“EVERYTHING YOU SAY…WILL BE USED AGAINST YOU” Taped and Writtten Statements and Insurance Companies
Posted by: Doug in Auto Accidents, Bicycle Accidents, Dog Bites and Animal Attacks, Insurance Coverage, Negligence Cases, Premises liability, Slip and Fall Accidents, Workers Compensation
Insurance companies routinely pressure people into giving taped or written statements shortly after an accident. Insurance claims adjusters know that injured victims are at their most vulnerable immediately after an accident. They know that when the injured person is not represented, in pain, on strong medications, confused and unsure of their legal rights, that all the cards are stacked in the insurance company’s favor.
Remember –
ANYTHING YOU SAY WILL BE USED AGAINST YOU !
In some states, the insurance company DOES NOT NEED YOUR PERMISSION TO TAPE RECORD YOUR TELEPHONE CONVERSATIONS ! While a Court’
s permission may be needed to record the telephone conversation between two people who are unaware of the taping, in Virginia, if one party knows about it, Court permission is not required.
Insurance Companies also seek written statements in many cases. Your handwritten statement can be “Exhibit A”
for the defense at trial. It is very hard to argue that the statement is inaccurate or that you have been misquoted if it is in your own handwriting. Likewise, the typed transcript of your tape-recorded statement can be used against you to deny your claim and defend the case in Court. While the team at the Landau Law Shop has won a number of claims where clients have mistakenly given statements, the cases are made much harder to win.
Herndon trial lawyer Doug Landau notes that no Insurance Adjuster has ever sent him a copy of any law that REQUIRES a taped or written statement by the innocent injured victim. Do not succumb to empty threats advises Virginia “Super Lawyer” Landau. “Often the only reason an Insurance Adjuster wants a taped or written statement after investigating the claim with their insured, the police, eyewitnesses and others is to get more material with which to deny a claim,” adds Virginia Trial Lawyer Doug Landau. “Do not let the Insurance Company ‘pad’ heir file at your expense.” If the Insurance adjuster wants to talk, let them bring a check and a Release, suggests Landau. There is a procedure for talking to an innocent victim about an accident, under oath, with counsel present, prior to trial. It’s called a “deposition,”
Landau notes, and the insurance company can pay for this proceeding.
The team at ABRAMS LANDAU recommends that clients, if contacted by nosey, pushy Insurance Company representatives, refer these callers and intruders to us. Let us “take the heat”
for you. After all, Doug Landau already has curly hair ! What more can they do ?
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