Let's see if I can put it a different way to make it sink in:
YOU hold no cards. The insurance companies hold ALL the cards.
Just read your WHOLE policy if you don't believe that.
Refusing to do what they ask only hurts YOU; they couldn't care less.
If you drag it out long enough, their offer might go DOWN.
Hire a lawyer....sure, and pay him more than you will recover with a higher payout.....if it ends up being any higher.
You should not let them scam you but given the figures you have provided I don't think that they are. They are exercising their legal advantage.
Negotiating is one thing; being totally uncooperative is quite another.
You have virtually no power. That's just the way it is.
Deal with it.
