An Insurance Adjuster Is at Your Door With a Check. Read This Before You Sign.
You were in a serious accident a day or two ago. You are hurting, maybe still deciding which doctor to see, and someone knocks on your door.
They introduce themselves as an insurance adjuster. They are friendly, they want to “help get this resolved,” and they may have paperwork and even a check with them.
Today, I am a Texas personal injury lawyer representing people injured in serious car and truck accidents. Before becoming an attorney, I spent more than a decade handling and managing insurance claims, including as a licensed Executive General Adjuster.
I know how these visits work because I spent years on the insurance side. I know why a field adjuster may be sent to your home or hospital, what information the insurance company may be looking for, and why the carrier may want to reach you quickly.
Before you read: The information below is general. Every accident, injury, insurance policy, and claim is different. Insurance carriers handle claims differently, and available coverage varies. Nothing here is medical advice or legal advice about your particular case. Follow the advice of your own medical providers and speak with an attorney about your specific circumstances.
Why Would an Insurance Adjuster Show Up in Person?
Most insurance claims today are handled by phone and email.
Sending someone to personally locate and meet with an injured person takes additional time and resources.
If a field adjuster arrives at your home or hospital shortly after a serious crash, it may mean the carrier wants to begin investigating or potentially resolving the claim quickly.
That may be because:
- The crash involved a moderate or high-impact collision;
- The available information suggests someone may have suffered significant injuries;
- The carrier believes its insured, which may be a commercial driver or company, could face liability; or
- The insurance company wants to obtain information and evaluate the claim as early as possible.
The field adjuster may work directly for the insurance company or for an independent adjusting company, third-party administrator, or other company hired to assist with the claim.
Either way, understand the adjuster’s role.
The adjuster is there on behalf of the insurance company or the party that retained them. The adjuster does not represent you.
Who Uses Field Adjusters After Serious Accidents?
During my years handling claims on the insurance side, I saw field adjusters used in claims involving national parcel delivery companies, freight and trucking carriers, commercial fleets, and other businesses.
These companies may have adjusters available throughout Texas and across the country who can be dispatched quickly when a serious accident occurs.
Sometimes an adjuster can begin working the claim within hours.
That speed can matter.
The earlier an adjuster reaches you, the less time you may have had to understand your injuries, receive appropriate medical care, learn how the accident will affect your ability to work, gather evidence, or speak with a personal injury lawyer about your rights.
There is nothing inherently improper about an insurance company investigating an accident quickly.
But you should understand that while the carrier may already have professionals investigating the claim, you may still be trying to understand what just happened to you.
What Might a Field Adjuster Do After an Accident?
Field adjusters are trained professionals. They can also be friendly, helpful, and persistent.
Depending on the assignment, a field adjuster may:
- Show up at your home, sometimes within a day or two of the accident;
- Attempt to meet with you at a hospital or other location;
- Bring a release or settlement paperwork;
- Present or discuss a settlement offer;
- Ask for a recorded statement about how the accident happened;
- Ask about the injuries and symptoms you are experiencing;
- Ask about your medical history, employment, prior accidents, or prior injuries;
- Take photographs of you, your vehicle, or other relevant evidence;
- Obtain information about witnesses or other people involved in the accident; or
- Report information back to the insurance carrier or administrator handling the claim.
The information an adjuster obtains can become part of the carrier’s evaluation of liability, your injuries, your damages, and ultimately what the insurance company believes the claim is worth.
That does not mean you should hide information or be dishonest.
It means you should understand who you are speaking with and why the information is being collected.
Why a Fast Settlement Offer Should Get Your Attention
Ask yourself a simple question:
How can anyone know what your injury claim is worth one or two days after a serious accident?
At that point, you may not even know the full extent of your injuries.
You may not know whether you will need additional imaging, specialist care, injections, surgery, physical therapy, or other treatment.
You may not know how much work you will miss.
You may not know whether your symptoms will resolve in several days or continue for months.
And depending on the circumstances, you may not yet know the full amount of your medical expenses or how the accident will affect your life.
Some injuries may also become more apparent as time passes and additional medical evaluation is completed.
That is why the timing of an early settlement offer matters.
A check immediately after an accident can feel like relief, particularly when you are hurting, missing work, dealing with a damaged vehicle, and beginning to worry about bills.
But accepting an offer before you understand the nature and extent of your injuries can mean resolving your claim before you understand what the accident will actually cost you.
What I Saw From Inside the Insurance Claims Industry
This is not something I learned only from a textbook.
Before becoming a personal injury lawyer, I spent more than a decade handling and managing insurance claims.
I saw field adjusters make early contact with injured people. I saw adjusters visit homes and hospitals. I saw insurance companies begin evaluating potentially significant claims very early after an accident.
Sometimes the goal was simply to investigate the accident and gather information.
Sometimes there was also an opportunity to discuss whether the claim could be resolved early.
And these were not always insignificant claims.
One lesson stayed with me:
The insurance company may begin evaluating the financial exposure of an accident long before the injured person understands the full extent of the injury.
That does not mean every early settlement offer is unfair.
Some injuries are relatively minor. Some claims can reasonably be evaluated and resolved quickly.
But if an insurance company is moving unusually fast to settle your claim, make sure you have enough information to make an informed decision before moving just as fast to accept it.
What Happens If You Sign a Release?
A settlement release is a legal document.
Depending on its language, signing a release and accepting settlement payment may mean giving up your right to seek additional compensation arising from the accident.
That can become extremely important if your condition changes.
You could discover later that an injury is more significant than initially believed.
You could need additional medical treatment.
You could miss substantially more work than expected.
Your medical expenses could continue increasing.
But if you have already entered into a binding settlement and released your claims, you may not be able to return to the insurance company and request additional compensation simply because the injuries turned out to be more serious than you initially understood.
That is why you should understand exactly what you are signing before you sign it.
A Property-Damage Payment Is Not Necessarily an Injury Settlement
Car accident claims can involve different components.
For example, there may be claims involving:
- Damage to your vehicle;
- Towing and storage;
- Rental expenses or loss of use;
- Diminished value;
- Medical expenses;
- Lost income; and
- Bodily injury damages.
If an insurance company offers you money, make sure you understand what the payment is for.
A payment relating to vehicle damage is not necessarily the same thing as resolving your bodily injury claim.
Likewise, a settlement of your bodily injury claim may involve a release that affects your ability to pursue additional compensation for those injuries.
Do not assume.
Ask what the payment covers.
Ask whether a release is required.
Ask for the settlement terms in writing.
If you do not understand what rights you are being asked to give up, consider having a personal injury lawyer review the documents before you sign them.
Be Careful With a Recorded Statement
A field adjuster may ask you to give a recorded statement.
That statement may cover:
- How the accident occurred;
- What you saw before the collision;
- Your speed;
- Traffic signals;
- What the other driver did;
- Your injuries and symptoms;
- Whether you have received medical treatment;
- Prior accidents;
- Prior injuries; and
- Other information the carrier believes is relevant.
A recorded statement creates a preserved account of what you say at that particular point in time.
If your description changes later, the earlier statement may be compared with subsequent testimony, medical records, or other evidence.
That is particularly important immediately after an accident, when you may still be in pain, taking medication, processing what happened, or unaware of the full extent of your injuries.
If you know something, be accurate.
If you do not know, do not guess.
And before giving a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company, consider whether you should speak with a personal injury lawyer first.
Be Accurate About Your Injuries
People frequently minimize how they feel.
Someone asks, “How are you doing?”
You say, “I’m okay.”
That may simply be a polite response.
But when you are speaking with an insurance adjuster after an accident, your description of your condition can become part of the claim file.
Do not exaggerate your injuries.
But do not minimize them either.
If your neck hurts, say your neck hurts.
If you have back pain, say so.
If you have headaches, numbness, weakness, dizziness, or another symptom, accurately describe what you are experiencing.
If you have not yet been medically evaluated and do not know the diagnosis, do not guess.
Your medical providers, not the insurance adjuster, should determine the nature of your injuries and what treatment is appropriate.
What Should You Do If a Field Adjuster Shows Up?
You do not need to panic, argue with the adjuster, or slam the door.
You can be polite while still protecting yourself.
Here are several things to consider:
- Stay calm and polite. You do not have to be rude, and you do not have to invite the adjuster into your home.
- Get the adjuster’s information. Ask for the adjuster’s full name, telephone number, email address, company, the insurance carrier or administrator represented, and the claim number.
- You do not have to discuss everything immediately. It is reasonable to say that you are not ready to discuss the claim at that moment.
- Do not sign something you do not understand. Ask for a copy and take the time to review it.
- Be cautious about giving a recorded statement. Understand why the statement is being requested and what subjects will be discussed.
- Do not guess. If you do not know the answer to a question about speed, distance, timing, or another fact, say that you do not know.
- Be accurate about your symptoms. Do not exaggerate them, but do not minimize them to be polite.
- You can hear an offer without immediately accepting it. Understand what the carrier is offering and what it expects in return.
- Ask for important settlement terms in writing.
- Consider speaking with a personal injury lawyer before signing a release or settling a significant injury claim.
The point is not to turn the interaction into a confrontation.
The point is to avoid making an important decision before you have enough information to make it intelligently.
Why Talk to a Personal Injury Lawyer Before You Decide?
Speaking with an attorney does not mean you have to file a lawsuit.
It does not automatically mean you should reject an insurance company’s offer.
It gives you another source of information before you make a decision that could permanently affect your claim.
A personal injury lawyer can help evaluate issues such as:
- Who may be legally responsible for the accident;
- What insurance coverage may be available;
- Whether additional parties or policies should be investigated;
- What evidence should be preserved;
- Whether enough is known about your injuries to evaluate a settlement;
- What a proposed release actually covers; and
- How the carrier’s offer compares with the damages and evidence presently available.
That can be particularly important after a serious car or truck accident, where the full extent of the injuries and available insurance coverage may not be apparent immediately.
What If You Already Spoke With the Adjuster or Signed Something?
Do not assume your case is automatically over.
If you already gave a statement, accepted a payment, signed paperwork, or deposited a check, preserve everything you received.
Write down what you remember about the conversation.
Keep copies of:
- Checks;
- Releases;
- Emails;
- Text messages;
- Letters;
- Recorded-statement requests; and
- Other communications with the insurance company.
Whether an agreement is binding and what rights may have been released can depend on the specific facts and documents involved.
If you are concerned about something you already said or signed, have a lawyer review it rather than assuming the worst.
Talk to a Personal Injury Lawyer and Former Insurance Adjuster
My perspective on injury claims comes from both sides of the insurance process.
Today, I am a Texas personal injury lawyer representing people injured in car and truck accidents.
Before becoming an attorney, I spent more than a decade handling and managing insurance claims, including as a licensed Executive General Adjuster.
I understand how insurance companies investigate claims, what adjusters look for, why certain claims receive immediate attention, and why an insurance company may want to investigate or potentially resolve a significant claim early.
Now I use that experience on behalf of injured people.
If an insurance adjuster has contacted you at home, visited you at the hospital, presented you with a release or settlement check, or is asking you to resolve your injury claim shortly after an accident, let’s talk before you make a decision you cannot easily undo.
Herrera PLLC represents injured people in Houston and throughout Texas, in English and Spanish.
Call (832) 891-3210 for a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer and former insurance adjuster.
You owe no attorney’s fees unless we recover for you.
Hablamos español.
Herrera PLLC
2339 Commerce Street, #172
Houston, Texas 77002
Phone: 832-891-3210
Email: jherrera@jh-lawpllc.com
Related Reading
- The Other Driver’s Insurance Wants a Recorded Statement. A Personal Injury Lawyer and Former Adjuster Explains What to Know Before You Agree.
- “It’s Just a Soft Tissue Injury”: What That Means for Your Claim, From a Personal Injury Lawyer and Former Insurance Adjuster
Frequently Asked Questions
Generally, you do not have the same contractual obligation to cooperate with the other driver’s liability insurer that you may have with your own insurance company. Before providing a recorded statement, signing documents, or discussing settlement, you may want to understand your rights and how the information could affect your claim.
Be careful. A check may be connected to a settlement or release of your claims, and accepting or depositing it could have legal consequences depending on the circumstances. Before signing anything or depositing a settlement check, understand exactly what the payment covers and what the carrier is asking you to give up.
The carrier may have assigned a field adjuster to begin investigating the accident, gather information, evaluate the claim, or discuss potential resolution. A hospital visit shortly after a serious accident can indicate that the insurance company wants to begin investigating the claim quickly.
The carrier may use a field adjuster to make direct contact with you, gather information, obtain a statement, document injuries or damages, or discuss possible resolution of the claim. The exact purpose depends on the carrier, assignment, and circumstances.
Before giving the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement, understand why it is being requested and how the information may be used in evaluating the claim. If you were seriously injured, liability is disputed, or you are unsure about answering the carrier’s questions, consider speaking with a personal injury lawyer first.
You should understand the full effect of any release before signing it. Depending on the agreement, settling and releasing your injury claim may prevent you from seeking additional compensation later even if your injuries require more treatment than you initially expected.
An early offer is not automatically unfair or improper, but you should consider whether you have enough information to evaluate it. Before settling, understand your injuries, medical expenses, expected treatment, lost income, other damages, and the rights you will be releasing.
Keep a copy of everything you signed and any payment or correspondence you received. Whether an agreement is binding and what rights it affects depends on the particular documents and circumstances. If you are concerned, consider having a personal injury lawyer review the paperwork promptly.
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