Should I Accept the Insurance Company’s Settlement Offer After a Car Accident?

The insurance company offered you a settlement after a car accident. Should you accept it?

Not necessarily.

An insurance company may make a settlement offer before you know the full extent of your injuries, before you understand what your medical treatment will cost, or before you know how the accident may affect your ability to work in the future.

Once you accept a settlement and sign a release, you may be giving up your right to seek additional compensation for the accident.

Before accepting an insurance company’s offer, it is important to understand what the offer covers, what it does not cover, and whether it fairly compensates you for your losses.

If you have received a settlement offer after a car accident, Gold, Khourey & Turak can review your situation and help you understand your options.

Contact our office at (304) 845-9750. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day.

What Does an Insurance Settlement Offer Mean?

A settlement offer is the insurance company’s proposal to resolve your claim by paying you a specific amount of money.

The amount may be intended to cover some or all of your damages, including:

• Medical expenses
• Lost wages
• Vehicle or property damage
• Pain and suffering
• Future medical treatment
• Other losses related to the accident

But the amount offered by the insurance company is not necessarily the amount your claim is worth.

Insurance companies are businesses. Their goal is to resolve claims while limiting the amount they pay.

That does not mean every settlement offer is unfair. Some claims can be resolved appropriately without a lawsuit. But you should fully understand what you are giving up when you accept an offer.

Why Would an Insurance Company Make an Early Settlement Offer?

Insurance companies sometimes make settlement offers soon after an accident.

You may receive a call, letter, email, or other communication asking you to accept a payment and resolve your claim.

An early offer may seem appealing. You may have medical bills piling up, your car may need repairs, and you may already be missing work.

But an early settlement can come before you know how serious your injuries are.

For example, what initially appears to be a minor injury may require additional treatment, physical therapy, injections, surgery, or other medical care.

If you settle your claim too soon, you cannot go back later and ask the insurance company for more money simply because your injuries turned out to be more serious than expected.

What Happens If I Accept the Settlement?

Before accepting a settlement, pay close attention to the paperwork the insurance company asks you to sign.

You may be asked to sign a release of claims.

A release is a legally significant document stating that you agree to accept the settlement in exchange for giving up further claims arising from the accident.

In practical terms, accepting the settlement offer may mean that you cannot later demand additional compensation for injuries or losses related to the same accident.

That is why it is important to understand the consequences before signing.

Do not assume that you can accept the check now and negotiate for more money later.

If you are unsure what an insurance company’s settlement documents mean, consider having an attorney review them before you sign.

What If I Still Have Medical Bills?

One of the biggest problems with accepting a settlement too early is that you may not yet know the full cost of your medical care.

After a car accident, you may have expenses for:

• Emergency room treatment
• Ambulance transportation
• Hospital care
• Doctor visits
• Diagnostic testing
• Physical therapy
• Prescription medications
• Chiropractic treatment
• Injections
• Surgery
• Follow-up care

Some bills may not arrive until weeks or months after the accident.

You may also have health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, or other sources that have paid some of your medical expenses. These entities may demand reimbursement for any expenses they paid on your behalf from the settlement.

Before accepting a settlement, it is important to understand not only what your medical bills are today, but also what obligations or expenses may remain.

What About Future Medical Treatment?

You may still be receiving treatment when the insurance company makes an offer.

If your doctor expects that you will need additional treatment, the potential cost of that treatment can be an important part of evaluating your claim.

For example, you may be told that you need continued physical therapy or that additional testing or treatment may be necessary.

An insurance settlement should not be evaluated solely by looking at the bills you have already received.

You should also consider how the accident may affect your health and finances in the future.

What About Lost Wages?

An accident can affect you more than “just” your medical bills.

If your injuries cause you to miss work, you may have a claim for lost income.

Depending on the circumstances, you may also need to consider whether your injuries could affect your ability to work in the future.

Keep documentation of time missed from work and income lost because of the accident. This may include pay stubs, employer records, tax documents, or other evidence of lost income.

What About Pain and Suffering?

A settlement may also include compensation for the physical pain and emotional difficulties caused by the accident.

Pain and suffering can be more difficult to calculate than a medical bill or repair estimate.

Factors that may be relevant include:

• The nature and severity of your injuries
• How long your symptoms last
• The treatment you have received
• Whether you require additional treatment
• How the injuries affect your daily activities
• Whether the injuries interfere with work or other aspects of your life
• Whether you experience permanent limitations or impairment

There is no single formula that automatically determines what a person’s pain and suffering is worth.

The circumstances of each accident and each person’s injuries are different.

What About Damage to My Car?

Property damage is another part of an accident claim.

Depending on the circumstances, this may include damage to your vehicle and certain personal property.

Make sure you understand whether the insurance company’s offer includes property damage, bodily injury compensation, or both.

These may be handled as separate portions of an insurance claim.

Should I Sign the Insurance Company’s Release?

Be careful before signing a release.

A release may be the document that formally ends your claim.

Once you sign it and accept the settlement, you will have no ability to seek additional compensation related to the accident.

Before signing, make sure you understand:

• Exactly what claims you are releasing
• What the settlement is intended to cover
• Whether outstanding medical bills remain
• Whether future medical treatment is expected
• Whether lost wages have been included
• Whether pain and suffering have been considered
• Whether property damage has been resolved
• Whether any other claims or obligations remain

If you do not understand the release, you should not guess what it might mean.

Have an attorney review it before you sign it.

When Should an Attorney Review an Insurance Settlement Offer?

You do not necessarily need an attorney for every minor car accident.

But it may be worthwhile to have an attorney review an insurance company’s offer if:

• You suffered significant injuries
• You are still receiving medical treatment
• You may need future treatment
• The insurance company contacted you with an early settlement offer
• Your medical bills are substantial
• You missed work because of the accident
• You believe the offer is too low
• The insurance company is disputing your injuries
• You are being asked to sign a release
• You are unsure what the settlement covers
• Your injuries may be permanent

An attorney can review the circumstances of your accident, your medical treatment, your financial losses, and the insurance company’s offer and help you understand whether the proposed settlement makes sense.

What Should I Do If I Already Received an Offer?

If an insurance company has made you an offer, do not feel pressured to accept it.

Start by gathering your documents, including:

• The insurance company’s settlement offer
• Any release or settlement documents
• Medical bills and records
• Information about your treatment
• Documentation of lost wages
• Vehicle repair or property-damage information
• Insurance policy information
• Correspondence with the insurance company

Then consider having the offer reviewed before you sign anything.

Talk to Gold, Khourey & Turak About Your Car Accident Claim

If you have been injured in a car accident and an insurance company has offered you a settlement, Gold, Khourey & Turak can help you understand your options.

Our attorneys represent people injured in car accidents throughout the Ohio Valley, including West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

We can review the circumstances of your accident, your injuries, your losses, and the insurance company’s offer.

You should not accept an insurance settlement without understanding what you are giving up.

Contact Gold, Khourey & Turak for a free consultation to discuss your claim. We can be reached 24 hours a day by calling (304) 845-9750.

Need help? Get help. Get GKT.

No fee unless we win.

Related Information

Were you denied or are you still waiting for the insurance company to pay your claim?

Learn what you can do when an insurance company denies, delays, or refuses to fairly handle a claim.

Have questions about your car accident claim?

Visit our car accident page to learn more about how we help people injured in crashes.

Want to know who may handle your insurance dispute?

Learn more about attorney Michelle Marinacci and her work representing clients in insurance-related matters.

See examples of cases we have handled.

Review our case results to learn more about the types of claims our attorneys have handled.

Ready to talk about your situation?

Contact Gold, Khourey & Turak to schedule a free consultation.