Louisiana Insurance Litigation Blog
Why would you need to hire an attorney when you have auto insurance to cover the damages?
The logic for most people is that the insured pay the insurance company for the coverage, so the insurance company should automatically pay what is reasonably owed. If the process worked this way then in a lot of instances an attorney may not be necessary for a simple claim. Unfortunately, anyone who has had to deal with an insurance claim or adjuster knows this is not the way it works. It is the insurance adjuster’s job to save as much money as possible for the insurance company. This all too often means that the standard process is to deny your claim, or offer you less than what your coverage allows or what you are entitled to. This is why you need an attorney.
Most people when shopping for auto insurance are looking for the cheapest monthly premium and do not really think of the full scope of what type of coverage they actually would need if an accident actually happened. When the agent is on the phone setting up the policy, they are generally offering multiple add on features from towing and rental car reimbursement to uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage (UMC). In the buyers haste and attempt to keep the monthly premium low many will reject this coverage, even though it is a very small increase in price. Louisiana does not require drivers to carry UMC, they do however require insurance companies to include UMC in their packages unless explicitly rejected in writing by the buyer. This is where having an attorney on your side could be the difference of your claim being paid or not.