Comments on: Some Good Reasons For Having Dog Pet Insurance

By: swood1968

swood1968 — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:31:59 +0000

Lots of good answers here. At the end of the day, whether an insurer settles or not boils down to only a few elements (all this assumes that coverage has been extended for the loss).
1) Liability – Is it clear or are there defenses that can be raised? Depending on your state, there could be several defenses for the property owner in a premises liability case. I’m in Texas. Slip/trip and fall cases are all but dead here.
2) Damages – How bad is the injury? Soft tissue or objective injury (ie. broken bone)?
3) Witness potential of the parties involved – Will the insured make a good witness on his/her own behalf? Will the jury like him/her? Same for the the plaintiff. This is actually very, very important. I have tried cases I otherwise wouldn’t have because I knew the jury would simply be offended by the plaintiff.
4) Venue – Also very important. Is this a liberal venue where juries like to award money? Or is it extremely conservative and unwiling to award money to an injured party. Is the judge plaintiff or defense friendly?
5) Attorney Qualifications – How good is the plaintiff’s attorney? Is he one of the run of the mill ambulance chasers or does this guy have some stroke? How good is the defense attorney? Most insurers hire very good outside counsel for larger cases, but leave the small exposure stuff to in-house attorneys.
Hope this gives you some insight.
References :
Adjuster 13 + years; Currently a litigation adjuster for a major insurer.

By: Yo' Mama

Yo' Mama — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:29:59 +0000

They will settle for the following reasons: A) Their insured is legally liable and the amount of the settlement reasonably reflects what the plaintiff would have gotten had the case gone to court; B) their insured is legally liable and the case has emotional or political elements such that, if a jury got it, the award would be unreasonably inflated; C) their insured is legally liable and the potential judgement in a court of law could affect the value of other cases or result in an appellate court decision that would have a detrimental impact on settlement values of other claims or case law that would control the handling of other claims so it’s cheaper to pay the claim and get out now.
References :
Injury claim specialist for 23 years for a major insurer

By: mbrcatz17

mbrcatz17 — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:27:59 +0000

They’ll settle, if the claim is COVERED, if they think a judge/jury would find against them anyway, and if they think it’s possible a jury might award MORE than the settlement request.

Whether or not they think their client is wrong, is irrelevant. It’s about what the JUDGE is going to think, and if there’s coverage under the policy.

A FEW policies, have a clause in it that the client has to agree to the settlement. So if the policy has that clause, regardless of the above, if the client doesn’t agree, they don’t settle.
References :
agent, 21+ years

By: aaron p

aaron p — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:25:59 +0000

It could also be that it's so much cheaper to just let it go. You could have had a horrible case, but your lawyer did a good job letting them know he or she plans on dragging it out.
References :

By: edward I

edward I — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:23:59 +0000

Could one reason be that the plaintiff and lawyer have a solid case?

One possibility.

The other?
The cost of litigation, even if they win the case, may equal or exceed the settlement. In either scenario, they expend the same amount, or maybe more, without the hassle.
Also, settlements for injuries negate any further claims.
And lest we forget, juries can be wild.
References :

By: Left Bank Hook

Left Bank Hook — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:21:59 +0000

It’s a simple cost-justification. They look to see how much the person wants for the lawsuit, how much they think it will cost to fight, and how much they think they can offer to avoid the whole thing. They also take a look at how likely it is that they’ll be sued again for a similar deal. (If it’s likely, they’ll be more apt to fight to win–so there’s a precident.)
References :

By: John

John — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:19:10 +0000

What are some reasons why insurance co. settles a lawsuit?
What are some reasons why an insurance co. settles a lawsuit(premises liability). Could one reason be that the plaintiff and lawyer have a solid case? And they see client was wrong?