In the aftermath of an automobile accident, various parties, such as bill collectors and insurance companies, may reach out to you. It is crucial to be aware of the insurance claims adjuster, the representative from the insurance company who contacts you. While the adjuster may appear friendly, it is essential to remember that they do not have your best interests at heart. The adjuster will employ various tactics, including requesting a recorded statement, in an attempt to settle your insurance claim for the lowest possible amount.
If you sustained injuries in an accident in Colorado, contact the personal injury lawyers at Front Range Injury Attorneys today to schedule your free consultation. Our experienced legal team are knowledgeable and zealous advocates for our clients and their cases. We treat our clients as people, not case files. Learn more about how we can help you pursue compensation for your injuries and damages. Contact our Denver law firm to learn more.
What Is a Recorded Statement and Its Significance?
A recorded statement is a telephone conversation initiated by an insurance claims adjuster to gather information about the accident. However, it is important to note that neither federal law nor the laws of Colorado mandate your obligation to speak to a claims adjuster unless required under the terms of your own insurance contract. You have no duty to provide any statement to an insurance company or adjuster for another party to your accident. If you find yourself disoriented, upset, or experiencing severe pain following a car accident, it is in your best interest to delay the phone call. You have the freedom to postpone the conversation until you are better prepared. Additionally, you possess the right to retain the services of a car accident attorney to handle insurance negotiations on your behalf.
Unveiling the Motive Behind Insurance Companies’ Request for Recorded Statements
It is crucial to understand that a recorded statement serves no benefit to you as a claimant. The sole purpose of this statement is to provide the insurance carrier with an opportunity to manipulate your words and use them against you. For instance, if you claim in your recorded statement that you were not injured during the car accident, but later experience symptoms and receive a medical diagnosis, the insurance company can exploit your original statement to deny your entitlement to damages under Colorado law.
Insurance companies frequently employ recorded statements as a means to catch you off guard and induce mistakes. They often request statements immediately after the accident, before you have fully grasped the details of the incident. By doing so, they hope to provoke a misrepresentation of facts, rendering you an unreliable witness.
Once you provide the insurance company a recorded statement, you may be stuck with what you told the adjuster even all the way to a jury trial. It is easy for the insurer’s adjuster and attorney to argue that you were telling the truth in your recorded statement and only changed your mind after you hired a personal injury lawyer or decided you want more money for your accident.
How to Respond When Asked for a Recorded Statement
In the state of Colorado, there is no legal obligation for you to provide a recorded statement to an insurance company for another party. The most prudent course of action to safeguard your car insurance claim is to decline such requests when they arise. Even if the claims adjuster insists that your claim cannot be processed without a statement, it is crucial not to succumb to the pressure. It is vital that you protect your legal rights and exercise caution when dealing with an adjuster after an auto accident.
When you hire an attorney, your attorney can evaluate whether it is in your interest to provide a recorded statement or any other communication about the facts of the accident to the adjuster. It is necessary to provide certain information to the insurance adjuster about the accident and your injuries, but your attorney can provide information or discuss alternative ways to provide information directly from you to the adjuster.
What if your own insurance company requests that you provide a recorded statement?
Often auto insurance policies require you to cooperate with an investigation and evaluation of claims filed against your own car insurance policy after an accident. Colorado law supports the insurer’s right to request your cooperation with claims you filed or another person filed against your policy. If you refuse to cooperate, the insurance company may reserve its rights and refuse to pay on the claim until they can complete their investigation and evaluation. That may result in losing your ability to recover damages under a collision claim, medpay, or UM/UIM coverage. Your insurer may also decline to settle with third parties, resulting in a lawsuit against you.
Although adjusters for your insurance company work on your behalf under the terms of your insurance policy, these recorded statements can be detrimental to your cause. Sometimes these adjusters try to lead you to make harmful statements. You may also unintentionally give opinions or statements that harm your own claims. For these reasons, it is important to also exercise caution when providing these statements.
If your insurance company requests a recorded statement, you should let them know you will provide the statement but you want to speak with an attorney first. Then you should promptly hire an attorney to represent you. Our experienced auto accident lawyers prepare clients for recorded statements to make sure they give useful and factual statements.
The Importance of Hiring an Attorney in Denver, Colorado
Car insurance companies approach claims with meticulous calculation, aiming to minimize their expenses and maximize their profits for their investors. They possess extensive experience in formulating questions and engaging with clients in a manner that heightens the likelihood of claimants making mistakes and accepting settlements below their deserved compensation. The most effective means of shielding yourself from such tactics is to engage the services of an attorney.
By hiring a personal injury lawyer in Denver, you can delegate the claims process, including interactions with insurance claims adjusters, to a legal professional. Your attorney will prevent you from inadvertently saying the wrong things or agreeing to terms that may jeopardize your claim. Furthermore, your lawyer can review alternative methods to provide information to the insurance company to protect your rights and let you focus on taking care of your injuries.. For further insights into the car accident insurance process in Colorado, do not hesitate to contact Front Range Injury Attorneys today.
Colorado Personal Injury Lawyers
If you sustained injuries in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you have the right under Colorado law to pursue compensation for your injuries and financial losses caused by the accident. Our experienced Colorado personal injury lawyers at Front Range Injury Attorneys help clients across the state pursue insurance claims and litigation to be made whole. We represent clients in a wide range of accidents including car accidents, truck crashes, motorcycle accidents, slip and fall incidents, pedestrian collisions, workplace accidents and wrongful death. We help clients in all four corners of Colorado, including:
- Denver
- Arvada
- Aurora
- Boulder
- Centennial
- Colorado Springs
- Fort Collins
- Greeley
- Highlands Ranch
- Lakewood
- Littleton
- Longmont
- Parker
- Pueblo
- Thornton
- Westminster
Contact our law firm to schedule your free consultation with our attorneys. You can speak with our personal injury lawyers at no cost and no obligation to learn more about how we can help you get justice for the harm inflicted by another person’s carelessness.