Accident and injury lawyers will always tell you that you cannot afford to be without their services after a car accident. There is a reason for that. An attorney is crucial in your case as you seek financial compensation for your injuries. You may jeopardize your financial compensation chances if you do not have an attorney.
Even if you get a check from an insurance company, you will recover less than what an experienced car accident lawyer would have obtained.
Here are the many roles a car accident attorney will play in your case, from start to finish, beginning with your initial call. Each experience will be unique, though there is a general process that your lawyer will follow and work they complete for your benefit.
Learn About Your Case and Answer Questions
Injury attorneys offer free case evaluations for clients, which means you can have a professional assessment of your options at no cost. This is part of the contingency fee arrangement. You and the attorney can both decide whether the representation is the right fit during this consultation.
Your attorney will first take the time necessary to learn about your case. They will ask you questions about the key facts, trying to understand what they need to know and learn about your case. Because of how contingency fees work, a car accident attorney should only accept cases they believe will be successful.
When you first speak to a car accident attorney (and in conversations afterward), they should make themselves available to answer all your questions about what you want to know. Do not underestimate the importance of knowledge in your legal process. You cannot take on the insurance company when you are in the dark about what may happen.
Investigate Your Car Accident
Every car accident claim or lawsuit requires evidence showing that the other driver was at fault for the accident. Specifically, you must prove that the other driver was negligent. To prove negligence, you will need to show that the driver did something that will be considered unreasonable under the circumstances.
Proving negligence means that you need to demonstrate what the other driver did in your car accident. When proving your case, you must have some type of evidence that shows what the driver did. Otherwise, it ends up as your word against theirs, which is not enough to get financial compensation.
Your attorney will gather the necessary evidence to support your legal claim. They may speak to witnesses and compile physical evidence showing what happened in the accident. You may be unable to do these things on your own, especially when you do not know how to investigate an accident and suffer an injury.
Explain Your Legal Options
Not every case will use the same legal strategy to obtain financial compensation. Some cases begin with auto insurance claims against the at-fault driver, others require uninsured motorist claims, and some involve claims against multiple insurance companies. Some cases might need to go straight to litigation if the statute of limitations nears.
You have different options, and your lawyer will work with you to choose the most effective plan for your case. Much depends on the insurance company and how it reacts to your accident.
You need to be in a position to make decisions about your case. You cannot do that on your own or in a vacuum. You can only make effective decisions when you understand what is going on legally. Your attorney should explain what is happening in terms that you can understand, so you can be ready to make the necessary decisions when necessary.
Communicate With the Insurance Company
Dealing with the insurance company is never easy. As an individual claimant, you should not attempt to do it alone. The insurance company knows how to paint you into a corner, trapping you into saying something they are more than happy to use against you in the future.
Even if you do not look for an insurance company, they may come looking for you. They may try to pressure you into giving a statement about your accident, where they may take things out of context.
You should have someone communicating with the insurance company on your behalf, which is what an experienced attorney does. Your attorney keeps the insurance company from trying to speak to you. The insurance company must go through your attorney to speak to you. Any attorney will advise their client that it does no good to communicate with the insurance company.
However, communication with the insurance company during the legal process is often necessary. An attorney will handle the back-and-forth with the insurance company, whether it is negotiating with them over the phone or through letters. If the insurance company wants more information about your claim, your attorney will field the request and speak with them. Not having to speak with the insurance company puts you on safer legal grounds and helps relieve some of your stress.
Value Your Car Accident Claim
Before filing a claim, you must know what you are asking for from the insurance company or in a lawsuit. Your claim will be for a certain amount. You have the legal obligation to prove and support that amount. Otherwise, you cannot persuade a jury to award the damages, and an insurance company will disregard large parts of your claim.
There are numerous elements of your car accident claim damages.
They include:
- All costs related to your medical care and treatment
- The money that you were unable to earn from your job (including lost earnings potential)
- Pain and suffering for the physical discomfort and psychological challenges that you have endured because of your accident
- The loss of enjoyment of the life that you had before your car accident
You are legally entitled to be paid past and future damages. However, calculating these damages is often a challenge. Your claim cannot be speculative, but you must also estimate the future.
The average claimant has little idea what their case is worth. They may get an offer and think it is a windfall when the insurance company takes advantage of them because they do not know how much they can get.
A car accident lawyer reviews your medical and earnings records and works with the relevant professionals to understand your due dates. This calculation comes after time and effort.
Prepare and File the Claim
Your insurance claim or lawsuit complaint must look professional and be as comprehensive as possible with all the relevant information you have. The insurance company may not be persuaded to admit liability or eventually make you a reasonable settlement offer if you have presented a weak claim.
Your claim is your chance to make a first impression on the insurance company. Since a claim is an adversarial process, they are sizing up who is on the other side of the table. An experienced car accident attorney can prepare a substantive and persuasive claim that lets the insurance company know that you mean business.
The same thing goes for a lawsuit complaint, also called a pleading. This document lays out the facts of your case and why the court should order the defendant to pay you. The complaint must be enough to get your case through to the discovery phase, where you can request more information, and lawyers will hold depositions. If the complaint is not strong and does not allege adequate factual and legal grounds for compensation, the court may dismiss it entirely.
If you file a lawsuit, your lawyer will draft your complaint, laying out the facts as the attorney has investigated them. They will then file it with the court and serve it to the other party to begin the lawsuit.
Negotiate With the Insurance Company
The insurance company acts like any business when you have filed a claim. The ultimate settlement agreement you will reach with them is the end product of a lengthy negotiation. The insurance company gradually raises its offer over time.
No negotiator makes its best offer first. The insurance company will not do it, and neither will your attorney. Instead, you will exchange offers and counteroffers and gradually move closer together.
Your attorney knows how the insurance company works and how it views your settlement negotiation. They know that nearly all initial settlement offers are merely starting points for negotiation, not a serious attempt to settle your claim.
Negotiating with the insurance company takes skill and experience. The insurance company knows when it is up against a weak hand. At the same time, they may show more respect when they know they are dealing with a tough and experienced attorney.
Insurance companies know who the respected attorneys are because lawyers gain a reputation over time. The insurance company is more likely to negotiate reasonably when they deal with a strong attorney who can hold them accountable.
Protect Your Legal Rights
In a car accident case, you have certain legal rights. Your primary legal right is to financial compensation after someone else has done something that will injure you. It is this legal right that the insurance company wants to either take from you in full or in part.
The insurance company may do various things that can cross a line from their normal rough tactics to what can be considered illegal. Insurance companies have certain obligations in handling claims they cannot violate. If they do, you may file a lawsuit directly against the insurance company and obtain additional damages from them.
You need someone to protect you from the insurance company and their standard tactics that aim to withhold money from you. Insurance companies may not aggressively overreach as much when they know that you have a determined advocate whose job is to stand up for your legal rights against the insurance company.
You Need an Attorney for Your Car Accident Case
Car Accident Attorney, Phillip J. Barkett
Now that you know what car accident lawyers do, the question is whether you need one for your case. The answer is an unequivocal yes. All of the functions listed above can be difficult for the average person, without knowledge of the legal process, to perform on their own. The insurance company is waiting for you to make a mistake, so they can take advantage of it.
One of the biggest mistakes that they pounce on is when you try to represent yourself. Insurance companies make more money by taking advantage of self-represented claimants.
If you represent yourself in your car accident case, a penny saved is not a penny earned. In trying to save money, you will cost yourself far more. You may make a mistake that can cloud your picture for receiving any financial compensation because you can say the wrong thing or be unable to prove your case. You can cost yourself money by settling your case for less than it is worth because you do not know how much money you can get.
Then, you will also end up spending time and mental energy on the case you may not necessarily have. Dealing with the insurance company can be very stressful. This angst comes when you already have enough on your plate with your physical injuries and rehabilitation. Your attorney will handle the details of your case, helping lower your stress level during a difficult time.
Although hiring a lawyer does not guarantee a better result, it certainly puts you in a position to obtain one. In general, most car accident cases will settle, but that only tells part of the story. In some cases, your settlement is a significant victory for the insurance company because it saved money from what they otherwise should have owed you by settling your claim for less than it is worth.
When you hire an experienced attorney for your case, you get peace of mind from knowing that your attorney will keep you from settling your case for too little. You will know whether the insurance company has made you a reasonable settlement offer and that you can fight for more money if they try to shortchange you.