Lowball Offer Checklist: 10 Questions to Ask Before You Respond
Short answer: Before you answer a settlement offer, work through ten questions: whether it covers care you still need, all your lost income, what PIP already paid, who has a lien, pain and suffering, the policy limits and other coverage, any fault reduction, the real legal deadline, what the release gives up, and whether a lawyer should see it first. If you cannot answer most of them, you are not ready to say yes.
How to use this list
An offer from an insurance company is a single number. It does not come with a breakdown of what it includes or leaves out, and adjusters rarely volunteer one. The questions below are the ones worth working through before you respond. Keep your answers in writing, and ask the adjuster to put theirs in writing too.
1. Does it pay for care I have not had yet?
If you are still treating, or a doctor has mentioned injections, surgery or long-term therapy, ask whether the offer includes any of it. Most early offers are built from bills already received. Once you sign, later care is your problem. A written opinion from a treating provider about future treatment and its likely cost is the strongest way to get it counted.
2. Does it cover all of my lost income?
Utah PIP pays the lesser of $250 a week or 85% of lost gross income, for up to 52 weeks (Utah Code 31A-22-307). PIP never replaces all of your lost pay: it covers 85% at most, and once lost income passes about $294 a week, the $250 cap takes over. The difference, plus lost overtime, used vacation or sick leave, and reduced future earning ability, belongs in the liability claim. See lost wages after an accident.
3. How does it treat what PIP already paid?
Ask the adjuster whether the offer is meant to include medical bills your own PIP carrier already covered. Under Utah law, when the other driver is legally liable, that driver's insurer reimburses your PIP carrier for benefits it paid, with disputes decided by arbitration between the two insurers. There is no right of reimbursement between them if the liability carrier has tendered its policy limit (Utah Code 31A-22-309(6)). Those rules affect how much of the policy is really available to you, so the question is worth asking in writing.
4. Who has a claim against the money?
Health insurers, Medicare, Medicaid and some hospitals may have reimbursement rights or liens against a settlement. An offer that looks adequate can leave very little once those are paid. Get the lien amounts before you evaluate the offer, and remember that many of them can be negotiated. Our guide to medical liens after an accident walks through each type.
5. Is anything in it for pain and suffering, and why that amount?
Ask how much of the offer is meant for general damages: pain, limitations, and what the injury took from ordinary life. If the answer is "not much," ask why. In a car crash, general damages are available against the at-fault driver only if the injury meets Utah's threshold, such as a fracture, a permanent impairment based on objective findings, or medical expenses over $3,000 (Utah Code 31A-22-309(1)). If you meet it, an offer that barely exceeds your bills leaves that part of the claim unpaid. See pain and suffering damages in Utah.
6. What are the policy limits, and is there other coverage?
Ask the adjuster, in writing, what the limits are. Utah's minimum for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025 is $30,000 for bodily injury to one person (Utah Code 31A-22-304). If your losses clearly exceed the limits, the conversation is different: the question becomes whether the carrier will pay its limits, and what other coverage exists. Your own underinsured motorist coverage is stacked on top of the at-fault driver's liability coverage, not reduced by it (Utah Code 31A-22-305.3(3)(k)(ii)). See policy-limits demands and stacking insurance coverage.
7. Is the offer quietly discounted for fault?
Ask whether the carrier is claiming you share any of the blame. Under Utah's comparative fault statute, your recovery shrinks by your share of fault, and you recover nothing from a defendant whose fault does not exceed yours (Utah Code 78B-5-818). If an unstated fault percentage is buried in the number, you cannot answer it until you know what it is.
8. What is the real deadline?
An offer may say it expires in 10 or 14 days. That is the insurer's deadline, not the law's. The deadlines that actually end a claim are these:
| Type of claim | Time limit |
|---|---|
| Most injury claims | Suit within 4 years (78B-2-307(4)) |
| Wrongful death | Suit within 2 years (78B-2-304(3)) |
| Government vehicle, employee or property | Notice of claim within 1 year (63G-7-402) |
An offer can be withdrawn, so its expiration still matters. But a short fuse on an offer is not a reason to accept one you have not evaluated. Our statute of limitations guide has more detail.
9. What exactly does the release give up?
Every settlement is paid in exchange for a signed release. Read it before you sign, and check three things: who is being released (only the driver and their insurer, or a wider list), whether it covers injuries you do not know about yet, and whether it could affect a claim under your own policy. If the release names people or companies you did not expect, stop and ask why. A signed release generally cannot be undone because you later learn the injury was worse.
10. Should a lawyer look at this first?
Not every offer needs a lawyer. A minor injury that has fully healed, with bills paid and an offer that covers them plus something fair for the inconvenience, may be worth accepting. It is worth a lawyer's review when treatment is ongoing, when a doctor has mentioned future care, when your bills approach the policy limits, when fault is disputed, or when liens are involved. A consultation costs nothing, and you can still decide to handle the claim yourself.
A quick checklist to print
- Future care estimated in writing
- Lost income beyond PIP calculated
- PIP treatment of the offer confirmed
- Lien and reimbursement amounts in hand
- General damages explained
- Policy limits confirmed in writing; your own UIM checked
- Any fault percentage identified
- Legal deadline calendared
- Release read line by line
- Second look from a lawyer, if any of the above is uncertain
Common questions
Is it rude or risky to counter an offer?
No. A counteroffer is normal. The risk is countering without reasons, which gives the adjuster nothing to take back to a supervisor.
Can the insurer take the offer back?
Yes. An offer that has not been accepted can generally be withdrawn or changed. That is one more reason to evaluate it promptly rather than let it sit.
What if the offer equals the policy limits?
Then the questions shift to other coverage, especially your own underinsured motorist coverage, and to the release terms. See underinsured motorist claims.
What happens if I hire a lawyer after getting an offer?
At West Injury Law, once you sign, the firm handles all communication with the insurers, and an attorney approves every demand and settlement recommendation. Whether to accept any offer is still your decision. See how we negotiate with insurance companies and should you accept the first offer.
Talk to our legal team
Send us the offer and the release before you sign anything. Call (801) 921-5134 or contact us. You pay nothing up front, and no attorney fees unless we win.
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