Insurance is a useful tool for many reasons. It provides protection, coverage, and peace of mind for a variety of scenarios, and helps you recover from damage in moments when you need to the most. But because many types of insurance claims often arise in response to delicate, emotional, and expensive situations, the process of using insurance coverage to its full extent can be troublesome. This commonly occurs in the realm of casualty insurance, and it’s why our team at The Whisler Law Firm has specialized in helping clients with their claims for many years.

 

Understanding Casualty Insurance

Understanding the type of insurance you need to purchase in order to protect yourself, your family, and your assets starts with making sure you understand the different types of insurance that exist. Many of us have heard of life insurance, car insurance, health insurance, and others, but may not understand their exact details or uses.

Casualty insurance is the broad term used to encompass the types of insurance that are not directly associated with life insurance, health insurance, or property insurance. It is the type of insurance that mainly encompasses liability coverage of an individual or organization for negligent behavior. In other words, casualty insurance protects you when you are liable for someone else getting hurt, or their belongings getting damaged. Specific types of casualty insurance can include:

  • Car insurance
  • Workers’ compensation insurance
  • General liability insurance:
    • Falls, trips, and slips
    • Dog bites
    • Fallen trees, etc.

In further example, it can be purchased by individuals seeking to protect themselves, such as in the case of car insurance and personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. It can also be purchased by businesses seeking to protect themselves and their employees, such as in the case of workers’ compensation insurance. Casualty insurance serves a wide and useful variety of purposes, and most people should not go without some type of casualty insurance in place to protect themselves.

While it may not be difficult to obtain casualty insurance, the challenge with this particular industry lies in filing a claim when something does go wrong. This can be true whether you are a policy holder or the victim of the negligent act.

 

How Casualty Insurance Claims Work

Each insurance company handles the claim process differently. But in general, if you are at fault for the damage or injury, the other party will file a claim with your insurance company. To look at it from the opposite perspective, if you are the one hurt or otherwise affected by another’s negligence, you will most likely file your claim for compensation with the negligent party’s insurer.

While the concept behind insurance companies is to provide protection and compensation when something goes wrong, the reality is, these entities are businesses first and foremost. This means they are of the mind that in order for their business to run successfully, they need to save as much money as possible. That further means their aim is to spend as little money as possible on claims that come across their desk.

When you file a claim with a casualty insurance company, the insurance adjuster who is assigned to handle your case will make it their goal to provide you with the least amount of compensation they believe they are legally able. This is how they stay in the good graces of the company they work for and help them thrive. Naturally, if this coverage is lacking, it often results in dispute between the insurance provider and the insured.

If your insurer refuses to pay costs that are associated with damage to property or injury to a victim, that could make for a dire strain on your finances and your well-being. You could be left to cover the remaining costs, which could be incredibly high. If you are an injury victim, it could result in you seeking less medical attention than you need, which is never a situation you want to be in. If the damage in the claim is listed for coverage in your insurance policy, then these companies are legally obligated to cover the damages. But if the terms are not specified, this is when insurance adjusters attempt to offer the lowest end of compensation. And this is also when you may need to take legal action.

 

Working with Casualty Insurance Providers

If you believe you are entitled to more compensation than your insurance adjuster is willing to provide, your natural reaction is going to be one of anger and frustration. While wanting to react this way is understandable, getting upset is never the best course of action. It pays (often in very literal ways), to be patient while you remain clear and firm on your needs. When speaking with your adjuster, as you will often do via email and phone calls, try to remain courteous and calm. Adjusters are human, just like you—if they feel attacked, they will retaliate in return. This could then make it less likely to receive the compensation you deserve from them.

If no recourse can be agreed upon between yourself and your insurance company when it comes to the terms of coverage in your policy, the next step is to seek legal action. Insurance companies have massive legal departments and employ experienced experts to combat just such situations. They do so because they wish to remain steadfast on not providing you with the additional coverage you believe you deserve. This means you need your own team of casualty insurance experts on your side.

Insurance policies contain legal language that is often complex and vague at the same time. These documents are then applied to your unique scenario with a one-size-fits-all mindset, which is rarely appropriate. And when you’ve suffered personal damage or injury, you are already in the midst of a potentially emotional and taxing situation. All these factors make it incredibly difficult to attempt to face your insurance company’s legal team alone. That’s why The Whisler Law Firm is here to help.

We have years of experiencing winning our clients the compensation they deserve from their insurance providers. We know how to decipher your policy, assess your damages, and communicate with insurance companies and their legal teams to ultimately secure the coverage owed to you after an accident. And we’re ready to review your claim with an entirely free consultation. Call our office at 833-529-5677 or fill out our online form to get started on seeking the compensation you deserve today.