You have just been involved in a traumatic incident of some kind and now your world is turned upside down. You never planned on being:
- injured;
- unable to work;
- permanently disfigured;
- without an avenue for medical treatment;
- no knowledge on how to get out of the hole someone, something, or some event has put you into; or
- what steps to take to get back before your world stopped.
The next thing you do is communicate with family, friends, and/or co-workers. They know someone, read something, saw it on the Internet, watched "Judge Judy", or have a "friend" themselves that has been through the exact same thing and this is what you …….STOP THE MADNESS!
It’s great to have loved ones and I am sure they want nothing but the best for you but I don’t claim to know everything about everything. I hire real estate agents to move property and tax advisers (Patterson Tax Service) to do my taxes even though I have had Real Estate and Tax classes in law school (which means I know enough to be dangerous to myself, or absolutely nothing).
My common saying is, "You don’t listen to the devil on how to get to Heaven, so why listen to an insurance adjuster on how to settle a claim against them?" They are going to lie, or mislead you. You don’t go to your opponent in the middle of the game and ask them how to beat them do you? NO! Stop listening to what an adjuster says about your claim. Talk to an attorney. You at least have recourse against an attorney if they give you incorrect legal advice. (You could have recourse against an adjuster but it is hard to prove).
Likewise, stop listening to your friends give you "arm chair" legal direction on your case. Go talk to a lawyer. It is free to consult with a lawyer on most civil cases and no fee is received by the lawyer unless a settlement is negotiated or trial verdict rendered. Tell me who else you know works 100% on performance pay? Defense attorneys and insurance adjusters work hourly or salary and may get some kind of bonus based on performance but I would imagine 75% of their income will come to them regardless of how well they perform.
I work 100% on performance and get close to 70% of my business from word of mouth based on clients, friends, family members, colleagues, and other professionals that are familiar with our firm’s performance. Seek out the help you need from the right professionals rather than receiving the wrong information. You may not hear what you like but at least it will be an honest, experienced, and informed response looking out for YOUR BEST INTEREST.