How Lowball Insurance Offers Hurt Real People (Part 3)

Recently, I’ve heard a lot of talk in Georgia about why our laws supposedly need to change—to benefit insurance companies even more.

But what doesn’t get nearly enough attention are the countless stories of how insurance companies frequently deny, delay, and defend legitimate claims, forcing injured people to fight for what they’re owed.

Here’s yet another example. (You can view my previous posts on this topic here and here.)

In 2017, our client got smoked from behind by a large pickup truck, causing him to hit the car in front of him.

A clear liability case from a serious crash. He went to the hospital from the scene and underwent conservative treatment after that—office visits, imaging studies, and a month or so of physical therapy—before making a full recovery.

His total medical bills? Just above $14,000.

Allstate’s first offer? $3,750.

Even after two years of litigation, Allstate’s final offer before trial was $13,800—not even enough to cover his medical bills.

Our client refused to back down. He let us take his case to trial, and in 2019 we secured a $35,000 jury verdict for him, plus $20,000 in attorney’s fees for beating our offer of settlement.

There was zero valid justification for Allstate offering a quarter of his medical bills before a lawsuit. And there was zero valid justification for it still refusing to offer even his bills on the eve of trial.

So why did it do this? Because it benefited Allstate to delay paying on as many claims as possible. Because the repercussions were minimal. Because it knew some people would just give up.

You see, the insurer didn’t care about making our client’s life miserable and dragging him through 2 years of litigation on a small claim. It only cared about making more money—the rights of a regular, honest, hardworking Georgian be damned.

Stories like this are all too common. Ask any personal injury lawyer—we see it every day.

Yet the people being run over by insurance company tactics don’t get press conferences at the Capitol. They don’t get their rights listed as the Governor’s top priority.

Instead, they have to fight for what they’re owed while insurance companies get away with it. And now, those same insurance companies want even more protection to escape accountability.

What do you think? Join the conversation with me on LinkedIn.