Be ready to play hardball.

That is what three Connecticut plaintiffs lawyers say it takes to negotiate with insurance companies and adjusters, especially during court shutdowns and delays amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Personal injury lawyers say the health pandemic has spawn new negotiation tactics from the insurance industry, which they say relies on delays to frustrate plaintiffs who are often anxious about receiving money they believe they are due.

Insurance attorneys and representatives, though, say such accusations aimed at them are unfair. They say they're bound by law to settle claims fairly for all involved, and have an obligation to do right by their policyholders.

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'Nasty, Nasty Jerks': Plaintiffs Lawyers Claim Insurers Taking Advantage of COVID-19-Related Delays

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Understand the pressure — on the opposition

Andrew Garza, co-owner of Connecticut Trial Firm in Glastonbury, advises plaintiffs to understand how the opposing side operates. Garza once represented insurance companies in personal injury and medical malpractice cases, but now he goes up against them as a plaintiffs lawyer. He has litigated multiple personal injury cases, including one that settled for $550,000 in September after his client's legs were crushed in a vehicle pileup.

Garza said insurance attorneys are "trained to repeat and persuade."

"It's not personal to them," he said. "It's just a number to them."

That's why plaintiffs need to provide compelling reasons to increase their settlement offers.

"A lot of plaintiffs attorneys do not understand the pressures of insurance adjusters," Garza said. "Insurance adjusters are frequently audited. At the end of the day, you need a good reason for the adjuster to stick their neck out."

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Forget peripherals

Don't get distracted by fights about peripheral issues, which Garza said defense counsel might raise in an attempt to shift jurors' attention.

"A lot of insurance companies like to muddy the waters during trial, and the best thing you can do is to have a clear vision on how to try the case; how to litigate; and to block out the noise." Garza said. "You must have a story and keep to it and not get entangled with fights with the insurance carrier."

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Consider metrics

Danbury attorney Alan Barry and Michael D'Amico, a partner with D'Amico & Pettinichi in Watertown, say there's another important consideration for plaintiffs to remember: Insurance companies ply their trade with numbers via computers.

They advise that insurers know the attorneys they are up against and know which attorneys are prone to settle, rather than file a suit and go to court.

Garza agrees.

"When people settle cases presuit without litigating, that goes into the insurance companies computer," Garza said. "They know the background of a particular lawyer and whether you are apt to litigate or settle and they can try and use that against you. They will wait you out and tell you they will never pay the policy, but, oftentimes, they will. You just need to be patient."

In the meantime, D'Amico advises plaintiffs to reject low settlement offers, despite court closures and anxiety about the coronavirus.

He said, "The day of reckoning will come."

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