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Filing A Personal Injury Lawsuit
filing personal injury lawsuits, implications of personal injury lawsuits, personal injury lawsuits
Accidents are commonplace wherever in the country you hail from. However, if you’re suffering from a loss caused by the carelessness of another, you have the ability to legally dispute damage costs. Though well within your rights, the compensation you receive may vary depending on the completeness of the information provided and whether or not these facts can be corroborated. If you’re reaching out to a personal injury lawyer, here are a few things to take note of.
Prioritize Medical Attention
Regardless of whether you’re intending to contest personally shouldering medical bills due to injuries caused by a third-party, it’s imperative that you attend to your injuries first. Seek immediate medical attention first—your medical records can eventually be leveraged by a lawyer to determine a potential settlement. Without medical attention, the lack of credible documentation can affect your ability to receive compensation.
File a Police Report
Secondary to seeking medical attention is providing law enforcement with a detailed and factual account of the incident. Provide them with the names and contact information of all persons involved. This makes your case indisputable and a useful piece of information for deciding parties.
Avoid Accusatory Statements
Though in theory you could point a finger at an obvious perpetrator or claim responsibility for an accident altogether, you’re under no legal obligation to do so. When discussing with first responders, be sure to relay facts and refrain from discussing fault.
Keep Track of Injury-Related Expenses
In Florida, expenses related to your injuries count as a form of damages, which may include:
- Medical bills
- Insurance records
- Bills for property damage
- Medical diagnosis statements
Keeping track of this can result in a positive outcome for your final compensation.
Difference Between A Personal Injury Claim and Personal Injury Lawsuit
If you’ve suffered injuries in a car accident due to someone else’s negligence, you may need to consider filing a personal injury claim. Even though most people often mistake the terms of personal injury claim and lawsuit for each other, they both involve different legal processes.
In order to move forward with your claim or lawsuit in the right way, you need to understand which of these come first and what they entail. It’s advisable to seek help from a personal injury attorney to understand your rights and get fair compensation for the damages.
Filing a Personal Injury Claim
After you’ve been injured in an unfortunate incident, one of the first things you need to do is file a personal injury claim against the negligent party. This claim is basically a formal request where you ask the other party’s insurance company to provide coverage for the damages you’ve suffered.
Once a claim is made, an insurance adjuster will carry out an investigation to determine the following factors:
- Is their client responsible for the incident?
- Are the injuries caused a direct result of the incident?
- Are there any future damages that could be suffered by the victim as a result of their injuries?
The investigation may include collecting statements from witnesses, reviewing your medical reports and expenses, taking pictures of the scene of the accident, and evaluating all kinds of evidence you’ve provided during the claims process.
Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit
If you’re not able to reach a settlement with the negligent party’s insurance company, your attorney may advise you to file a personal injury lawsuit against the defendant in civil court. A lawsuit will allow you to seek compensation for your damages through a complicated legal process.
You’ll need to prove the at-fault party’s negligence and that your injuries and losses were caused by the incident. A personal injury lawsuit can take several months to settle and involves many stages, including filing, discovery process, trial phase and completion of trial.
Bottom Line of Personal Injury Lawsuit
It’s essential for you to know all the options that are available to you when you’re seeking compensation for the damages you’ve suffered. You shouldn’t take any of your injuries lightly and make sure you’ve hired an experienced attorney who is determined to help you recover maximum compensation for your medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering.
Implications of Personal Injury Lawsuits
Be Wary of Speaking With Insurance Agents
Insurance companies are a necessary component when it comes to resolving a personal injury case. However, they can easily complicate the process—so leave the talking to your personal injury lawyer.
Carefully Read What You Sign
Don’t sign documents you barely understand. If you’re in need of a clearer understanding regarding documents that require your signature, contact your lawyer first. Anyway, you don’t want to accidentally release the other party from liability or mind find out that the contract presented to you isn’t worth signing at all.
Have a Good Idea of Your Filing Deadlines
As a rule of thumb, you’ll want to file your paperwork as soon as possible after the accident occurs. Injury lawsuits fall under a statute of limitations that lasts only up to two years. Even so, it can be difficult to prove your injuries after that amount of time and may have trouble remembering the exact details of the incident, making it even more difficult to verify facts.
3 Mistakes To Avoid When Filing A Personal Injury Lawsuit
If you’re a victim of personal injury, you need to act quickly and fight for your right to compensation for your losses. But you must remember that you shouldn’t take a personal injury claim lightly.
You need to pay attention to the minute details and get legal help to increase your chances of recovering a fair compensation amount. If you fail to do so, you’ll end up significantly hurting your case and receiving a low settlement offer.
Let’s take a look at three mistakes you should avoid at all costs when you’re filing a personal injury claim.
1. Waiting Too Long to File the Claim
You must not wait too long before filing your personal injury claim. The statute of limitations states that the period of time for filing the lawsuit starts when the plaintiff gets injured or discovers their injuries. The time limit may vary according to your state and the type of injury you’ve suffered.
2. Exaggerating the Severity of Your Injuries
One of the worst mistakes you can make when you’re filing for a personal injury claim is to misrepresent your injuries in order to get a higher compensation. This will only cause more problems for you and may even become an obstacle in your claim recovery.
It’s advisable to consult a medical professional and get their opinion about the severity of your injury. They’ll give you a clear picture and help you avoid making any false claims against the defendant.
3. Not Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney
If you’ve suffered injuries, you may want to recover as quickly as possible and not take any legal actions against the person who’s responsible for your injuries. This can be a huge mistake as you may end up paying a lot more for the damages you’ve experienced.
Get in touch with a legal professional and seek their advice on how to increase your chances of winning a personal injury lawsuit. Your attorney will fight for your case and make sure you get fair compensation for your losses.
Bottom Line of Avoiding Personal Injury Lawsuit Mistakes
Keep these mistakes in mind to avoid hurting your chances of winning your personal injury case. Act quickly, get the opinion of a medical professional, and seek legal advice to make sure you get the compensation you’re entitled to.
An experienced personal injury attorney will make sure you get the settlement you deserve and take care of the legalities so you can focus on your recovery.
Hiring A Lawyer To File A Personal Injury Lawsuit
Though some accidents are mild, others can impact your lifestyle permanently. If it so happens that your injury was caused by recklessness or negligence by a third-party, you’re well within the rights to serve an injury lawsuit that equips you with the compensation you deserve for medical care and rehabilitation.
At Shiner Law Group, we fight vigorously for Floridians who have injured themselves during damaging finances. With a hands-on and personalized approach, we can represent your case with your best interests in mind.
