What Your Insurance Company Doesn't Want You To Know In a Massachusetts Injury Case

A Special Report

      In addition to knowing about the three common mistakes you are most likely to make, I'd be short-changing you if I didn't cover two other issues you must know about.

      Insurance companies, for example, don't want you know about a lot of things.

• I had a woman in here the other day who was afraid to file a claim because her insurance man said not to because her rates would go up. That's stupid. And it's not what insurance was made for. If all they are going to do is insure people who don't make claims, we don't need that.
  
  
• Insurance salesmen not only get paid a commission, but they get paid an extra amount based upon what's known as their loss ratio each year. If an agent has written a lot of business and he hasn't had any claims, he's going to get a bonus. If he has a lot of claims, he's not going to get as big a bonus. What do you think is more important to them, your claim or their bonus?
  
  
• An adjuster is not your friend. Especially if it's a liability claim. They work for the insurance company. They have no reason to have your interest at heart. It's against their nature to take care of the interest of anybody but the insurance company. And they've all heard the stories of all the crooks--namely lawyers and anyone who has a pain in the neck or the back--out there. So they just take the insurance company line that everybody is a crook and you're trying to steal money from the insurance company.
  
  
• In, MA an insurance company cannot raise your rates because of an accident that was not your fault. If they attempt to you should report them immediately to the insurance commission and file a complaint with the insurance commission.
  
  
• If you are in a "hit and run" accident caused by an unidentified driver, under Massachusetts law you are permitted to recover under your own policy for any injuries you sustain. This coverage is called uninsured motorist coverage. Don't let anyone try to tell you it's not so. It's the law.