Any advice on signing an affidavit before settlement…?

Seeking Advice
1

hi everyone,
just wanted to see if anyone’s gone through this and what to expect or if i should talk to a lawyer.
so, i got into my first accident last year, rear-ended someone. everyone was fine, no ambulance came, i got a ticket and filed a claim with my insurance. i was at fault, accepted it and thought it was done.

but then, a few months later, i got a letter saying the other driver got a lawyer and wanted my policy limits released, which i did. my insurance told me they were getting treatment for whiplash and were seeing a chiropractor. so i just waited for all the bills to come in.

now, the other party is asking for my policy limit, and my insurance is reviewing it. but then i got another email from my insurance. they’re demanding my limit of 25k/50k, and their attorney also wants me to fill out an affidavit listing my assets as part of the demand. my insurance says it’s my choice to fill it out, and i could talk to a lawyer about it.

i don’t have a lot of liquid assets. i rent, have a high-mileage car, about 7k in savings, and 1k in an ira. i earn under 50k a year, and my biggest non-liquid asset is a 403b with over 100k. i’m concerned because the affidavit asks for my retirement account info.

their medical bills are over 100k, which worries me, especially since they went to an out-of-network doctor and got custom pain management. not sure if that info is relevant.

any advice on what to do? should i just fill it out and hope for the best or get a lawyer involved?

thanks to anyone who reads and offers some advice. definitely don’t want to make this mistake again.

thanks

2

$100k for whiplash… seriously?

3

since you have minimum limits, they may not expect to get much more, but the attorney is covering all bases. if you don’t fill it out, they might still settle, or they might push for more info by filing a lawsuit. it’s worth checking if your retirement funds are protected in your state. generally, i think 403(b) plans are federally protected, but not always iras.

hopefully, you increased your limits after this?

4

@Dimitri
thanks for the advice, yes, i’ve raised my limits since this happened. learned my lesson, it’s not worth the stress.
i looked into arizona laws, and it seems my 403b is safe under state law, but not sure about my ira.
do i still need to include my 403b on the affidavit if it’s protected?

5

@Uma
unfortunately, i can’t advise on that. the attorney probably already knows what’s protected, or they can check easily.

6

you should definitely consult a lawyer before answering anything.