After a serious accident in Chicago, you’ll likely receive a call from an insurance adjuster within days—sometimes hours. They may sound friendly and concerned about your well-being. But make no mistake: their job is to protect the insurance company’s bottom line, not to ensure you receive fair compensation for your injuries.
Understanding the Insurance Adjuster’s Role
Insurance adjusters are trained professionals whose performance is measured by how little their company pays out on claims. They use sophisticated tactics developed over decades to reduce or deny claims. Understanding these strategies is your first line of defense.
Insurance companies are for-profit businesses. Every dollar they pay to injured claimants is a dollar less in corporate profits. This fundamental conflict of interest shapes every interaction you’ll have with them after an accident.
Common Tactics Insurance Companies Use Against You
1. The Quick, Lowball Settlement Offer
One of the most common tactics is offering a fast settlement before you understand the full extent of your injuries. An adjuster might call within the first week offering what sounds like a significant sum—$5,000, $10,000, or more—to “help you get back on your feet.”
The catch? Accepting any settlement requires you to sign a release of all claims. Once signed, you cannot seek additional compensation even if you discover your injuries are far more serious than initially thought. That quick $10,000 settlement could cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars in future medical care.
2. Recorded Statement Requests
Adjusters routinely ask for recorded statements shortly after accidents. They frame this as a standard procedure to “get your side of the story.” In reality, they’re looking for:
- Admissions of fault, even partial (“I probably should have been more careful”)
- Inconsistencies they can use to challenge your credibility later
- Statements minimizing your injuries (“I’m feeling a little sore but okay”)
- Anything that can be taken out of context in court
Illinois law does not require you to provide a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company. Politely decline until you’ve consulted with an attorney.
3. Surveillance and Social Media Monitoring
Insurance companies regularly hire private investigators to conduct surveillance on claimants. They may photograph or video record you in public places, looking for any activity that contradicts your claimed injuries.
Equally important: they monitor your social media. Photos of you at a family gathering, comments about weekend activities, or check-ins at recreational locations can all be used to argue your injuries aren’t as serious as claimed—even if those activities caused you significant pain afterward.
4. Delaying Tactics
Insurance companies profit from delayed payments. Common delay tactics include:
- Repeatedly requesting “additional documentation”
- Claiming your file was transferred to a new adjuster
- Scheduling multiple rounds of independent medical examinations
- “Losing” paperwork you’ve already submitted
- Waiting weeks to respond to communications
These delays serve multiple purposes: earning interest on reserves, pressuring financially stressed claimants to accept low offers, and running out the clock toward the statute of limitations.
5. Independent Medical Examinations (IMEs)
Insurance companies frequently require claimants to undergo “independent” medical examinations. In reality, IME doctors are hired and paid by insurance companies, often earning substantial income from performing these examinations.
These doctors may spend minimal time with you while producing lengthy reports questioning the severity of your injuries, attributing symptoms to pre-existing conditions, or claiming you’ve reached maximum recovery.
6. Disputing Medical Treatment
Adjusters often challenge the necessity or reasonableness of medical treatment, arguing:
- You received “excessive” treatment
- Physical therapy lasted too long
- Surgery wasn’t necessary
- You should have used a cheaper provider
- Treatment gaps indicate you weren’t seriously injured
Illinois Bad Faith Insurance Laws
Illinois law under 215 ILCS 5/155 provides remedies when insurance companies handle claims in bad faith. If an insurer’s conduct is “vexatious and unreasonable,” courts may award:
- The amount of the claim
- Attorney’s fees and costs
- Statutory penalties up to $60,000
- Interest on delayed payments
Examples of bad faith conduct include unreasonably denying valid claims, failing to conduct adequate investigations, and making lowball offers with no reasonable basis.
How to Protect Yourself
Document everything: Keep copies of all correspondence, note dates and times of phone calls, and save any written communications.
Don’t sign anything: Never sign medical authorizations, releases, or settlement documents without attorney review.
Be cautious with statements: Anything you say can be used against you. Stick to basic facts and avoid speculation.
Follow medical advice: Attend all appointments and follow treatment recommendations. Gaps in treatment become ammunition for adjusters.
Consult an attorney: Personal injury attorneys understand insurance tactics and know how to counter them effectively.
Level the Playing Field
Insurance companies have teams of adjusters, investigators, and attorneys working to minimize your claim. You deserve someone fighting equally hard on your side. At Phillips Law Offices, our Chicago personal injury attorneys have decades of experience battling insurance company tactics and recovering fair compensation for injured clients. Contact us today for a free consultation.
