Whats the Process of Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
A personal injury happens when neglect causes another person to sustain injuries. The most common types of personal injuries are dog bites, car accidents, workplace incidents, slips and falls, medical malpractice, and workplace accidents. Personal injury cases are different from other types of accidents because they involve neglect that causes an injury to another person.
For example, a car crash victim who suffers because someone ignored traffic signals or drank while driving can file a personal injury suit. These are some steps in addition to getting legal help if you ever experience a personal injury through a car accident.
Have Your Vehicle Towed
The first step before you seek legal help is to have your vehicle removed by a tower. It will most likely need extensive bodywork and mechanical replacement. You can find an emergency tower using a search engine or telephone book, and the provider can come out to remove your vehicle relatively quickly.
However, you need to do a few things before you contact the tower. Call the police so they can come and make an injury report and assess the accident scene. Their report will give you the documentation you’ll need when it comes time to seek legal help. Ensure that your passengers are safe and gather any evidence you have regarding the incident. You will need these things later on in the process.
You’ll need someone to take you home after the ordeal. Thus, you’ll need to call a family member or friend to inform them about the incident and request their assistance. Once you’ve gotten the first step taken care of, you can move on to the next step, which is taking care of yourself.
Seek Medical Attention for Your Injuries
Many people don’t realize the extent of their injuries when they get into a car accident. Because of that, they foolishly go about their days after a massive incident just because they don’t feel any pain shortly after it. Unfortunately, some of those people have a hard time proving that their injuries are related to car accidents when seeking compensation later. Furthermore, some accident victims get worse and even die because of internal damage no one addressed.
Adrenaline is often present in a person’s system after a traumatic event like a car accident. The adrenaline gives victims a temporary feeling of wellness and extra strength that doesn’t last long. The emotional and physical pain of an accident appears in its worst form after the adrenaline wears off, and many victims need emergency care when that happens.
The best thing you can do for yourself if you get into a car accident is to visit a hospital, doctor, or medical specialist. That person or facility can run the necessary tests to see how severe your injuries are. He or she will also create a report with diagnoses, prescriptions, and treatment plans. You will need to follow all the doctor’s recommendations, up to and including getting rehabilitation therapy or physical therapy.
The good thing about a personal injury case is that it frequently compensates accident victims for the rehab therapy expenses. These lawsuits also cover hospital bills, lost wages, medication, household bills, and more. Settlements can be much higher if the level of the defendant’s neglect is worse than usual and the court wants to deter that person from causing someone else pain.
Contact Your Car Insurance
You will need to tell your car insurance provider as soon as you get a moment to do so. They will need to gather information about your incident so they can assess it to see if they can approve your claim. You can file using the telephone number listed on your card, or you can access the company’s online resources to do it.
The amount of money you will have to pay versus what they will pay depends on your specific policy. Typically, when someone gets a car insurance quote, they answer questions about the coverage and add-ons they desire. They also choose deductibles and coverage levels for comprehensive and collision coverage.
The insurance company must look into the incident to determine who is at fault and decide on the claim. They may choose to help you get your vehicle fixed. You will have to pay a deductible before your insurance company takes over and contributes to fixing your car. Your deductible can be anything from $0 to $2,500 or more. The insurance company will help you find a reputable service provider to restore your vehicle to its pre-incident condition. If, for some reason, the insurance company declines your claim, you will need to seek legal help from an experienced attorney.
Consult a Personal Injury Lawyer
You will need to obtain legal help to determine if your case qualifies for personal injury compensation. A personal injury lawyer can help you with that. Most personal injury attorneys offer prospective clients a free consultation and a contingency representation program, which means that he or they will represent you in your case and then take the fees from any settlement you receive.
In other words, you will only have to pay something to your attorney once you win your case. The fees vary for this type of arrangement. They can be as small as 25% of the settlement up to 40%.
It’s advisable to compare attorneys before you go in to see a lawyer for your case. You’ll need to look at each prospective attorney’s experience level, client ratings, educational background, and case statistics. The goal is to find someone who is reasonable in price, competent in the services they provide, and passionate about helping clients get the compensation they deserve. I suggest visiting at least three attorneys before making a decision.
The consultation usually last about a half-hour. You will explain the events leading up to your incident and show the lawyer any relevant paperwork. These are the items that may be useful in your case:
Hospital Bills
A personal injury suit can gain your compensatory damages. Those are funds that repay you for your medical expenses. Taking copies of your bills will help the lawyer determine how much to ask for in your settlement. Thus, you should take your discharge papers and any prescriptions the doctor filled out for you to take care of yourself.
Treatment Plans and Bills
Your doctor will likely recommend an effective treatment plan, whether physical therapy, rest from work, or something else. You can receive generous compensation for any expenses related to your post-accident care.
Incident Reports
Any attorney will need to prove several things to get a favorable ruling on a personal injury case. He or she will need to show that you are indeed injured, you suffered financial damage because of the injury, and the other party involved in the accident was neglectful in some way. Taking the incident reports will help solidify the neglect if the police stated there seemed to be such neglect.
Witness Statements
Any witness statements you can bring will help your case move along positively. The court will have insight into what happened, and the attorney will have a much better position when trying to receive a settlement on your behalf.
Car Repair Bills
You will need to show the attorney your car repair bills because they will help add figures to the settlement amount. If the lawyer takes your case, he or she will include your auto repair expenses in the total amount requested for compensation. Therefore, it’s in your best interest to take any evidence of a financial loss with you when you seek legal help.
Proof of Missed Work
You can also take paperwork that proves you missed work because of the accident. The proof may be in the form of doctor’s notes, timesheets, or other information that shows you missed work.
Eviction Notices or Delinquencies
You should also bring any eviction notices or delinquent notes from your bills, credit cards, and other accounts. The more losses you suffer, the more you will be entitled to when it comes time to receive compensation.
File a Personal Injury Claim
After your consultation, your personal injury attorneys will let you know if your case sounds like an easy win. They will offer to represent you if they can win your case. You will then have to decide whether to file a lawsuit through them. Hiring an attorney for any legal matter makes the process 100 times easier. Attorneys can file all the necessary and relevant documents and ensure everything is completed as it should be for a successful outcome.
They can also negotiate with other parties if necessary. For example, some attorneys will try to negotiate with the other party in a personal injury case to see if they can get that party to agree to an out-of-court settlement. A positive outcome can offer many benefits to you. First, you won’t have to wait for months or years for the case to be resolved. Secondly, you can get the money you deserve sooner and possibly save your home and catch up with your debts. Some offending parties agree to out-of-court settlements to avoid bringing the matter into the public eye.
Others know that they have wronged the plaintiff, and thus, they agree to an out-of-court settlement to avoid having to pay a massive settlement. They may offer a decent amount of money, but it might be less than what you would get if the case has to proceed in its entirety. Still, you can accept it if you feel it’s enough to take care of your obligations and catch up on the bills.
Your attorney can also fight for you if the other party doesn’t cooperate and decides to let the case proceed to full term. Your lawyer will then speak and act on your behalf and work hard to prove that the other party acted neglectfully and that you received an injury as a result. In a car accident, it may not be challenging to prove neglect. The court will hold the other party accountable if the other driver ignored traffic rules or drank alcohol before the accident. Speeding or another violation is also a reason to hold the other driver guilty of neglect.
Once the court ruled that neglect was apparent, the next step was ruling on the settlement amount. Some states have a percentage of fault or comparative negligence rules. What that means is your settlement may be reduced if you are partially responsible for the incident.
For example, the judge might say that you were 20 percent responsible for the accident. A $100,00 settlement could reduce to $80,000 based on the percentage of the fault. The exact apportionment depends on the negotiations between the lawyer and the judge. That’s why it’s crucial that you hire legal help from a provider who wants to see you get the most out of this case.
File for Disability If Needed
You will need to take care of yourself in addition to getting good legal help and keeping your documents in order. Social Security Disability may be available to you if your doctor believes your injuries will hinder your livelihood for more than 12 months. Such is the case with paralyzing injuries or problems that will need years of therapy to resolve.
You may qualify for SSDI based on the amount of time you’ve been in the workforce and the number of credits you earned as you worked. It’s best to hire a Social Security Disability attorney before filing for this type of benefit, however. Many people get rejected the first time around because of a mishap with the paperwork or some issue with the doctor’s documentation. Hiring an attorney to assist you with this matter can ensure that you’ll receive the benefit you request.
SSDI lawyers tend to operate similarly to personal injury lawyers. They often allow people to receive their services on a contingency basis. In this case, the attorney will receive its fees once the SSA awards your disability claim.
The time your case takes to resolve can vary from several weeks to several years. It’s crucial that you take all the steps mentioned in this piece and seek reliable legal help to obtain the most favorable and efficient resolution. Take a breath and have faith that your issue will be resolved.