A note on where this comes from: I built the Fast Track after watching the standard personal injury process produce acceptable results for insurance companies year after year. Their playbook exists because it works in their favor. I am not interested in playing a game designed to beat the people I represent.
Most personal injury firms use what I call the insurance company playbook. It is a methodical process focused on maximizing compensation by establishing liability, documenting damages, and leveraging the threat of litigation to counter insurance tactics. The strategy is logical. The problem is that it plays entirely on the insurance company’s preferred timeline, and that timeline is designed to work against you.
How the Standard Playbook Works
The conventional approach follows a predictable sequence:
Immediate Action
Gather police reports, scene photos, and witness statements. Identify all available insurance coverage. Evaluate the vehicle damage to establish force of impact.
Medical Treatment and Documentation
Link injuries directly to the accident through consistent treatment. Avoid gaps in care that adjusters can use to argue injuries were minor or unrelated. Collect every medical record, bill, and prognosis report to support pain and suffering damages.
The Demand Package
After maximum medical improvement, prepare a detailed demand letter outlining liability, itemizing all damages, and setting a settlement figure. Wait for the insurance company to respond.
Negotiation
Counter lowball offers. Threaten litigation. Use mediation. Reach a settlement. The process takes 12 to 24 months from accident to resolution, sometimes longer.
Each of these steps is reasonable. The problem is sequence and pace. By waiting for maximum medical improvement before demanding anything, the standard approach hands the insurance company 12 months of comfortable positioning. They are not under pressure. They are waiting.
How We Break That Pattern
VWSH uses the insurance company playbook as the foundation for building something faster and harder to resist. We do not give up critical aspects of your case to appease an adjuster. We do not take a position of asking for a settlement. We build a litigation file.
Our Fast Track approach front-loads the work that most firms defer. Liability is established early. Evidence is locked in immediately. The file is prepared not for a demand letter but for court. When the litigation file is ready, the at-fault carrier has 30 days to accept liability and pay the case at value. If they do not, we sue.
Insurance companies know the difference between a firm that is ready to litigate and one that is hoping to settle. When we say the file is going to court, we mean it. That changes the conversation, and the outcome.
What This Means for You
The Fast Track is not for every case. It requires early retention, the sooner you contact us, the more momentum we can build before the other side gets comfortable. It also requires a client who is willing to pursue fair value rather than accept a discount in exchange for speed.
If you want a firm that will stand up for you rather than broker a compromise, that is what we are built to do.
Done waiting for the insurance company to decide what you deserve?
Free consultation. No obligation. We will tell you exactly what your case is worth and how quickly we can force accountability. No fee unless we win.
Rob Ireland
Attorney · Vames Wang Sosa Hood
Rob Ireland is an attorney at Vames Wang Sosa Hood and the architect of the firm’s Fast Track litigation approach. He represents injured Oregonians who want a firm that will fight, not one that will wait.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Oregon law is subject to change. Statutory references are current as of the date of publication. Contact Vames Wang Sosa Hood for legal counsel specific to your situation.