MRH Injury Law gave an insurance company multiple opportunities to fairly resolve a car accident claim. When the carrier ignored settlement proposals and eventually offered less than our client’s medical bills, we filed suit, secured a trial date, and began preparing the case for court. The case settled shortly after.
What You Need to Know
- The crash: A driver made an illegal left turn from the shoulder of a rural Kansas highway and crashed into a vehicle in which our client was a passenger.
- The injuries: Our client suffered a fractured sternum, four fractured ribs, and an aggravation of a previous wrist injury.
- The challenge: Despite substantial evidence supporting the claim, the at-fault driver’s insurance company repeatedly ignored settlement proposals and eventually offered less than our client’s medical bills.
- The strategy: MRH Injury Law filed suit, secured a trial date about nine months out, and immediately began preparing the case for trial.
- The result: After demonstrating that we were prepared to take the case to court, the insurance company changed course and the case settled.
The Case
What happened?
Our client was a passenger in a vehicle traveling on a highway in rural Kansas when another driver pulled onto the shoulder of the highway.
The driver then attempted to make an illegal left turn from the shoulder, crashing into the vehicle carrying our client.
The at-fault driver was ticketed for making the illegal turn.
Our client suffered significant injuries in the crash, including a fractured sternum, four fractured ribs, and an aggravation of a previous wrist injury.
The evidence supporting the claim was strong. But getting the at-fault driver’s insurance company to respond appropriately was another matter.
The Legal Challenge
What happens when an insurance company ignores a settlement demand?
When possible, MRH Injury Law gives the insurance company an opportunity to resolve a client’s claim before filing a lawsuit.
In this case, we sent the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier a settlement proposal demanding payment of the policy limits within 30 days.
We provided extensive documentation supporting the claim, including:
- The crash report
- Photographs
- Medical records
- Medical bills
- Dash-cam footage from the vehicle our client was in
The insurance company ignored the proposal.
We tried again, sending another settlement proposal with a 14-day deadline.
This time, the carrier responded, but with an offer that was less than our client’s medical bills.
Even after receiving that low offer, our client authorized us to reduce the demand in another attempt to resolve the case without litigation.
The insurance company ignored that proposal, too.
At that point, waiting longer wasn’t going to move the case forward.
It was time to fight harder.
How MRH Injury Law Dug Deeper and Fought Harder
Filing the Lawsuit
Rather than continue sending proposals and waiting for an insurance company that had repeatedly failed to meaningfully respond, we filed a lawsuit.
That changed the posture of the case.
Once a lawsuit is filed, the case moves into a formal litigation process with deadlines, discovery, depositions, and ultimately a trial if the parties cannot reach a resolution.
Getting a Trial Date
We didn’t file suit simply to put more pressure on the insurance company and then wait.
As soon as possible after filing suit, we set the case for trial.
The court scheduled the case for trial approximately nine months later, giving everyone involved a clear deadline, and giving our team a defined timeline for preparing the case to be presented to a jury.
Preparing the Evidence for Trial
With a trial date on the calendar, MRH Injury Law began actively working the case toward trial.
We submitted written discovery and requested dates to take the at-fault driver’s deposition.
We also began preparing the witnesses we would need to prove our client’s case in court. That included enlisting our client’s doctors and the police officer who responded to the crash to testify.
The message to the insurance company was no longer simply that we believed our client deserved more.
We were preparing to prove it in court.
How Did Fighting Harder Change the Outcome?
After the lawsuit was filed, the insurance company hired an attorney to represent the at-fault driver.
With a trial date approaching and the case actively being prepared for court, the insurer’s approach changed after advice from their counsel. The case settled shortly afterward.
Before litigation, the carrier had repeatedly ignored our attempts to resolve the claim and then offered less than our client’s medical bills.
Preparing the case for trial demonstrated that delay wasn’t going to make the claim go away.
For MRH Injury Law, being a trial-focused firm means more than being willing to file a lawsuit. It means preparing a case so that, if trial becomes necessary, we’re ready to present the evidence and fight for our client in court.
Why This Case Matters
What can you do when an insurance company delays or won’t make a fair settlement offer?
Insurance companies don’t always respond to a well-documented claim with a fair settlement offer. Sometimes they delay. Sometimes they make an offer that doesn’t reflect the client’s injuries and losses. Sometimes they don’t meaningfully respond at all.
When that happens, an injured person doesn’t necessarily have to keep waiting.
Filing a lawsuit can move a claim into a formal process with court deadlines, discovery, depositions, and a scheduled trial. But filing suit alone isn’t enough. An attorney must also be prepared to actively build the case and take it to trial if necessary.
In this case, we gave the insurance company multiple opportunities to resolve the claim before litigation. When those efforts went nowhere, we changed course.
We filed suit. We secured a trial date. And we prepared to go to trial.
That’s what it means to fight harder when the outcome matters.
Attorney Perspective
“We gave the insurance company multiple opportunities to resolve this case, and they continued to drag their feet. Once it became clear that waiting wasn’t going to get our client anywhere, we filed suit and immediately started preparing for trial. By showing the insurance company that we were ready and willing to take the case to court, we changed the conversation.”
— Matt Meyerkord, Attorney, MRH Injury Law
When Waiting Isn’t Working, Fight Harder
Insurance companies don’t always make it easy to recover fair compensation after a serious injury. When negotiation isn’t getting results, your attorney needs to know when it’s time to change course, and be prepared to follow through.
MRH Injury Law is a Kansas City personal injury firm that uncovers what others miss, prepares every case for trial, and supports clients through every step of the process. We dig deeper because we care, and we fight harder because it matters.
Here’s Why Clients Choose MRH Injury Law for Personal Injury Cases in Kansas City.
If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury, contact MRH Injury Law to learn how we can help.
Key Takeaways
- A strong claim doesn’t guarantee a prompt or fair insurance response. Despite extensive documentation and clear evidence about the crash, the carrier repeatedly failed to respond.
- Filing a lawsuit can move a stalled claim forward. Litigation creates formal deadlines and a path toward trial when pre-suit negotiations aren’t working.
- Trial preparation matters. We didn’t simply file suit. We secured a trial date, pursued discovery, prepared witnesses, and demonstrated that we were ready to take the case to court.