When Do You Need A Structured Settlement Broker

By Steven Saunders

If you’ve been wronged in some way by another party, you may be having a conversation with a structured settlement broker soon. Whether you were injured in a car crash, hurt on the job, or harmed by a faulty product, you just might be receiving a structured settlement. A structured settlement is at its core a legal agreement in which an individual or organization settles financially with another party that has a claim against it. The responsible party makes structured payments to the claimant over a period of time, rather just a lump sum payment. But who exactly decides upon the amount of the settlement? Well, certainly neither side can make the decision, as they are both obviously biased. This is when a structured settlement broker is brought in.

Structured settlement brokers are unbiased, third-party individuals (often brought in by the party that is having the claim filed against it) that mediate between the two different parties in a settlement. Because structured settlement brokers offer nothing more than suggestions, the negotiations between the parties can transpire at any time before, during or after a trial. The structured settlement broker’s job is to determine what the needs of the claimant are and try to calculate what amount the claimant should be receiving, if anything. A lot of this is simply educated guesswork on the part of the broker.

Since looking into the future is difficult at best unless you have a crystal ball, settlement brokers simply have to do their best to calculate things like cost of living increases, future medical costs, pharmaceutical costs, and many other factors. Often, the exact drug or medical treatment that is necessary to treat certain injuries hasn’t even been invented yet. Professional brokers make it their business to try to prognosticate on all of these matters. Structured settlement brokers must therefore be highly educated in the cost of medical services and be able to forecast increases in the cost of living over the course of the structured settlement. Structured settlement brokerage is indeed a strange hybrid of art and science.

Conclusion

If you have been wronged or harmed in some way by someone else, whether it be an individual or organization, you may have a right to a structured settlement. Though don’t want to waste the court system’s precious time with frivolous lawsuits, you should also not act like everything is fine if you feel you have a legitimate case. The first thing you should do if you feel that your claim is legit is look around on the internet or at a local library and do some research. If you feel confident that you have a case, speak to an attorney. Most attorneys will be happy to help you decide on whether or not you have a claim and what your next step should be. If your claim is legitimate, a structured settlement broker will most likely be called in to help you settle your claim and allow you and the other party to get on with your lives.