Many insurance companies have developed sophisticated training procedures to teach their representatives how to approach a car crash victim and persuade them to sign away their rights.  These companies have also developed strategies for maximizing what they refer to as an “ESO”, an “Early Settlement Opportunity”.  

 Insurance companies know that car crash victims are vulnerable after a collision.

They know injured people are often in pain, taking powerful medications, anxious about how their bills are going to get paid, and totally uninformed about their rights under the law.  Knowing the vulnerability of a person injured in a car crash, the insurance companies send their “Good Cop” to visit the victim in the hospital or at home.  

• The “Good Cop” tells you that the insurance company is very concerned about you and wants to make sure you are taken care of.  
• The “Good Cop” tells you they will work with you to get your case promptly settled. 
• The “Good Cop” tells you that you don’t need your own attorney to represent you and they go to great lengths to tell you that an attorney will just take one-third of whatever you recover.  (By the way, the usual attorney’s fee in these cases is one-third, but what they don’t tell you is that a national study proved that people represented by attorneys receive three times more than people not represented by attorneys.  (Hmmm…why do you think they don’t tell you that?).  
• The “Good Cop” tells you that you must have suffered a “serious injury” in order to bring a claim (that is true) and they will suggest that you do not have a “serious injury” (often totally false and almost always way too early to know for sure).  
• The “Good Cop” tells you that they won’t offer a single penny more if you hire an attorney (a claim we know to be totally false because over and over again we have settled claims for 5 times, 10 times, even 50 times more than the adjuster originally offered our clients!).
• I have even represented clients who tell me that the “Good Cop” had told them stories that they too have personally been in an accident, but “don’t worry, I recovered just fine from my injuries and so will you.”

Now, I don’t mean to suggest that every insurance adjuster or every insurance company operates this way.  In fact, I have friends in the insurance business who are decent, hardworking folks.  But I can tell you that the number of insurance companies employing such tactics has risen dramatically during my 20-year career. These tactics are used in epidemic proportions today.  Even worse, the decent folks who work for insurance companies often tell me, “I’m sorry Jim, I really would like to help, but our company policy won’t permit me to pay your client who needs the money,” which is sad.

Do not lose hope. You need to learn about your rights when you have sustained a serious injury in a car crash that was a result of another driver’s negligence. As an experienced, New York personal injury lawyer, I am here to listen to your story and offer the appropriate support and guidance as you pursue compensation for your injuries and losses.

FREE CONSULTATION FOR INJURY CASES!

If you were seriously hurt in a car crash, the Ziff Law Firm is here to help. Contact our New York car crash injury lawyers now by calling (800) 943-3529 or email us at info@zifflaw.com . The initial consultation and case evaluation with a member of our experienced legal team are free, so call us right now to get started.