length of time for settlement

What is the name of your state? California, My questiion is I was the victim in an accident; the responsible party's insurance company sent a 4 page interrogation for me to fill out. Once they recieve the papers how long do they have before offering some type of settlement?

listephens,

Can you be more specific on "settlement"? Do you mean the property damage or the body damage (if you were hurt).

In the case of property damage, it would be relatively fast once they accept liability. They would normally send an adjuster out to inspect your vehicle and would either write you a check on the spot, or mail it to you shortly. The whole process varies a little among difference insurance companies.

If you're seaking body injury compensation, that would be a different story. You would seek treatment first, depending on how you were injured, you might need to see a Chiropractor, a M.D, an Orthopedic doctor, Neurologist or even a psychiatrist in some case I've seen. Once your treatment is completed, then you would send all the medical bills and reports to the defendant insurance adjuster, demanding a settlement for the amount of money you think you're entitled to. Then comes the negotiation process. If you don't have an attorney, the insurance would screw you, turn you over, then screw you again. They know you don't have the legal knowledge to go after them, so they will try to settle with you for pennies on the dollar.

So best move if you're claiming pain and suffering compensation is to get yourself an attorney, even with the attorney's fee, you'll still get a much better amount in your pocket.

If you're ONLY claiming for property damage, the whole process should not take more than a couple of weeks.

Hope that helped.

-Jay

Thank you, that did help somewhat. I do have an attorney but wondered if they were not "up to speed" on their end being they have no urgency. As for me I am out of work for 2 more months and my disability insurance stopped in Sept. after 1 year. I am becoming severely depressed at my financial status and cannot borrow since my credit is now ruined. Every time I call my attorney they say "two more months". I feel there should be a deadline for both sides. Once again Thank You!