5 Tips For Negotiating Your Injury Award

You may be surprised to learn that the vast majority of injury cases end up getting resolved prior to trial, with the most common agreement being reached through a negotiated settlement. A negotiated settlement involves both sides having informal talks with one another and working towards a resolution that suits both parties. As you might imagine, having excellent negotiation skills is imperative for these discussions. With that in mind, we wanted to use today’s blog to share five tips for negotiating your injury settlement award.

Tips For Negotiating Your Injury Settlement

If you want to earn a more favorable settlement, you’ll want to know how to get your point across during negotiations. Here are five tips for negotiating your settlement offer.

1. Hire A Lawyer – While this tip may seem a little self-serving, hiring a lawyer is the single best thing you can do to improve your leverage and make the other side sweat a little during negotiations. The insurance company will have lawyers on their side, and they would feast on an inexperienced individual without professional representation by their side. We negotiate for our clients every day, and it’s how we make a living, so not only do we do it regularly, we do it well. Negotiations will go a lot smoother if you have an attorney by your side.

2. Get Your Story Straight – Make sure that you and your lawyer understand the ins and outs of your case. If there are questions or inconsistencies about your case, that can hurt your arguments during negotiations. That’s why it’s oftentimes helpful to write down your version of events shortly after the incident. This way you’re not trying to remember key details on memory alone. Get your story straight and stick to it during negotiations.

3. Understand What’s Important To You – Before you go into negotiations with the other side, sit down with your lawyer and make sure that you understand what’s important to you. Are you looking for a specific dollar amount? Do you want certain medical treatments fully covered? Understand what’s important to you so that you can prioritize these things during negotiations. Be willing to bend a little on some aspects that aren’t important, but talk with your lawyer about what’s important to you so that you can more easily reach a satisfactory conclusion.

4. Understand What’s Important To The Other Side – Just like in poker, you’re not just playing your cards, but you’re also playing the other players at the table. If you can understand what’s important to them, you can use this to your advantage. If you suspect that the other side wants a quick resolution where they do not accept fault for your injuries, don’t be afraid to offer that up as an option if they are willing to meet one or more of your demands. Again, managing this negotiation process is easier with a lawyer by your side, but if you can figure out what’s important to the other side, you can use those conditions to help you get something that you want in return.

5. Be Patient – Finally, the other side typically has no problem letting negotiations play out over the course of a number of weeks or months, whereas an injured party likely wants things wrapped up sooner, especially if medical bills are starting to pile up. If you’re clearly in a rush to wrap things up, the insurance company may continue trying to lowball you in the hopes that you’ll eventually cave because you want the claim to be resolved. Be patient, and don’t fall for their tactics. If you show them that you’re willing to wait for a fair offer, they will be more likely to meet you with a more agreeable solution. It’s tough, but patience is a great negotiation tactic.

If you need help negotiating a settlement or filing an injury claim in Minnesota, be sure to reach out to Dean and the team at Margolis Law Firm today at (952) 230-2700.