Leesburg, Florida Car Accident Lawyer Discusses Filing a Claim Against Allstate.
If you are injured in a car accident there is one thing that you just cannot control and that is whether the other driver has insurance, and if he has insurance, who is his company. Overall, Allstate is one of the more difficult insurance companies to deal with. Allstate is the second or third largest personal lines insurance company behind State Farm. Unlike State Farm, which is privately owned, Allstate is publicly traded. Allstate also owns Encompass Insurance and it recently purchased Esurance. However to date, Esurance has not yet taken on all of Allstate’s characteristics.
Allstate is known for its claims value software called Colossus. The software evaluates a number of data points and spits out a settlement range. In my experience, the adjuster has no real authority outside the authority given by the computer. An attorney can scream, holler and threaten the adjuster but that will not make a difference. When a lawsuit is filed, the claim will be shifted to a litigation adjuster or supervisor with more authority and leeway. Sometimes, the new adjuster will review the claim and make another offer to settle the case.
The problem with Colossus is that personal injury cases are personal. Real people – with real injuries are making these claims. Entering a bunch of data points into a computer – such as the number of hours or days between the accident and the first time the injured person sees a doctor or the diagnosis code from the emergency room – doesn’t tell the story of the person’s injuries or the impact of the injuries on the person’s life.
Allstate has taken a hard line with low speed rear impact collisions. It termed these cases, MIST or Minor Impact Soft Tissue cases and there is little negotiating short of trial with these cases. If you would like to read more about Allstate’s concerted effort regarding these cases, you can read From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves.
I was an Allstate customer for about 10 years, but I couldn’t stay with the company because I have no respect for the way it treats injured folks. Allstate is one of my least favorite insurers.
If you file a lawsuit against Allstate, it has a number of in-house law offices throughout Florida. Many cases in the Orlando are defended by Allstate’s in-house attorneys. In Lake County Florida the lawsuit maybe defended by in-house or private attorneys. There are defense lawyers that bid flat fees for certain Allstate files. Because of this practice, one of the real concerns for insurance companies, the cost of litigation is controlled, allowing Allstate to take this hard-line stand with MIST cases.
From the outset of your claim against Allstate, you have to be ready to put on your boxing gloves and go toe to toe all the way.
If you have any questions about a making a claim against Allstate, you can give me a call at 352-267-9168 or fill out the internet consultation form.