Getting injured can affect you physically, emotionally, and financially. If someone else’s negligence has injured you, you do not need to suffer without assistance. You can seek compensation from the parties who caused your injuries through a personal injury claim. Though, without legal representation, you may struggle to acquire a fair and equitable settlement from them.
To recover the best settlement possible, you need a personal injury lawyer on your side. Without one, businesses, individuals, insurance companies, and other entities may work to discredit your injuries and offer a minimal settlement. This can leave you unable to pay your long-term medical expenses and prevent you from getting the money you need to cope with non-tangible damages.
Work with a personal injury lawyer to file your claim today to boost your chances of successfully claiming a settlement.
What Is Personal Injury Law?
Personal injury law is commonly known as tort law. These laws protect you in instances where your person or property is injured or harmed by someone else’s negligence. Personal injury laws allow you to file suit against a negligent party and fight for compensation for any losses you suffered.
Why File a Personal Injury Claim?
This is one of the first steps in recovering damages you have lost. By filing a personal injury claim, you open the door to opportunities to acquire compensation from the person who caused your injuries.
If you just use your health insurance to pay for medical care following the accident, you will still need to cover the out-of-pocket costs associated with treatment. Furthermore, many injuries cause the quality of life to be diminished, meaning your life will not be as enjoyable following your accident.
To get compensated for these and other losses, you need to file a personal injury claim. Doing so is beneficial because there is no other way to claim maximum compensation for your injuries. The at-fault party may offer you a settlement, but without legal representation, you are likely to only attract small payments that do not cover the full extent of your losses.
Speak to a personal injury lawyer today to find out why it is essential to file a claim if you sustained severe injuries in an accident. Do not trust the insurance companies to offer you a fair settlement. Instead, take matters into your own hands by acquiring legal representation.
Is Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer Worthwhile?
The incident that caused your injuries may have entirely altered your life. Even if the damage is only temporary, you deserve compensation for your losses.
Here's why you need a lawyer to take your case.
You may recover some form of compensation from the at-fault party without a lawyer, but the settlement will not be close to the total amount that you deserve. Hiring a lawyer mitigates this risk because an effective lawyer can calculate your total losses and pursue compensation that aligns with that number. Achieving this requires proving that the defendant caused your injuries and also showing that your injuries are as severe as you say.
To get this done, you will need substantial evidence proving your case. If you have never been involved in a lawsuit before, you may not even know what type of evidence to look for; but a lawyer does. With the right personal injury lawyer behind you, critical steps like collecting evidence, verifying injuries, and negotiating with defendants are no longer your responsibility. You can give your attorney complete control, allowing you to relax and focus on recovery as they fight the case on your behalf.
Are you still not sure that you need a lawyer to process your personal injury claim? If so, consider why you need a lawyer.
You Sustained Injuries In The Accident
If you suffered severe injuries in a car accident or any other accident, you have the right to file a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault party. Even if you only slipped in a store and fell, the property owner or other parties can be liable. A personal injury lawyer can help you find out who caused your injuries directly or indirectly, then pursue a legal claim against those parties.
With a personal injury lawyer working on your case, you have a more significant opportunity to get the maximum possible compensation from your claim. This is especially true if the accident caused disability, pain, suffering, or a catastrophic injury.
Someone else's negligence is to blame for the hurt you are feeling. Therefore, you need to take action to hold them accountable and get the funds you need to deal with the fallout from the accident. A lawyer can help you, so call one today.
You Do Not Know Who Is Liable For The Accident
Identifying liability is often one of the most complicated aspects of personal injury lawsuits. While it may seem like a store owner, driver, or property owner is responsible for your injuries; sometimes the legality is unclear. You are responsible for proving that you were not at fault for causing your injuries, which can be hard to do if the circumstances are unclear.
A personal injury law firm focuses on proving a negligent party caused their clients’ injuries. To do this, they gather substantial evidence, such as medical records, police reports, and eyewitness statements. With these pieces of evidence, they can build a case that clears your name and highlights the facts that point to a negligent party.
Hiring a lawyer when you know someone else was at fault for your injuries is the best route because personal injury lawyers have far more experience than you. Remember, if you cannot prove liability, you may not recover any compensation. Once the case is complete, it is unlikely that you can file again, so get it right the first time by hiring a lawyer.
Negotiation Is a Skill
Negotiation is a skill that you must develop through experience. If you have no experience negotiating before filing your claim, there is little chance that you can correctly state your claims and dictate evidence when negotiations with insurance companies begin. The insurance companies have access to veteran lawyers who know what they are doing, so someone with no legal experience will not stand a chance when confronted by them in negotiations.
To win the maximum possible settlement, you need experienced lawyers who will fight for your right to compensation. While you may think you can claim a fair settlement negotiating on your own, this is far from true.
The insurance companies or other defendants will always work to minimize their liability, meaning they will not willingly give you the most money possible. To get the ideal settlement, you need someone who knows how these negotiations work to present your case for you.
Do not give the insurance companies the advantage in your personal injury claim. Prepare yourself by hiring a lawyer to negotiate on your behalf. Without one, the responsible party can cheat you out of the money you actually deserve.
Lawyers Help Their Clients Claim More Money
The Insurance Research Council claims that personal injury settlements are usually 40 percent higher when victims seek representation from an attorney. This makes sense because lawyers tend to know how the legal process works, allowing them insight into the strategies they can implement to recover as much money as possible from the at-fault parties.
While a personal injury lawyer cannot guarantee you a larger settlement, the fact of the matter is that personal injury lawyers are more prepared to get the ideal outcome than you. You may think you are saving money by not hiring a lawyer, but you will leave money on the table. Sure, lawyers have fees you need to pay, but without them, you may recover far less anyway.
Injury Lawyers Should Not Collect Fees If You Do Not Win
A majority of personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis. This means they will not collect any money from you unless they win you a settlement. Through this system, lawyers give their clients the certainty that they are working hard to acquire the maximum possible settlement. If they aren’t, they will make less money.
An incentive system like this helps personal injury lawyers build trust with their clients. While any lawyer you choose should always put your best interests first, knowing that they need to do an excellent job to get paid should give clients like you more confidence in their selected attorneys.
If you want to know how much a contingency fee usually is, the numbers vary. Though, attorney's fees are generally a percentage of the final settlement or judgment awarded to the plaintiff. More complex cases may come with a higher contingency fee, though this is not always the case.
Through contingency-based legal services, you get the opportunity to enlist the aid of a lawyer without making any upfront payments. Doing so can eliminate a notable amount of stress, allowing you to stay focused on recovery following the accident.
Trials Are Complex
Sometimes it is impossible to reach a fair settlement through negotiations. When this happens, the next step is to take your claim to court. An attorney can make a motion to take your claim to court at this point, but if you do not have an attorney, you will need to litigate the case yourself.
Courtrooms are high-pressure environments, so it is unlikely that someone with no legal experience can effectively argue their case to a judge and jury. This is why representing yourself is a bad idea. Instead of taking the risk of failing in court, set yourself up for success by hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer.
Is a Personal Injury Lawyer Always Necessary?
Unless only your vehicle sustained damage, we suggest that you
always hire a lawyer to represent you.
Still, think deeply about the settlement an insurance company offers you in a property-damage only situation. If you think you can get more, hire a lawyer to build a stronger case. Schedule a free consultation for your case evaluation.
Do You Need a Lawyer for Personal Injury Claims?
In most cases, the answer is yes. Even if your first thought is, "I can handle this on my own," you need to consider what you risk when you choose not to work with a lawyer. The difference in compensation for people who do not work with lawyers is an average of 40 percent. That can be thousands, tens of thousands, or even millions of dollars.
Even if you think an initial settlement looks good at the moment, will you not be happier with something more significant? If so, get your claim assessed by a personal injury lawyer who will tell you exactly what your claim is worth.
Do not delay in contacting a personal injury lawyer, as the longer you wait, the less time is available for you to file a claim within the statute of limitations. Missing the deadline to file can lead to a court dismissing your case.
