Posted: Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:52 pm Post subject: How do this work?
I had a claim which was denied. This was a premises liability claim. He denied because he said the owner didnt have prior knowlegde of the hazard. I hired a lawyer which sent out a package to the adjuster saying that he is representing me and that he should reevaluate the file/claim. He gave them a time limit i believe 30days to respond by. My lawyer havent told me of any response yet. Do adjuster sometimes go over the limit? Also why take so long, it the same documents and stuff he got from me when i was rep. myself? Maybe just presented a little by my lawyer. Another question is if i happen to get rid of my current lawyer and will the adjuster still how would that work?
I don't know what you mean by this...policy limits? It's rare to have a limits claim, and they CANNOT pay over the policy limit....in your case, if the claim was denied, I doubt they would come back with a limits offer....What was the defective property, and what was/is your injury?
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Also why take so long, it the same documents and stuff he got from me when i was rep. myself? Maybe just presented a little by my lawyer.
No there will be additional information I'm sure, and they have to go over it again....
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Another question is if i happen to get rid of my current lawyer
If you fire your lawyer,(why would you though at this point?)...he would have to send a letter to the adjuster stating he is no longer rep'ing you, because as it stands now with an attorney rep letter in the file the adjuster cannot discuss ANYTHING with you at all...I don't know what you mean by this statement,
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will the adjuster still how would that work
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Adjusters do sometimes go over the time limit given. This should not happen on the initial demand but it can. Some attorneys place short time frames even on initial damages, like 7 days. In that the claim has already been denied (i.e. it's been answered), the adjuster does not need to worry as much about a bad faith claim from his insured if the claim is not settled, goes to court, and there is a large verdict returned. That is, their insured cannot say if they had made the offer within the time limit given, the claim could have been settled (an offer has already been made).
Why do adjusters go over the time limit... a few reasons. They have a stack of new work that needs to be done very quickly so they just cannot get back into that older claim. Also, in the adjusters mind a decision has already been made. They are under no obligation to revisit the claim. Granted, they may want to... but they probably place a lower priority on it.
It may not be easy to just drop this attorney. You have promised them 33% of the settlement for the work that they are doing. If it looks like you just used them to get a settlement and don't want to pay them, they can place a lien on the settlement and perhaps even file suit against you for breach of contract if they wanted.
Adjusters do sometimes go over the time limit given
Well duh! how stupid to I feel didn't even think about the time limit posed by the attorney! my mind jumped straight to limits... geeeeeeeeeze _________________ **************************************
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So they can respond anytime since the claim was denied? So it will just sit there and just wait and respond any day. He denied it for a bogus reason which was notice. No i didnt use him for anything the lawyer would not return my calls, nor respond to letters and fax. And why have a lawyer i cant trust at all and dont try to help his client. I mean yea i want to use his services and hes a great lawyer but i cant trust the guy. He lies about the simpliest thing that you dont need to lie about. Like making a phone call on my behalf, he said he talked to the person rigit i called to remind him on saturday. And they dont work or even open the office. If he can lie about something that simple which he didnt have to he can lie about other things. I keep it honest with him he can do the same with me. He is more than welcome to put the lien on it for thd work he did which that letter/ package he sent to the adjuster. But the 33.3% is a no. Now i wish he would stop calling me now. His time is up. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
It's always true that they can respond at any time or not at all. But basically the attorney is stating, "I will give you xx days to respond".. meaning he/she will hold off filing suit until that time frame is up. The situation is complicated but if the adjuster does not initially respond within that time frame, their own insured could have a basis for a bad faith claim. But once a response is given then it's difficult for their own insured to file a bad faith claim down the road. This has little to do with your claim, though.
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I mean yea i want to use his services and hes a great lawyer but i cant trust the guy.
I don't understand that... your attorney's responsibility is to look out for your legal interest. If he won't return communications and you don't trust him, how is it that he's a good attorney?
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But the 33.3% is a no.
Did you read the contract you signed? If he were to bill you for the time he spent, you'd be paying all his fees up front, even if you did not get paid on the claim. As it is, he's working on a contingency fee... meaning he gets nothing if you don't get a settlement and 33% of you do.
I don't mean to be insulting but many attorneys are just looking for the paycheck at the end and do as little work as possible. If he can send out a letter and make a few phone calls to collect 33% of the settlement, then this may be all he does.
No its not insulting alot of attorneys are like this they do try to little work and collect a hefty pay. So he will recieve 33% for a case he only had for two months and in that time frame he collect records and send a letter to the insurance adjuster thats a rip off. He keeps calling me but not leaving message. Why do he just send his letter of discontinue service and put a lien and move on. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
So he will recieve 33% for a case he only had for two months and in that time frame he collect records and send a letter to the insurance adjuster thats a rip off.
They don't mention that in their commercials, do they.
Dillon why aren't you returning his calls to see what he wants? _________________ **************************************
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If you're talking about the time limit to process a claim..it would depend on the availability of a number of things..the adjuster might take more time to assess the cause & check if it actually matches with the outcome. In case he has doubts regarding the outcome or impact & still if he finds that the claimant is not satisfied with the decision, then he might need to forward the case to the investigators.
Investigators have their own parameters of measuring things in a deeper perspective. So, all of these getting counted serially might just demand more time than could have been guessed initially!
Fatman
