11 Reasons You Need To Get A Lawyer For A Car Accident That Wasn’t Your Fault

1. You Can Focus on Your Health While We Focus on Your Case

After an accident, you should take time to heal from your injuries. You might be taking medication, attending follow-up appointments with your doctor, or attending physical or occupational therapy. Do not interrupt the healing process by also taking on the burden of a legal case.

Personal injury lawyers have the experience to handle your case while you work on getting back to the shape you were in before the car accident. They can help you avoid missing critical filing deadlines and making errors that hurt the strength of your claim.

2. Helps You Get Compensation You Deserve from Insurance Companies

Deciding to work with a personal injury lawyer who has extensive experience dealing with car accident claims can also have other benefits. Your accident attorney can deal directly with the at-fault driver’s insurance company or even your own insurance company so that you do not have to.

You should be able to focus on recovering from your injuries rather than haggling with an insurance provider. In addition, your personal injury lawyer will also make sure that you are not signing away your rights when going through the settlement process. Remember, insurance companies are more concerned about their bottom line than they are about your rights and injuries.

3. Filling Out an Insurance Claim Can Be Tricky

Car accidents and the types of injuries that might result can range from minor to severe. In some instances, you might be capable of handling your own personal injury claim after an accident. However, depending on the circumstances and the extent of your injuries, you may want to consider consulting with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

If you were involved in an accident that you believe was not your fault, you might benefit from hiring a no win no fee accident attorney even if your injuries are minor. In most instances, the at-fault driver’s insurance company will pay for medical expenses or the costs associated with the repair of your car. But what if the driver denies fault for the accident, the insurance company refuses to pay, or the driver does not even have insurance?  In any of these scenarios, a simple personal injury claim can quickly become complicated.

4. A Car Accident Lawyer Helps You Figure Out What Damages You are Eligible to Collect

To calculate your damages, you must show proof of your medical expenses as well as any other financial loss you suffered because of the accident. Your attorney can help you by requesting documentation and knowing the various kinds of expenses for which you can be compensated. From there, your car accident lawyer can compute an appropriate settlement amount.

5. Step in if You Are Blamed for the Accident

If you have been involved in a car accident with another vehicle, rear-ended, or were a passenger in an accident that was not your fault, the other driver might still try to place the blame on you. Specifically, the other driver might place blame on you by referring to statements you made regarding the crash.

For example, the other driver’s insurance adjuster may have spoken with you on the phone and asked you about what you could have done to prevent the crash. You may have agreed that there was more that you could have done to prevent the crash, and the insurance company might try to prevent you from receiving compensation.

A skilled car accident lawyer can prepare you for the ways insurance companies avoid payment and can speak with the insurance adjusters on your behalf. That way, you can be eligible for maximum compensation for your claim.

6. Intervene If Your Claim was denied

If you were injured in a car accident that was not your fault, you deserve compensation. An attorney can step in and help you if your claim is denied.

How can an insurance company try to deny your claim? Perhaps you missed some of the detailed requirements of the claim and you simply needed an experienced eye to look over the claim for you. Alternatively, the insurance company might have been wrong to deny your claim. If you were in a car accident and you have sustained injuries, no matter how minor, be sure to contact an experienced personal injury attorney to discuss your case as you may have a claim for your damages.

7. Negotiate with the Adjuster if Your Claim Is Undervalued

As we mentioned before, insurance adjusters attempt to reduce the amount the insurance company pays to someone who was injured in an accident. After all, that is how the insurance company makes a profit.

The insurance adjuster might try to poke holes in your claim, stating that you were at fault or partially at fault for the accident. If an insurance adjuster undervalues your claim, an attorney can negotiate with them and prove the damages you suffered. Your lawyer could handle all communications with the insurance adjuster so that you are not at risk of saying anything that could be interpreted as accepting fault for the accident.

8. Proving Negligence

To prove negligence, you must prove four basic elements of your case. The first two have to do with the other driver’s duty of care, and the second two relate to the injury you sustained. In a claim for negligence, you must show all of the following:

• The other driver owed you a duty of care.
• The other driver breached the standard of the duty of care.
• You suffered an injury for which you can receive compensation.
• The other driver caused your injury.

Drivers on the road owe each other a duty of care to prevent foreseeable harm. They follow the rules of the road and adjust for changing conditions, such as inclement weather or construction. When a driver fails to follow the rules, he or she has breached the duty of care.

Also, you must have suffered an injury for which you can legally receive compensation. If the other driver almost caused an accident but you were not injured, then you do not have a claim against the other driver. Finally, the other driver must have directly caused your injury.

If you do not correctly list the elements of negligence on your claim against the other driver, your claim could be dismissed. A personal injury lawyer has experience filing negligence claims and can help ensure that your claim will not be dismissed.

9. What If You’ve Suffered an Injury That You Can’t See?

Hiring an accident attorney to handle your claim can also prevent you from settling your case before you even know the full extent of your injuries. Many individuals who decide to negotiate their own claims end up settling too early before they have completely recovered from their car accident injuries. Do not make this mistake.

When you accept an offer and then later find out that you will have long-term problems or will need continuing treatment or therapy, you might discover that the initial settlement is not enough to cover expenses associated with your ongoing issues. After you settle your claim, you cannot re-open it and go back to ask for more compensation. Once you have settled, your claim is closed.

10. Collect information

A lawyer can help you gather the information you need to prove that you were not at fault for the accident and that you suffered an injury. You will already be a few steps ahead if you gathered evidence at the scene of the accident. At the accident scene, try to gather the contact information of the other driver or drivers, contact information of witnesses, pictures of the damage to the vehicles, pictures of your injury, and pictures of the accident site.

As your case progresses, keep track of your medical records and doctor’s appointments. Also, document all communication you have with the other driver and the insurance companies. A lawyer can investigate your claim and request any other information that would help you seek maximum compensation.

11. Financial awards you may receive

As the victim of a car accident, you are likely eligible for economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages cover the financial loss you experienced from the crash, such as medical bills, missed wages from time off work, and reduced earning capacity. Non-economic damages cover the physical and emotional loss you suffered because of the accident, such as pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life.

In extreme cases, courts also award punitive damages to victims in order to punish the person who caused the accident. Speak with an attorney today to find out what financial awards you could receive in your case.