What insurers do —
and why it happens.

What happens

In some cases an insurer will make contact shortly after a claim is submitted — sometimes within days — to offer a quick settlement. The offer may be presented as straightforward, helpful, or time-limited. Offers made before a medical report are typically based on limited information. They will almost always be lower than what the full process produces.

Why it happens

An early offer closes the claim before a medical report exists. Without a report, there is no prognosis period — which means no tariff band and no objective basis for the settlement value. Closing a claim at this stage is financially advantageous for the insurer. The OIC process exists specifically to address this — it prohibits pre-medical offers to settle whiplash injuries.

What to be aware of

An early offer is not evidence that the figure is fair or that the process has been followed correctly. It is an attempt to close the claim at the lowest possible cost, at the point where the claimant has the least information. There is no obligation to accept it and no obligation to respond urgently. The process allows the claimant to continue.

What happens

After submitting a claim, many claimants experience weeks — sometimes months — of silence. No updates. No contact. Nothing to indicate whether the claim is progressing. Silence does not necessarily indicate a problem with the claim. But it can be used to create one.

Why it happens

An anxious claimant is more likely to accept a lower offer when one eventually arrives. Extended waiting reduces confidence in the process and increases the temptation to accept whatever is offered simply to end the uncertainty. This dynamic is well understood by those who work in claims.

There are also legitimate reasons for delays — the OIC process gives insurers 30 working days to respond on liability and the medical stage has its own timescales. Understanding these timescales makes it straightforward to distinguish between a normal wait and something that has gone outside the expected range.

What to be aware of

Silence is not a sign that a claim is failing. It is often simply the process taking its expected time. The OIC portal shows the current stage of the claim — checking that is a more reliable way of understanding where things stand than trying to interpret the absence of contact.

What happens

When a first offer arrives after the medical report is submitted, it is typically calculated by applying the tariff to the prognosis period and nothing else. Initial offers are often based on the tariff alone and may not include financial losses unless they are specifically raised. Travel costs, lost earnings, treatment costs — these are absent from many first offers even when they apply to the claim.

Why it happens

The first offer is generated from the minimum the report technically supports. An insurer who expects to pay tariff plus financial losses will often offer the tariff alone, on the basis that many claimants will accept it without querying whether anything is missing. The counter-offer mechanism exists precisely because first offers are not designed to be final.

What to be aware of

Before responding to a first offer, check what it includes. If travel costs, prescription costs, treatment costs, or lost earnings caused by the accident are not in the offer, they have not been included — not because they are not recoverable, but because they were not raised. The offer stage is the point to raise them.

What happens

Some communications in the claims process are written in ways that imply urgency — that an offer will lapse, that a response is required by a specific date, or that a delay will have consequences. Not all of these implications are accurate.

Why it happens

A claimant who feels time pressure is more likely to accept an offer without considering it properly. Urgency compresses thinking time and increases the probability of a quick decision. Applied to settlement offers, that means a faster close at a lower value.

What to be aware of

Check the OIC portal directly for any deadlines that apply to the claim. If the portal does not show a deadline, a communication that implies one is either referring to something that does not apply, or it is not accurate. There is never a requirement to respond faster than the process requires.

What happens

Some claimants receive phone calls, letters, or emails from the insurer about their claim separately from any communication on the OIC portal. This can happen at various stages — before liability has been decided, after a medical report is submitted, or following a counter-offer.

Why it happens

Direct contact is harder to document and easier to conduct informally. A phone conversation does not produce a record in the portal. Verbal discussions about settlement do not carry the same protections as portal-based exchanges. The portal is the formal record of the claim — contact outside it can sidestep that structure.

What to be aware of

If an insurer makes direct contact about settlement, there is no requirement to engage with it informally. It is reasonable to decline to discuss settlement outside the portal and to ask that any offer be submitted through the OIC process. That position is consistent with how the process is designed to work.

What happens

Rather than denying liability entirely, some insurers respond with a partial admission — acknowledging their policyholder was at fault but arguing the claimant also contributed to the accident or their own injuries. If contributory negligence is established, the settlement is reduced by the proportion attributed to the claimant.

Why it happens

A partial admission closes the liability dispute while reducing the settlement value. An allegation of contributory negligence — even an unsupported one — puts the claimant on the defensive and can make a reduced offer seem more acceptable. Common allegations include failure to wear a seatbelt, driving too close, or being distracted — regardless of whether there is supporting evidence.

What to be aware of

Claims involving disputed contributory negligence — particularly where the proportion alleged is significant — are situations where regulated legal advice is worth considering. The financial impact of an incorrect contributory negligence finding can be substantial and the dispute process involves arguments that go beyond what general guidance covers.