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After an Auto Accident, Should You Give a Statement to the Other Driver’s Insurance Company?

I’ve been representing auto accident victims for over 17 years.  It amazes me just how fast the other driver’s insurance company contacts my clients to take their recorded statements.  Sometimes only hours after the accident! That adjuster then takes that recorded statement and refuses to share it with our offices. That adjuster rightly or wrongly, accurately or inaccurately tells us that our client has admitted some fault or stated he or she was not really injured and we as attorneys are left to wonder just exactly what was said.  As you can see, this is not an enviable position to be in while representing an auto accident victim.

I recall having a case about three years ago where my 15 year old client was hit by a car while in a crosswalk walking with the light in his favor.  He didn’t know it at the time but his ankle was fractured.  After he exchanged information with the driver who hit him, he limped home and his mother took him to the nearest hospital emergency room.  After about an hour, a woman appeared at the ER and asked for the boy and his parent.  The boy’s mom came out and the woman politely and very sympathetically introduced herself as “being from the insurance company.”  She said, “I came as soon as I heard about the accident,” and wanted to know, “just how badly the boy was injured.”  The woman was given the information she came for and before she left the hospital was asked by the boy’s mother, “so did my husband call you, that is, how did you know we were here?”  The woman responded coolly, “Oh, I am not from your insurance company, I am the adjuster for the company that insures the driver who hit your son.” The woman then left with information she eventually used to minimize the boy’s claim and his recovery.

It happens all the time.  Auto accident victims call and ask our law firm to represent them.  When they tell us they’ve already given the other driver’s insurance company a recorded statement, we cringe.  We know that the information given during that recorded statement, however accurately the potential client remembers it, will no doubt be used to negate or minimize the client’s personal injury and/or property damage claim.  Unless we file a lawsuit, we are never given a copy of that statement or told precisely what was said.  We are in the dark and at a distinct disadvantage with regard to our representation of our client’s interests.

At Cutrone & Associates, we therefore take the position that if you’ve been in an auto accident, it is not a good idea to give a statement to the other driver’s insurance company without first talking with an attorney.  That insurance company does not have a first party relationship with you, that is, you do not pay that company premiums in exchange for insurance coverage.  As such, the other driver’s insurance company does not owe you the same legal duties of good faith that your own insurance company does.  That company can do and usually does everything in its power to minimize your claim if not negate it altogether.  Be smart, before you discuss your auto accident or your injuries with the other driver’s insurance company, first talk with a lawyer. Cutrone & Associates offers a free, no obligation consultation with a California licensed personal injury attorney who can and will provide you with sound guidance on this very important, often critical aspect of your auto accident personal injury and property damage claims.