The insurance adjuster is your opponent from the very beginning. He will tell you false and misleading things such as: “you must quickly accept this offer or it is gone forever,” “if you hire an attorney, we will reduce our offer,” “your car has little damage so there is no way you are hurt,” and “if you don’t give me a recorded statement, we will pay you nothing.” Sometimes the adjuster will flat out lie and tell you he has witnesses to the accident who will say you are at fault. If you have read our other blogs, you know that we tell our clients to not trust the adjuster. Let us speak with the adjuster. More often than not, the above phrases are just used to scare you.

You know that when the insurance adjuster hears about your claim, he will look over the file to determine if you are entitled to any money and if so, how much. Again, the adjuster is your opponent. It is very unlikely that he is going to agree with you that you are injured and deserve money. This article discuss how the adjusters determine the “how much” part. Many insurance companies use a software program to help them with their determination. That program, known as Colossus, is your worst enemy.

Colossus is a claim evaluation software program designed to evaluate a motor vehicle claim and literally place a monetary number on an individual’s injuries. Over the years, it has become clear that this program is designed to save the insurance company money at the expense of the injured. While adjusters are biased, at least they are capable to evaluating things such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and interference with daily life activities. A software program cannot listen to witnesses. It cannot see your scars. It cannot hear how your spouse must now assist you each day.

Instead, the software looks at the testing your received. Did you have an MRI? What did it show? Did you go to the emergency room right after the accident? Did you have surgery? We know that these questions do not properly evaluate an injury claim. The program is particularly scary for those who have soft tissue injuries – the type that do not show up on x-rays and MRIs. You know you have constant pain. You know you cannot do the things you did before. But does Colossus? Chances are, if it isn’t on the diagnostic testing results, it does not.

According to Computer Sciences Corporation, the producer of Colossus, more than 300 insurance companies and 50% of adjusters nationwide use the program. We know that the following companies use Colossus: Allstate, Farmers, American Family, CNS, The Hartford, Met Auto and Life, Travelers, and USAA. Even if you ask, it is unlikely that the adjuster will tell you that he is using Colossus – just assume that he is. You’ll need a strong counter-punch to the Colossus attack. We know how to handle Colossus. If you have been injured, call us at 1-800-517-0602, your St. Louis injury attorneys, for a free case evaluation.