A lawyer can help by seeking compensation for medical expenses and other damages resulting from a neck injury. An attorney’s experience and training may allow them to build a stronger claim or lawsuit than you can on your own. Also, a lawyer will prevent any insurance company or other liable party from violating your rights.
You deserve nothing short of fair compensation for your injury and related damages. A Bloomfield personal injury attorney will identify the full cost of your neck injury and demand that liable parties pay for the harm they have caused.
Recognize Your Limitations When Dealing with a Neck Injury
The symptoms of a neck injury can be debilitating, and your symptoms may interfere with your ability to handle even the simplest tasks. Mayo Clinic notes that neck injuries can cause:
- Muscle tightness
- Muscle spasms
- Limited range of motion in the neck and head
- Severe pain
- Headaches
Such symptoms can prevent you from working, handling personal responsibilities, and living a full life. These symptoms may also make it difficult to deal with insurance companies, calculate your damages, and handle the other demands of your case.
Rather than risking significant psychological distress and possibly worsening your symptoms, you can let a neck injury lawyer help by leading your case.
Neck Injuries Often Result from Someone’s Negligence
You can hire an attorney if someone’s negligence caused your neck injury. Circumstances that may lead you to hire an attorney include:
- Car accidents, which are associated with neck injuries like whiplash
- Truck accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Slip and falls
- Trip and falls
- Physical attacks
- Animal attacks
If your injury resulted from any circumstance created by someone’s negligence, you should consider hiring an attorney. If you have questions about whether negligence played a role in your neck injury, an attorney will provide answers.
What You Risk if You Handle Your Own Neck Injury Claim
If you choose not to hire a lawyer, you may face:
- Preventable psychological distress: Nobody uses the word “therapeutic” to describe the claims process (or legal cases). The stress you might face if you handle your own claim or lawsuit can cause significant mental health deficits.
- Worsening of your neck injury symptoms: You may require continuous rest to heal from your neck injury. The demands of a neck injury claim or lawsuit may prevent you from resting and recovering as necessary, which may worsen your existing symptoms.
- Allegations that your injury is not as serious as you claim: Medical providers recommend a wide range of treatments for neck injuries, including several at-home approaches. If you do not adhere to your doctor’s recovery plan, liable parties may accuse you of worsening your injuries (and attempt to deny you compensation as a result).
- An unfavorable outcome to your case: Building a neck injury claim while injured can result in a sub-optimal case. A weak case can lead to a lesser financial recovery than you deserve.
You must consider these risks as you decide whether to hire a neck injury lawyer for your case.
What a Neck Injury Attorney Can Do for You
An attorney can handle every detail of your case, providing much-needed assistance during a pivotal time in your life. Your lawyer’s responsibilities will likely include:
Detailing Your Neck Injury (and Related Medical Services)
The details of your injury will be critical to your case. Your attorney will:
- Be in close contact with the doctors providing your care
- Gather details about the specific injury you’ve suffered and the severity of that injury
- Obtain X-rays and any other medical images that show your injuries
- Obtain written diagnoses of your injuries from your medical providers
- Secure copies of all of your medical bills
Liable parties will likely require such detailed documentation before providing fair compensation for your medical care.
Documenting Injury-Related Damages
In addition to the injuries themselves, your lawyer will document damages directly related to those injuries. Useful documentation may include:
- All relevant medical records
- Past income statements to prove lost income
- Expert testimony about pain and suffering
- Invoices related to your case
Your lawyer will also record your account of how the injury has caused you pain, suffering, and other types of hardship.
Securing Evidence of Liable Parties’ Negligence
Your attorney must be familiar with the circumstances that led to your neck injury. They will:
- Speak with witnesses who saw the harmful event
- Consult experts whose testimony may describe the cause of your injury
- Seek video footage of the harmful event
- Research previous instances where the negligent party has caused harm to victims like you
Neck injury lawyers have repeatable methods for investigating the causes of their client’s injuries. This experience will be useful as they construct your case for compensation.
Calculating the Value of Your Case
Your lawyer will assign a precise financial value to each of your damages. Totaling each of your damages will help your lawyer develop evidence-based settlement demands.
Negotiating a Settlement (with Insurers or Other Liable Parties)
It is unlikely that liable parties will volunteer the settlement you deserve. Your attorney will work to convince them to pay you fairly by:
- Showing irrefutable proof of liable parties’ negligence
- Presenting the documentation of your damages
- Explaining how they calculated their settlement demands
- Addressing any arguments that liable parties make against your case
Your attorney will have a valuable negotiating chip. If liable parties are unwilling to tender a fair settlement offer, your attorney can file a lawsuit and take the case to trial.
Filing a Lawsuit and Completing a Trial, if Necessary
If your attorney presents their most compelling arguments but liable parties still don’t want to pay a fair settlement, your attorney can file a lawsuit.
While most neck injury cases settle, your attorney will have the option of going to trial. They may complete the discovery process and continue to negotiate a settlement. However, a trial may be necessary if you never receive a fair settlement offer.
Your Attorney Will Demand Fair Compensation for Your Neck Injury
Your attorney’s sole focus will be obtaining a financial recovery that accounts for all of your damages. Each neck injury victim has different types of pain and varying symptoms, so your lawyer will consider your unique damages when evaluating your case.
Recoverable damages in a neck injury case can include:
Pain and Suffering
Neck injuries can cause debilitating pain and many types of pain and suffering, which may include:
- Acute pain
- Chronic pain, which is a serious concern for those with neck injuries
- Psychological distress
- Emotional anguish
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Lost quality of life
Neck pain can also make sleeping difficult, a factor your lawyer will account for during settlement calculations.
Medical Costs
Your attorney will seek compensation for:
- Diagnostic procedures, which may include both physical exams and diagnostic imaging
- Emergency transport and services
- Hospitalization
- Surgery
- Medications
- Rehabilitation services
- All other medical services related to your neck injury
Healthcare can be costly for those with serious neck injuries. Your attorney will work to ensure you pay nothing out of pocket for medical care.
Lost Income
Few jobs are conducive to those suffering from a neck injury. Your attorney will measure the professional cost of your injury, which may include:
- Lost income
- Lost chances to earn bonuses and promotions
- Diminished earning capacity
- Psychological stress from the insecurity of being unable to work
Your neck injury lawyer will evaluate your earning statements to determine the processional cost of your injury.
Psychological and Emotional Treatment
Those who need mental health treatment because of a neck injury should receive compensation for all related costs. Whether you need counseling, medications, or other treatments, your attorney will demand the appropriate compensation from liable parties.
Disability-Related Damages
When a neck injury proves to be a permanent disability, the victim may need:
- A wheelchair and other medical equipment
- Replacement of income through the remainder of their working years
- A specialized vehicle
- Disability-related home updates
- Long-term rehabilitation
- Compensation for the immense pain and suffering that disabilities cause
Whatever your unique circumstances are, an attorney will demand fair compensation from liable parties.
Who Will Cover the Cost of My Neck Injury?
You may seek compensation from those directly responsible for your injury or their insurer. Potential defendants in a neck injury case include:
- In car accident cases: Defendants may include a negligent driver, the manufacturer of a defective vehicle, or a municipality where dangerous road conditions caused a collision.
- In premises liability cases: The defendant in premises liability cases is most often a property owner.
- In physical assault cases: The individual who assaults someone may be financially responsible for damages. A property owner who failed to implement adequate security may be responsible for the cost of a neck injury.
Each neck injury comes with a backstory. Your attorney will learn the details of your injury and determine who is responsible for your damages.
My Neck Injury Has Placed Me Under Financial Pressure. Can I Afford a Lawyer?
You can afford to hire a neck injury attorney. This is the case because most neck injury lawyers use contingency fees.
When a law firm uses a contingency fee structure, it means:
- The law firm pays the entire cost of completing the client’s case
- The client pays no upfront or out-of-pocket fees or costs
- The law firm receives a fee only if the client receives a settlement or verdict
- The law firm has a direct financial incentive to win for the client
The contingency fee structure also means anyone with a neck injury can hire a lawyer. Attorneys know the financial stress of suffering a neck injury, and their fee structure makes their services accessible to all.
How to Evaluate Neck Injury Lawyers
When hiring a neck injury lawyer, you must determine which firms to entrust your case to. To make the right decision, evaluate prospective law firms for:
- Experience: You should consider whether a law firm has extensive experience representing clients with neck injuries. Such injuries can be complex and expensive, so having an experienced lawyer lead your case will be a credit. You can review the firm’s results and ask a representative about their experience with neck injury cases.
- Results: A law firm will often publish case results on its website. You can also ask about such results when completing a consultation. The more results a law firm has obtained in neck injury cases, the more confident you may be in their ability to win for you.
- Reputation: Former clients often leave reviews for law firms. These reviews can foreshadow your own experience with a law firm, so give them proper weight during your lawyer search.
- Culture fit: A law firm will provide information about their culture on their website. However, you should go a step further to determine a firm’s fit with you. Complete a free consultation and see if the firm’s representative is patient, informative, and representative of the type of law firm you want.
While you should not overthink your choice of a lawyer, make a measured choice. You will be glad that you did your research when the law firm is fighting for your financial recovery.
Should I Wait to Hire a Neck Injury Attorney?
You should not wait to hire a neck injury lawyer. Some reasons to make your decision as quickly as possible include:
- Lawsuit filing deadlines: Most states have deadlines for filing neck injury lawsuits. Waiting to hire a lawyer can mean missing the filing deadline for your case.
- The time-sensitive nature of evidence: Lawyers cannot wait to collect evidence, as some may not be available much longer. Your attorney will begin their investigation as soon as you hire them.
- The importance of protecting your rights: Your lawyer will shield you from any bad-faith attempts to undermine your case. You may rest easier once you hire a lawyer to protect and advise you.
Finding a lawyer will take time, so do not wait any longer to start your search. Find a capable law firm serving your area, hire them, and return focus to your recovery. Start by scheduling free consultations today.