Structured Settlements – Plaintiff Loyal Structured Settlement Company

Calling Early vs. Calling Late in the Case -It can Doom Your Best Intentions

I received a panic phone call the other day from a P.I. attorney that we have worked with for over 20 years. He was at mediation with his client and, as so often happens, the other side made an offer of settlement that included future (structured) payments.

This set off a mad rush to call us and request a quote and inquire whether we could predict the possible “rated age” the client’s medical condition might generate. The quote we could quickly produce; guessing the client’s potential rated age assessments was just not possible.

The attorney was appreciative for the little information we could provide, and apologized that he had forgotten to involve us sooner so that we could send our Introduction Letter and provide him with our standard pre-settlement conference intelligence, i.e., negotiation tactics of the casualty carrier, annuitization of the Life Care Plan, and a Rated Age Full Market Survey.

The P.I. attorney presented to the client the quote he had obtained from us. Several days later, we received a call that the client was not interested in a structured settlement. I can’t say that I blame him. With the scant amount of information this client had to go on, I would not be interested, either. Besides, the chance that the requested quote ($1,000 monthly payments for life, or 20 years guaranteed) had any correlation to the client’s real and true needs, was probably slim at best. And, creating a “solution” before a “need” has been established is definitely a cart before the horse maneuver.

What this claimant (and every claimant) could have benefited from is a personal settlement planning discussion to determine his needs, wants, goals, desires, concerns and other considerations. From that fact-finding session would then come a formal, written Settlement Plan with our recommendations suitable to meeting this individual’s needs.

Maybe this process wouldn’t have changed the claimant’s mind about structuring part of his settlement. It might just be the case that he doesn’t need a structured settlement (not every claimant needs, wants or gets one), but instead needs to pay off his mortgage and other debts, upgrade his transportation, and place what money is left into a liquid “emergency reserve” account for future medicals and to supplement his Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) payments. But we will never know, and neither will he, as we missed the chance to sit down and hold these discussions and plan out his settlement. And the attorney in this case missed the chance to delight his client (because this service is free), which could potentially create more referrals because extremely happy clients refer more often.

So, call us early in your case process, at least 30-60 days before a mediation or settlement conference. Let us provide you with our standard intelligence package, which can help you achieve a greater recovery. Then, after settlement is reached, we will meet with the client to plan out their settlement.

The irony is that this takes less work, not more, for you and your staff. You will be happier knowing your client has met with an expert to discuss their needs and the appropriate strategies to meet those needs. And, you have created a firewall against future liability if things don’t turn out as your client expected from their settlement.