Dealing With the Car Insurance Company in Montana

To be in compliance with your contract, you need to notify your insurance company about a car accident promptly. Exactly how “promptly” is defined varies depending on the insurance company, but in general, you want to notify them as soon as possible to prevent your claim from being denied.

However, when making this notification, be careful. Tell them the facts of what happened and answer their questions as succinctly as you can. Don’t volunteer any extra information. Don’t talk about your injuries in detail, either. “I am getting medical treatment” is enough.

If the other driver’s insurance company contacts you, you are not required to talk to them at all. Remember, Montana is a “fault” state, which means the insurance company for the at-fault driver is generally responsible for paying for an accident. They have a financial incentive to downplay your claim or dispute who was at fault for the accident, and they will use any information you give them for that purpose.

If the insurance company asks you to sign a release giving them access to your medical records or other documents, proceed with caution. They may imply that they just want to look at your post-accident medical evaluation, which seems reasonable enough, but if the language in the release is broad enough, you might be letting them comb through your medical records looking for pre-existing conditions and other evidence they can use against you.

The best practice is to review any releases with your attorney before you sign.

One of the most dangerous things you can do is let an insurance company record your statement about the accident. Any recording can be taken out of context and used against you. Moreover, on a recording, you only have one chance to accurately tell your story, and a momentary slip of the tongue could be enough to jeopardize your claim.

If you have to give a statement, sit down with your attorney to put it in writing. That way, you can make sure you accurately tell your side of the story and protect your legal rights.

Settlement offers from insurance companies generally come with language saying you can’t file another claim or lawsuit in connection with the same accident. In other words, once you take the insurance company’s money, your case is closed. You can’t go back for more, even if your injuries turn out to be more severe than you thought.

This is what insurance companies often make “lowball” settlement offers not long after the accident. They’re trying to limit their exposure and protect their bottom line by closing out your claim before the full cost becomes known.

Remember, you can negotiate for more, and the insurance company’s first offer is not necessarily their best offer. The best practice is to talk to a lawyer before you accept a settlement offer from an insurance company. Your attorney can review your case, calculate the full value of your claim, and negotiate with the insurance company or even file a lawsuit on your behalf.

You’re not legally required to have a lawyer to file an insurance claim or even file a lawsuit. As a practical matter, however, it’s almost always in your interest to talk to an attorney about your legal rights and options. Remember, the insurance companies do this every day, and they have attorneys representing their interests. A car accident lawyer can level the playing field and put you in a better position to win your case.

Your attorney can take care of each of the steps above on your behalf, from the initial notification to your insurance company through negotiation and, if necessary, litigation. Your lawyer can deal with the insurance companies, calculate the full value of your injury claim, negotiate, and, if necessary, file a lawsuit to keep up the pressure on the insurance company to make a fair offer.

In short, you don’t want to deal with the insurance company on your own. Get a free, no-obligation consultation with a Montana car accident lawyer who can help.