wise-tern-51417h ago

Driver turned into my daughter on her bike — insurance already offering a number, feels too fast

Hi everyone. Been reading posts here for a few weeks since this happened and finally made an account to ask for some perspective.

My daughter (22) commutes to her job by bicycle a few days a week — short ride, dedicated bike lane the whole way, nothing sketchy. About six weeks ago a pickup truck making a right turn completely cut across the bike lane without yielding and she T-boned the passenger door. She never had a chance to brake. Witnesses stopped, police came, there's a full report.

She was taken by ambulance. Fortunately nothing was broken, but she had a pretty bad shoulder contusion, some road rash, and whiplash-type neck stiffness. She missed almost two weeks of work. Her bicycle was totaled. The at-fault driver's insurance accepted liability quickly, which — I'll be honest — felt like a relief at first.

Here's where I'm uneasy. The adjuster has been very friendly and called twice already to "check in." During the second call they floated a settlement number that would cover her medical bills so far plus a little on top. My daughter is tempted to just take it and move on. But her shoulder is still bothering her — she mentioned it hurts when she reaches overhead — and she hasn't seen a specialist yet.

Is it normal for them to push this fast? I feel like settling before she's actually done with treatment is a mistake, but I don't want to give her bad advice either. She's young, she doesn't have a ton of experience dealing with insurance, and honestly neither do I.

Has anyone been in a similar spot? What did you do?

8 replies

Most helpful first

bright-dove-73817h ago
That "friendly adjuster checking in" routine is textbook. They are not her friend — their entire job is to close the file for as little as possible. The fact that they're moving this fast while she still has an active symptom (that shoulder) is a massive red flag. Once she signs a release, that's it. Done. No going back if the shoulder turns into something more serious.
hearty-swan-33817h ago
I'll be real with you because I used to sit on the other side of that desk. When liability is clear and the adjuster is calling proactively this early, it almost always means the file has been flagged as having higher value than what they're offering. The friendly tone is a strategy. They want to close it before she gets a diagnosis on that shoulder. Please don't let her sign anything until she's seen a specialist and has a clear picture of what's actually going on.
brave-seal-49717h ago
Overhead reaching pain after a shoulder impact can be a lot of things — rotator cuff irritation, labral issues, AC joint problems. Some of those resolve on their own, some don't. Six weeks out and still symptomatic is worth a proper ortho or sports medicine eval, not just urgent care. She really should know what she's dealing with medically before any settlement conversation. Treatment for something like a partial rotator cuff tear can add up quickly.
- curious-swift-79817h ago
  A few things worth knowing: most states allow a reasonable amount of time to settle a claim, and there's no rule that says she has to respond to an offer quickly. She can (and probably should) tell the adjuster she's still treating and will be in touch when she has a complete picture of her medical status. Also — any offer she receives should be in writing. Don't let anything important happen over a phone call only. Keep records of every contact.
swift-bison-85517h ago
I was in almost the exact same situation a couple years ago — clear liability, adjuster was super nice, offered me a number pretty quickly. I took it because I was stressed and wanted it over. Six months later I was still in PT and wishing I had waited. I'm not saying your daughter's situation will go the same way, but the shoulder thing would have me pumping the brakes hard.
mellow-bison-79117h ago
Not legal advice, but I'd strongly encourage her to at least have a free consultation with a personal injury attorney before accepting anything. Most PI attorneys work on contingency so there's no upfront cost. An attorney can also send a letter of representation that gets the adjuster to stop calling her directly, which removes a lot of that pressure. The shoulder symptom alone — undiagnosed — is a reason to pause.
swift-hare-53017h ago
You're a good parent for paying attention to this. Your instinct that it's moving too fast sounds right to me. She's 22, still hurting, and being asked to permanently close a legal claim. That's a big deal. Tell her to slow down — the money will still be there once she actually knows what's wrong with her shoulder.
steady-wren-15517h ago
Simple rule: never settle a personal injury claim while you're still symptomatic. Full stop. Get the shoulder diagnosed first. If it's nothing, she can settle then. If it requires treatment, she'll know the actual cost. Signing now is gambling with her own health.