After an automobile accident, the insurance company for the other party will probably call you within a day or two and ask you to give a recorded statement. I am not in favor of giving these kinds of statements, especially so early on in the case. The sad truth is that the insurance adjuster doesn’t really have your best interests at heart. They will generally sound very sympathetic and express their desire to help you in any way possible.
In some cases, the insurance adjuster will try to use your statements against you. They can easily get the police report and find out what happened so there is really no pressing need to speak to you except to perhaps box you into a story. Sometimes, you’re not quite sure if you’re physically injured. Some insurance companies actually have a policy that any information gained from the recorded statement can be used later to deny the claim or pay out less than the claim actually deserves.
I usually tell my clients not to panic. There is no “fire in the barn” or other emergency that makes it necessary to give a statement so early on in the case. I tell my clients to politely decline and tell the adjuster that you will call them when you are prepared to give a statement. After all, this is probably the adjuster who is going to write you a check at the end of the case, so there is no reason to upset them. If you have a lawyer, then you don’t need to speak to anyone at all and your attorney will handle it. For fun, try asking the insurance company if it would be all right if you took their client’s recorded statement. I doubt they would agree to that for the very same reason you shouldn’t be talking to them.
I spent much of my career as a defense attorney for the insurance companies. In my years of experience, I have rarely found it to be helpful to give a statement to the opposing party’s insurance company so early on in the case.
In additional to handling personal injury cases, Robert Mansour also practices estate planning, wills and trusts. Visit both his websites at www.ValenciaLawyer.com and www.MansourLaw.com.