If you or your loved one was seriously hurt in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you need full financial compensation to pay your bills and support your family. The vast majority of personal injury claims are handled by insurance companies. Unfortunately, collecting full compensation from the insurance company is difficult—especially when you run up against a defendant’s insurance policy with low limits.
How to Recover Compensation in Excess of the Policy Limit in California
Most accidents in California are caused by people who do not have adequate insurance to cover the harm that they caused. And if you do not have high limit underinsured motorist coverage your options are limited.
But there is a path forward. We must emphasize that it is “possible” to collect more than the defendant’s policy limits. How exactly it works will depend on the specific circumstances of the accident. To start, it is imperative that injured victims:
- Never discuss your injuries with an insurance adjuster until you talk to us;
- Identify every defendant who may bear liability, including employers of the defendant driver;
- Investigate the defendant’s assets for ability to contribute to settling with you.
Understand there are no guarantees, but an insurance company may be potentially liable for damages beyond the policy limit if your claim is prosecuted by Alexander Law Group, a leader in holding insurers in bad faith and making them pay full value.
When an insurance company fails to abide by its obligations under California state law—which include abiding by good faith settlement practices—it can become liable for the full amount of your damages, even if your damages are greater than the defendant’s policy limits.
An Insurer May be Liable for Full Damages if it Improperly Rejects a Settlement
One of the keys to putting yourself in the best position to collect more than policy limit is to never talk to an insurance adjuster. Do not explain the nature and extent of your injuries. That has to wait until you hire Alexander Law Group who will make a good faith settlement demand for the full policy limit for you and will meet all the legal requirements of a good faith settlement offer under California law. The settlement demand will be a good faith reasonable settlement offer, supported by comprehensive, properly prepared evidence detailing both liability and your injuries and will give the carrier a reasonable period of time to accept your good faith settlement offer, or else.
If the insurer rejects you offer to settle when it should have agreed, the policy limits no longer limit the amount of compensation the carrier is legally obligated to pay. The insurer will have opened up the policy—allowing you to pursue a financial recovery beyond the policy limit in a California court. Alexander Law Group has done that numerous times for our clients. Here are some examples.
Recovery Actual Insurance Coverage
$4,500,000 $30,000
$3,000,000 $50,000
$2,650,000 $100,000
$2,000,000 $100,000
$1,300,000 $100,000
$750,000 $25,000
$500,000 $100,000
$225,000 $25,000
These actual results are not a guarantee because every case is different, but unless you follow our approach you don’t have a chance.
Read 4-5 Million For Motorcyclist Rear-ending a Vanan to understand how a major insurance company refused a policy limits demand and stonewalled from day one until it’s board of directors voted to pay $4,500,000 from its treasury to settle George’s lawsuit. Hear and see George report on his experience from our office as a “legal miracle.”
To Get Results Like These You Need a Strong, Experienced Personal Injury Attorney
Insurance companies fight hard to protect their own bottom line. They will take aggressive action to resolve a car accident claim or other type of personal injury claim for the lowest amount possible—frequently offering compensation that is wholly inadequate. After a serious accident, you need a strong, experienced advocate in your corner. At Alexander Law Group, LLP, we have a well-documented record of collecting compensation in excess of insurance company policy limits.
Our law firm does not merely handle personal injury cases, we represent people who need help. We are ready to get started on your claim right away. Our attorneys will seize evidence, build a case, and take whatever legal action is necessary to maximize your financial compensation. Do not assume that you are barred from a full and fair personal injury recovery simply because the defendant has insufficient insurance coverage and insufficient assets to pay you for what they have taken from you.
The cardinal rule is to wait to never explain your injuries to the defendant’s insurance adjuster before you first talk to us.
Contact Our San Jose, CA Personal Injury Attorneys for Free Initial Consultation
Alexander Law Group, LLP attorneys are available to answer questions and share our knowledge of the law and the results of our research and experience. Our goal as personal injury lawyers is to make a difference for our clients. Every day we deal with a range of health and safety issues that most people do not encounter until after an injury occurs. As safety lawyers we are committed to providing our clients and the public with information for safer and healthier living. Call 888-777-1776 or contact us online to schedule a consultation to see how we can help you.
