, there is hidden damage that is not visible to the eye. The last thing you want to do is to settle your claim with the other driver at the scene only to find out that your damages exceed what you agreed to accept.

Should I Accept a Check From the Other Driver’s Insurance Company if They Offer Me More Money

Often times, an at-fault driver’s insurance company will make an offer to you over the phone shortly after a car accident. The insurance company does this because it knows that you have not had time to fully evaluate your damages, and it thinks that it can put an end to your claim before it really begins, so as to save the insurance company money.

You should never accept a check from an insurance company right after a car accident unless you have had the chance to speak to a Florida car accident attorney. The reason for this is that in order to accept a check from the insurance company, it will first require you to sign a “release”, which is a legal document where you state that you agree not to take any further action against the other driver or the insurance company for any damages arising from the crash. When signed, this document prevents you from pursuing any future compensation if you later learn that your injuries or vehicle damages are worse than you thought. Moreover, the insurance company’s offer will likely not include any compensation for your non-economic damages. In the state of Florida, components of recoverable non-economic damages include such things as:

1. Pain and suffering

2. Emotional distress

3. Disability

4. Loss of enjoyment of life

5. Inconvenience

6. Mental Anguish

which are available at our website, or you can click the link provided.  You can also contact us at 410-391-5520 to talk directly to a Ruskin car accident attorney now.