Insurance company offers to settle, but should family wait?
Their son seems OK after accident, but mom's brother, who's a doctor, says they should wait to settle.
DEAR HARRY: Our 10-year-old son was involved in a car accident while crossing a major street. The driver stopped and our son refused to let him take him to the hospital because he has a mistrust of strangers offering rides. A neighbor did so. When we arrived at the hospital, the ER physician said that everything seemed perfectly normal, but that we should make sure nothing was amiss by awakening him several times during that night. We did so, and everything seems to be OK a month later. We had zero costs, but the insurance rep insists that they want to pay something and get this settled. My husband says that since we had no costs and the child is OK, why not take a modest dollar amount and get this behind us. My brother, who is an medical doctor, said to wait until all the dust has settled in another month or so. What do you think?
WHAT HARRY SAYS: What do you have to lose by waiting? There could be some medical reasons for your brother's hesitation, so be on the safe side. Remember, the insurance company is not your friend when you have a potentially large claim. I admire your husband for thinking in terms of a "modest amount." There are too many people who look for big bucks in cases like this.