Death Insurance Payout

[inihilator]

IL, Hello my father was killed crossing the road and we are not sure how the insurance process works. we do not want to pursue the driver but we would like a settalment from the insurance compnay. is this an automatic thing or is there always lawyers involved.. the insurance company is not being very good at contacting us or offering anything. some people have told us they will offer the limits and you have to pursue further, if you want more. any help would be great
thanks

 

[ecmst12]

IF the driver was at fault for the accident, you can make a claim with his insurance company. It's not a definite thing, if your father was not in a crosswalk he may have been considered at fault. Whether you will need a lawyer will depend on how easy to deal with the insurance company is and how much you are looking for. They are not going to automatically offer you the policy limits.

 

[moburkes]

With an at fault driver who killed someone, you will be offered the policy limits. Was that driver 100% at fault? If not, then you will not be offered the policy limits. The problem is that the insurance company did not hit your vehicle, so there is no reason for you to "pursue" them. They didn't do anything. Also, understand that the most you will receive from the insurance company is the bodily injury per person amount. That could be as low as $15k in CA. Insurance companies aren't necessariy proactive in contacting you. Honestly, the adjuster (a person just like your or me) may not even know what to say to you, especially if he has never dealth with a death claim before. He may also be trying to gather information before he calls. Unless someone in your family witnessed the accident, he really doesn't have much to say while in the information-gathering stage. Good luck.


"YOU" refers to your dad's estate, which must be settled before any "person" receives the money.

Sorry about your dad.