Reopening a Florida Car Accident Claim
Most car accident cases don’t end up going to court, but are resolved through negotiations between the injured party and the at-fault driver’s insurer. In these cases, claimants agree to accept a certain amount as a settlement in exchange for giving up the right to file any more legal claims against the insurer. These settlements are legally binding, so there isn’t usually a way around them. There are, however, a few instances when claimants will be allowed to reopen a claim.
Problems With the Settlement Document
Reopening a car accident claim isn’t technically impossible, but it is relatively rare. Doing so is, however, possible in specific situations, including when the settlement document in question contains material mistakes. These documents include details about the agreed-upon amount that the claimant will receive, so if there are major inconsistencies with the terms of that agreement, it could be possible to reopen and reevaluate the claim. Not any mistake, however, will qualify as being serious enough to warrant reopening a claim. Examples of errors that could justify reopening a claim include:
- Missing signatures;
- Incorrect bank details or payment schedules;
- Misspelled names or incorrect account or claim numbers;
- Unclear or vague language in the settlement terms; and
- The omission of important terms or conditions.
In these cases, an insurance company can be forced to reopen a claim and either adjust the terms of the settlement or resolve the case in court.
The Insurer Acted in Bad Faith
In Florida, insurers are required to act in good faith in their dealings with policyholders and claimants. This means that they must be diligent in investigating claims, answer requests within a certain amount of time, and generally avoid engaging in fraud. Unfortunately, not all insurers are as conscientious as they should be and may fail to follow the right protocols. When this happens and a claimant doesn’t realize it until after the settlement has been reached, he or she could have the right to reopen the claim if the insurer:
- Misrepresented the facts or purposely withheld details about the policy;
- Coerced the claimant into accepting an unfairly low settlement offer;
- Delayed the claim unnecessarily; or
- Refused to negotiate the settlement amount.
Insurers who engage in these kinds of bad faith practices can and should be held liable for their actions.
Someone Else Contributed to the Accident
It’s also possible for claimants who settled their legal disagreement with one at-fault party to file additional claims against the others. While this doesn’t technically qualify as reopening the claim, it will involve using some of the same evidence and arguments. Similarly, new evidence establishing that another party contributed to an accident could also justify the reopening of a claim.
Call Today for Help With Your Auto Insurance Claim
Working with an experienced attorney can help car accident victims avoid pitfalls in the Florida claims filing process, which is notorious for being difficult to navigate. If you think reopening your car accident claim is necessary to ensure that you receive fair compensation for your losses, feel free to call the dedicated Fort Lauderdale auto accident lawyers at Boone & Davis for advice.
Sources:
forbes.com/advisor/legal/auto-accident/auto-accident-settlement-timeline/
forbes.com/advisor/legal/personal-injury/bad-faith-insurance/
