Hawk Law Group | June 28, 2022 | Car Accidents
Who hasn’t seen the adorable GEICO gecko trying to sell them car insurance? If you haven’t, you probably haven’t watched a commercial in over a decade. The GEICO gecko is one of the most recognizable mascots in the world.
But just because you recognize the gecko doesn’t mean you know anything about GEICO other than that it is an insurance company. Read ahead to learn some surprising secrets about this company.
What Does GEICO Stand For?
GEICO stands for Government Employees Insurance Company. Despite the original meaning of the name, today, it serves everyone, regardless of whether they are government employees. Since being founded in 1936, it has become the second-largest auto insurance provider in the country.
GEICO Will Twist Your Words to Deny Your Claims
GEICO adjusters may seem friendly, but you need to remember that they are not working for you. Their job is to figure out how to pay you as little money as possible on your claim. To do this, they will often try to get as much information as possible from you and then cherry-pick that information to deny your claim or make a low offer.
You need to be particularly careful to avoid providing recorded statements to GEICO. GEICO employees may claim that a recorded statement is required before the company can process your claim, but that isn’t true.
Usually, you should only give a recorded statement if your lawyer is present to ensure you don’t say something that could be harmful to you in the future.
GEICO Uses a Variety of Tricks to Undervalue Your Claim
The average bodily injury settlement from a car accident is $15,785. That may sound like a lot of money, but most injuries are worth a lot more money than you realize.
Medical bills might only be a few thousand dollars, but they can easily reach the tens or hundreds of thousands in some cases. And medical bills aren’t the only factor that should be determining how much you are compensated after being injured in a car accident.
Insurance companies should also be taking into account factors like:
- Lost income
- Long-term therapy or recovery costs
- Miscellaneous expenses like transportation or equipment costs
- Pain and suffering
GEICO might try to focus entirely on medical expenses and make a lowball offer before you know the full cost of your medical expenses.
The company can do this by using biased estimates of how much your expenses will cost. Even if this estimate doesn’t cover your true costs, you will often have to fight to get an appropriate level of compensation once the company has determined the value it is willing to offer.
The good news is that you are not required to accept the initial offer that GEICO makes. You can refuse the offer and continue to provide evidence to force it to make a higher offer. If you retain a lawyer, that is often the only encouragement GEICO needs to reconsider the facts and come back with a fair offer.
Save Your Medical Bills, but Be Aware GEICO Might Try To Minimize Their Value
When you make a personal injury claim, you should save all of your medical bills. Unfortunately, even if you are diligent, GEICO might ignore the true value of your bills and substitute lower values. If this happens, those records will be useful to your car insurance attorney when you file a lawsuit.
Contact the Car Accident Lawyers In the Central Savannah River Area at Hawk Law Group for Legal Assistance Today
For more information, please contact the car accident lawyers at Hawk Law Group at our nearest location to schedule a free consultation today.
We serve throughout the Central Savannah River Area and it’s surrounding areas:
Hawk Law Group – Augusta, GA
338 Telfair St, Augusta, GA 30901, United States
(706) 722-3500
Hawk Law Group – Evans, GA
4384 River Watch Pkwy, Evans, GA 30809, United States
(706) 863-6500
Hawk Law Group – Thomson, GA
146 Railroad St A, Thomson, GA 30824, United States
(706) 361-0350
Hawk Law Group – Waynesboro, GA
827 Liberty St, Waynesboro, GA 30830, United States
(706) 437-9122
Hawk Law Group – Aiken County, SC
156 Laurens St NW, Aiken, SC 29801, United States
(803) 226-9089
We also serve in Edgefield County, SC.