Doug Goyen Home
State Farm Claims Accident Attorney in Dallas
State Farm Insurance Company is a giant among Texas auto insurers. They can be a “good neighbor” when they want your premium payments, but when it comes to injury claims, they are not very neighborly. Accidents can have long-term effects, even for the rest of a person’s life. You must receive the full amount owed, enough to cover all of your medical bills and other expenses, so that you do not walk away in debt. Some lawyers are better at this than others. Not every lawyer achieves the same results. Call the Law Office of Doug Goyen at (972) 599 4100 if you need a State Farm claims accident attorney in Dallas. We will begin working on your case right away.
Call For A Free Case Review (972) 599 4100
Attorney Doug Goyen’s work history as an auto accident attorney and as an insurance claims accident attorney gives him an advantage over others. Prior to becoming a lawyer, from 1989 to 1997, he worked in the insurance industry, handling personal injury and car accident injury claims. Mr. Goyen’s experience working in the insurance industry has given him valuable insider knowledge of how these companies operate and handle injury cases, as well as how they treat people involved in car accidents who require the services of a Dallas car accident lawyer. After years of working in the insurance industry, Mr. Goyen now represents people who are needing help with their claims against insurance companies.
HOW YOUR LAWYER CAN HELP WITH A STATE FARM CLAIMS ADJUSTER
Our personal injury attorneys have seen this procedure thousands of times over the last 23 years, so we understand what is going on and what the insurance adjuster is looking for. If we are hired from the beginning, our understanding of what the insurance company is trying to do in various situations aids us in defeating any attempts to find a reason to deny the claim.
If you have tried to handle the claim on your own but have run into roadblocks with the insurance company, you should hire a personal injury lawyer with experience in car accident injuries to get your case back on track. If you need a State Farm claims accident attorney, then you really need a personal injury lawyer with experience dealing with auto accident claims.
Insurance adjusters frequently claim that a portion of your claim was excessive, but they never explain how they arrived at this conclusion. This leaves you with little or no assistance in dealing with your medical provider or body shop when they demand payment from you but you are not receiving adequate compensation from the insurance company. You can’t just say, “Your bill is too high,” and expect the medical provider or body shop to accept it. However, insurance adjusters frequently do this when evaluating claims.
In these cases, we can assist. We have the information required to counter the insurance company’s attempts to avoid paying you. If the bills are excessive, we have the ability and knowledge to negotiate a reasonable amount for your bill with the health provider.
If your insurance claims adjuster is delaying payment on your claim because they need to “finish their investigation,” this can mean a variety of things, but it all boils down to one thing: they are attempting to delay payment on your claim and, if possible, not paying it at all.
Call For A Free Case Review (972) 599 4100
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AFTER THE ACCIDENTBefore you get out and start moving around, check yourself for injuries. Because of the shock of the accident, people may not realize they are injured. Check on your passengers after you’ve checked on yourself. Check on the occupants of the other vehicles involved in the collision if your passenger does not require first aid. If you are injured, or if anyone else involved in the accident is injured, seek medical attention right away.
If anyone is hurt, call 911 and inform the dispatcher that there are injuries. They will dispatch police and paramedics. The police will assist in the investigation of the accident, and paramedics will evaluate and treat those who have been injured.
Witnesses to accidents frequently stop to assist after an accident. Before they leave, get their contact information. Obtain their names, phone numbers, email addresses, and any other information they are willing to provide so that they can be contacted later if their statement is required.
Exchange your driver’s license and insurance information with the other drivers. Everyone, regardless of fault, is required by Texas law to exchange information following an accident. Take photos of the other driver’s identification and auto liability insurance with your cellphone. If you are too injured to do this, you must arrange for a friend or family member to come to the accident scene and perform these steps on your behalf.
Take photos of the damage and points of impact on all of the vehicles involved in the accident with your cellphone – even if the vehicles have been moved, take photos of the damage and the areas of vehicles that came into contact with each other. Photograph any debris on the ground as well as any skid marks. Take pictures of the road – both in the direction you were going and in the direction you were coming from. Take photos of the other vehicles in the same way – in the direction they were traveling and in the direction they were coming from.
Work with the police officers who are investigating the accident. When the cops arrive on the scene, speak with them. Officers will take each driver’s statement separately, away from the ears of others. Make sure to give the officer your statement about what happened during the interview. This will aid the officer in the preparation of his police crash report.
Call For A Free Case Review (972) 599 4100
WHAT DOES THE STATE FARM CLAIMS ADJUSTER DO?Adjusters are taught to handle claims in a specific order. They look for coverage first, then liability, and finally damages. At each stage, the adjuster is determining whether or not to pay the claim. If they can find a reason not to pay the claim, they will do so.
Is there coverage?: The adjuster will first determine whether or not there is coverage. The fact that the other driver displayed their insurance card does not imply that they are covered for your claim. The adjuster checks to see if the premium payment for that month was made, if a covered vehicle was driven, if a covered driver was driving, if the vehicle was used for a purpose that voids coverage (such as business use when the insurance company was not informed the vehicle would be used for business purposes), if the person driving the vehicle was licensed, and so on. They will try to avoid paying if there is a reason to deny coverage.
The insurance adjuster may pay for your vehicle only to discover later while investigating your injury claim, that some fact or issue voids coverage. Because of your injury claim, the injury adjuster is constantly looking for reasons not to pay – as long as your claim is still open. For example, they may not realize during the initial investigation of the claim that their driver was using their car for “business purposes,” such as pizza delivery. If they later discover that it was used for business purposes, it becomes a problem because their personal auto policy may not be rated for “business use.” If the vehicle was used for business purposes, they will almost certainly try to deny coverage for the injury claim, even if they have already paid for the damage to your car.
Is there any risk?: After determining whether or not coverage exists, the adjuster considers liability. To put it another way, was their driver at fault? Were you to blame? Was it someone else’s fault? Was there anyone to blame, such as if the weather caused it or if it was unavoidable? In order to reduce the amount they will owe, injury adjusters will try to find a way to say that their driver was not at fault or to place at least some of the blame on someone other than their driver.
What are the damages associated with the claim? Finally, they will assess the damage. Damages include your medical bills or money needed for future medical treatment, loss of earning capacity or lost income, pain and suffering and mental anguish, disfigurement, physical impairment or disability, and other costs (or out-of-pocket expenses) incurred as a result of the accident or injury. Other examples of damages include vehicle damage, rental bills, towing charges, wrongful death, and other losses and harms caused by the accident or injury.
Insurance companies scrutinize any bills, estimates, or receipts to ensure they are related to the incident at hand and not the result of another cause. If the documentation is unclear, or if there is a significant gap in time, the adjuster may claim that he does not believe your documentation (bills, estimates, or receipts) are related to the accident or injury at issue. The adjuster will look to see if you did your part to mitigate the damages (also known as “mitigation of damages”).
A person is required by law to try to keep their damage to a bare minimum if at all possible. The insurance adjuster will check to see if the claims are reasonable. Did your medical provider or body shop charge you an exorbitant fee in comparison to what is customarily charged? Are medical providers charging for services that were unnecessary? If this is the case, the insurance adjuster will attempt to deny coverage for that portion of your claim, leaving you to foot the bill.
Call For A Free Case Review (972) 599 4100
CASE REVIEWS ARE COMPLETELY FREEIf you or someone you know requires the assistance of a State Farm claims accident attorney in an injury case, please call (972) 599 4100 for a free consultation and strategy session with a car accident attorney. A summary of your case, identification of the legal issues involved in your case, and identification of those legal issues that will help maximize your recovery in your case are all part of the strategy session. We will email you a copy of this strategy session for your records.
WHAT ARE OUR FEES FOR CAR ACCIDENT INJURY CASES?There is no fee unless and until you win. Personal injury cases resulting from car accidents are handled on a contingency basis by the Law Office of Doug Goyen. A contingency fee is a percentage of the amount we can recover for your injury case. We are compensated based on how well we perform for you. This aligns our interests with yours in obtaining a more favorable settlement for your case.
If you require the services of a State Farm claims accident attorney in Dallas, Texas, please contact us at 972-599-4100 for a consultation with our personal injury lawyer. You can also use our website’s contact form to get in touch with us.
No Fee Unless You Win Call (972) 599 4100
Related Auto Insurance Pages:
Auto Insurance Used in Accidents
- Auto Accident Liability Insurance
- Collision, Comp, Rental, and Towing Insurance
- Medical Payments Insurance Coverage in Texas
- Personal Injury Protection in Texas
- Uninsured Motorist Coverage in Car Wrecks
Related Auto Insurance Company Pages:
Related Insurance Issues Pages:
