If you were in a car accident and you sustained injuries, it is in your best interest to work with an experienced personal injury lawyer at Trust Guss who will fight for your rights and ensure you receive the compensation you need and deserve in order to pay for your medical care, psychological distress, and property damage. Like most insurance companies, Nationwide is a for-profit business with loyalty to their bottom line rather than your needs.
Is Your Nationwide Claim Being Addressed Fairly?
After being the victim of a car accident, it can be confusing and stressful to deal with insurance companies. You may have the expectation that insurance adjusters will act with honesty, compassion, and fairness, but this isn’t always the case. Companies like Nationwide make a profit by collecting high premium payments and paying out as little as possible in settlements. When presenting you with an offer after your accident, they are counting on you being in a vulnerable state and accepting a low number that might seem like a lot at the time before you know the true costs of your medical care. You need a legal advocate to level the playing field and stand up for your right to fair compensation. Our car accident lawyers at Trust Guss in Houston and Katy, TX, know the intricacies of filing a claim with Nationwide and will use our extensive knowledge, experience, and legal acumen to make sure you come out on top – not them.
Dealing With Nationwide Claims Adjusters
When filing a claim with Nationwide, here are a few important tips to consider:
- Don’t accept the first offer you are given – Your Nationwide claims adjuster will likely try to lowball you out of the gate. They may even pressure you and try to suggest you were partially to blame for your accident.
- Don’t give in. Without a full medical assessment, you won’t really know how much compensation you will need to cover your bills. If you accept an offer that is too low, you could be left footing the bill for expensive medical care down the line. Before signing any documents, speak with our knowledgeable personal injury attorneys at Trust Guss.
- Be careful what you say – Adjusters are known to use the accident victim’s own words against them to invalidate a claim. They may manipulate you by insinuating that you are to blame for the car crash. They may pressure you to give a recorded statement. Don’t fall for these underhanded tactics. By staying quiet and only speaking to your car accident lawyer, you can protect your rights and secure the chance at a fair settlement that meets your needs.
- Keep careful records – Being meticulous in documenting the accident scene along with every phone call and email communication you have with Nationwide is the best way to protect yourself and your claim. Every time you speak with your Nationwide claims adjuster, write down the time and date of the call, the adjuster’s name, and the nature of the topics that you discuss. Gather copies of your medical bills, your vehicle repair estimates and charges, and any other relevant documentation related to your case.
How A Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help You
After a car accident, you may be overwhelmed with the quickly accumulating tasks of caring for yourself, attending doctor’s visits, and filing a claim. By working with our esteemed personal injury lawyers, you can focus more of your energy on healing and recovering after serious injuries related to the collision. The biggest reason to hire us is so that you don’t lose out on the compensation you will likely need in order to rebuild your life after a debilitating car crash. You may not know the extent of your injuries at first, as some conditions, like a concussion or internal organ damage, can take time to become evident. If you settle too early, you could miss out on an assortment of damages you didn’t even know you were entitled to. Here are some of the ways our car accident attorneys can help:
- Look at your case from an objective viewpoint
- Gather important evidence to support your claim
- Determine liability in your car accident
- Consult with medical professionals to determine the nature of your injuries
- Calculate the amount of compensation you are eligible for based on your injuries
- Provide Nationwide with all the appropriate paperwork and documentation
- Negotiate a favorable settlement that meets your needs
- File your claim within the statute of limitations
- Take your case to court if necessary
- Communicate with Nationwide and other third parties on your behalf
- Free up your energy so you can focus more on healing and grieving
How Much Will a Personal Injury Lawyer Cost?
At Stewart J. Guss Injury Lawyers, our legal team will provide a no-cost case evaluation to determine if you have a valid claim. If so, we will file your claim at no charge. You will pay no legal fees of any kind unless we win your case. Your legal fees will come directly from the compensation you receive for your losses. And even after paying us, you will walk away with significantly more money than you would have had you taken on Nationwide on your own. This makes the choice to work with a dedicated car accident lawyer much easier. There are no obstacles, so why not get started today?
Why Choose Trust Guss?
Clients choose Trust Guss because they know they will be prioritized, respected, and treated with fairness. Any time you call, day or night, you will speak to a live agent, optimizing clear communication. For over 25 years, our firm has been fighting relentlessly to represent accident victims, providing them with the best chance to claim the compensation they rightfully deserve after sustaining serious injuries in a car crash. We handle every aspect of your case so you can focus on what really matters – healing and recovering from the trauma of a car collision. As a reflection of our excellent track record for success, we have received over 1400 five-star Google reviews.
Spotlight on Stewart J. Guss, Board-Certified Personal Injury Lawyer
Stewart J. Guss founded Trust Guss in 1999 as a place where a “Clients First” approach would be ubiquitously upheld. Since that time, he has continued to implement this philosophy while growing the practice to include over 100 legal professionals across four states. Stewart received his early education in Texas, obtaining his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Houston Law Center. He is an active member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and has been recognized all over the nation for his tenacity, acumen, and commitment to integrity. The National Association of Distinguished Counsel named Stewart in the top 1% of personal injury attorneys nationwide. He has also been lauded as a Top Lawyer by the National Trial Lawyers, Rue Ratings, and Houstonia Magazine. Despite his demanding schedule, Stewart is a devoted philanthropist, funding several university scholarships and contributing to charities all across the U.S.
Experiencing injuries in a major car accident is nothing short of a tremendous setback – physically, emotionally, and financially. Some accidents can even cause open-ended hardship, permanently altering the victim’s routine. If your injuries were the result of someone else’s negligence or recklessness, you may be entitled to significant damages.
If you have to deal with a car accident with AAA Insurance when filing your claim, you can rest assured our experienced personal injury lawyers at Trust Guss have decades of expertise and know exactly how to navigate the complex legal landscape that may arise.
All insurance companies are for-profit businesses, meaning that they have a bottom line to maintain. Insurance companies make a profit by increasing subscription sales and decreasing payouts. This means that it is in their best interest to deny your claim or present you with an egregiously low offer. Some claims adjusters may even use underhanded tactics to pressure you into accepting blame for your own accident. By choosing to work with a seasoned accident attorney, you can ensure your rights are protected, and you maintain your opportunity to recover the maximum in compensation to which you are entitled.
Understanding the American Automobile Association (AAA)
The American Automobile Association (AAA) has nearly 60 million members in North America. While the group is known for a variety of services, including its roadside assistance program, many clubs operate auto insurance agencies that let customers purchase insurance through companies like Auto Club Enterprises Insurance Group. You may mentally associate AAA with its roadside customer service, which tends to be quick, efficient, and friendly. However, when it comes to an auto accident claim, the dynamics at play are exactly the same as they would be with any other insurance company, like Geico, Progressive, or Allstate.
AAA is a for-profit business. They exist to make money and, therefore, must increase income while decreasing expenditures. Paying out a claim is a form of expenditure for AAA, so it is in their best interests to do everything possible to block you from recovering the funds you rightfully deserve and need to rebuild your life after devastating injuries and other losses. AAA professionals negotiate insurance claims every single day and are masters at what they do. You, on the other hand, are at a built-in disadvantage when it comes to negotiating just because it’s something you might only do once or twice in your lifetime.
By working with an experienced personal injury lawyer, you are essentially evening out the playing field and allowing for a fair negotiation process to take place. At Trust Guss, we will relentlessly fight for your best interests – not the best interests of the insurance company. If we are unable to get you the settlement you deserve, our trained trial lawyers have no problem taking your case to court to ensure justice is served.
Types of Disputes That May Arise When Dealing With AAA Insurance Claims
While you would expect a massive company like AAA to always do right by claimants in order to uphold its positive reputation, that is not always the case. Larger insurance companies have shareholders relying on them to increase profits, and one way to do that is to dispute or deny claims. Here are some of the tactics that AAA may use:
- Denying a claim – Claims adjusters will often try to pin the blame for the accident on you, as this gives them the right to deny your claim. They may twist your words or cite unjustified reasons for denying you compensation. A good personal injury lawyer will address their reasons for denial when handling your case and make sure you can claim the appropriate damages to which you are entitled.
- Disputing a claim – In order to fight back against withholding insurers, your personal injury attorney will obtain extensive medical documentation, witness accounts, and testimony from relevant experts. AAA claims adjusters may dispute your claim over the following:
- The nature of your injuries
- The severity of your injuries
- Whether you had preexisting conditions
- The necessity of certain treatments, medical services, or medications
- The financial costs of your losses
- Confusing or misleading a claimant – The less you know about how AAA claims work, the more the claims adjusters will seek to take advantage of your ignorance. The adjuster may:
- Hope that you blindly accept the claim denial without doing research on the insurance policy
- Pressure you into accepting fault for your accident
- Convince you that the first offer they give is the best you can do
- Your lawyer will protect you from these underhanded tactics, handling communication with AAA so you are not so vulnerable to their bad-faith antics.
How a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help You Obtain the Settlement You Deserve
Your lawyer will stand in your corner and handle all aspects of your case, including negotiation with AAA Insurance. They will do the following:
- Resolve outstanding disputes with AAA, such as claim denials
- Prove who was liable for your injuries utilizing witness reports, police reports, video footage, testimony from accident reconstruction experts, and more
- Document your losses using X-rays, MRIs, doctor’s reports, medical bills, vehicle repair invoices, diagnoses from mental health providers, and more
- Calculate the monetary value of your damages
- Negotiate with AAA to achieve a fair settlement
- File a lawsuit if necessary
Recoverable Damages from AAA
If you sustained serious injuries and another party was to blame, you are entitled to certain damages, both economic and non-economic. These may include the following:
- Current and future healthcare costs
- Property damages
- Lost wages and loss of future career opportunities
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Wrongful death
Can I Afford a Personal Injury Lawyer to Lead My Claim With AAA?
At Trust Guss, we work on a contingency fee basis, meaning that you do not pay any legal fees upfront. Instead, we take a percentage of your award once we win your case. Our consultations are also performed at no cost to you, and there is no obligation to hire us once your case evaluation is complete. In other words, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by working with our esteemed attorneys. We have been advocating for client rights for over 25 years and are dedicated to making sure you and your family are well cared for after an unexpected and devastating accident.
How Long Does It Take to Settle an AAA Insurance Claim?
Every case is different, so this is a difficult question to answer. The time it takes to settle your AAA claim can depend on the complexity of your case, the extent of your injuries, and the willingness of the claims adjuster to negotiate in good faith. It can take anywhere from a few months to a few years.
Contact Trust Guss Today to Take the Next Steps with AAA Insurance Claims
At Trust Guss, we have over 1400 five-star Google reviews, a testament to our “Clients First” approach and dedication to excellence. No matter the time of day or night, you will always reach a live agent when contacting us. We are passionate about protecting you from unethical insurance claims adjusters who might pressure you to accept fault for your accident or accept an offer that is not appropriate. Contact us today to schedule a no-cost case evaluation and allow us to alleviate the pressure, confusion, and anxiety that can arise when having to deal with AAA Insurance. By partnering with our firm, you can refocus your energies on self-care while knowing you are obtaining the best chance at maximizing your compensation.