Why do the claimant a favor?
Because if you do it right you'll be helping both the claimant AND your company. Structured settlements increase the value of your settlement offers substantially without increasing its cost.
While no one knows exactly how much money it will take to settle a particular claim (claimants themselves don't know), by making your offers in structured form, you are maximizing the value of every offer and reducing your risk of overpayment.
The ability to custom-craft the payment schedule, offer income guaranteed for life, and to name secondary beneficiaries adds still further value to your offers. Claimants have stated to us time and time again that it was the combination of security, tax benefits, and customized payment schedule that enabled them to accept settlement in a case they felt sure was headed to trial.
Before taking on the costs of actually proceeding to trial, it is well worth the effort—for both sides—to engage in meaningful discussion of actual payment schedules to meet real future needs.