Seeking Legal Advice After an Accident
When you are in a car accident, you may wonder if seeking legal advice is the right choice. Both major and minor accidents can have serious physical and financial consequences. In some cases, it is unclear who is responsible for the accident, and without an attorney, you may find yourself struggling to pay medical bills and trying to support your family without depending on a weekly paycheck. In addition, if you don’t file a claim before the statute of limitation runs out, your case might not even be heard. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why seeking legal advice is a good idea.
Investigating the Accident
Investigating an accident is not simple. In the first place, you need to know what clues to look for. Make no mistake, the insurance company will be scouring the scene of the crash for such clues, and you should be too as long as you are physically able to and have some experience.
An attorney will visit and examine the site, and look for telltale elements such as the presence of long skid marks, which can point to a speeding vehicle. On the other hand, the absence of skid marks might indicate that the driver did not attempt to stop, which often occurs when the motor vehicle operator was impaired or fell asleep. By not investigating the accident thoroughly, you may lose essential chances to prove liability.
Time Limits
When you’ve been hurt in an accident, you have a specific amount of time to file a claim. If the time is exceeded, your case will not be heard. This differs in various types of cases, but the average amount of time is two years from when the accident happened, or you became aware of the injuries. However, cases against a government entity have a different time schedule. In such instances, an administrative claim must be filed within six months. The government agency then has the option of denying or accepting the claim. The government has 45 days to do this. If the claim is denied, the claimant has six months to file a lawsuit. However, if the agency fails to respond to the administrative claim, you have two years to file a lawsuit. By seeking legal advice, you won’t miss these stringent timelines.
Seeking Legal Advice Helps With Insurers
An attorney can help you deal with insurance companies. It is fairly well-known that insurers want to pay an injured person the least amount they can. They will send an insurance adjuster to check all aspects of the accident from talking to repair shop owners to reviewing medical records. Talking to insurance adjusters can be difficult, particularly if you are injured. Your attorney can stand in your place, and answer any questions they may have.
It is essential that you not engage in long conversations with anyone connected with the accident from adjusters to witnesses or the other driver. This is because people have a tendency to apologize for the accident even when it is not their fault. In some cases, this can be construed as an admission of guilt and used against you later on.
Proving Liability
Liability based on negligence is the cornerstone of any car accident case. Without it, the case does not exist. Negligence is complex in that certain parameters must be present, and seeking legal advice is one way of ensuring that they are met. For instance, it must be shown that the person who caused the accident had a duty to engage in safe driving behavior and breached that responsibility. This can include failing to stop at a traffic light or driving drunk. But that is not where it ends. The person’s errant behavior must have resulted in the accident and caused harm. Finally, the injury must result in financial harm to the injured party. Without seeking legal advice, the injured party may find that they did not prove negligence at all, and the case may be denied on that basis alone.
Settlement Advice When You Seek Legal Advice
An attorney understands that you are hurting after an accident and possibly are awash in a sea of debt. So does the insurance company. That is why they may offer a low settlement shortly after the accident before you even have a chance to investigate or be treated. By seeking legal counsel your attorney will commonly advise you to wait until all facts about the accident have been uncovered, and you are maximally treated. The latter requirement means that no further treatment will improve your condition. If you settle before that happens, you will be unable to be compensated even if surgery is needed due to accident injuries.
Deciding the Course the Case Will Take
An injury lawyer will be able to tell you what direction is open to you. By giving you all your options, you will be able to make a well-informed decision. Seeking legal counsel will help you become an active participant in your case. The course may be affected by the type and severity of your injuries. By having access to medical experts and reviewing medical records, the attorney can provide insight. This knowledge will assist in ensuring all your medical costs are covered.
Negotiation
Many times, the initial settlement offer is too low. When you hire an attorney, he or she will negotiate with the other side to arrive at a fair compensation. Negotiating is an art, and without having the honed skills a personal injury lawyer does, it is possible to take the wrong track. Finding an attorney who is just as comfortable at the negotiation table as he or she is in the courtroom is vital.
Lincoln CA Auto Accident and Personal Injury Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Lincoln CA auto accident and personal injury lawyer. If you’ve been hurt in a car accident, you might need the help a seasoned attorney can provide. Reach out to me at (916) 921-6400 or (800) 404-5400 toll-free for free and friendly advice. If you would rather contact me online, go to our contact us page on AutoAccident.com, the website I built and own.
I’ve helped many residents of Lincoln CA with an assortment of cases such as all types of car accidents, traumatic brain injuries, pedestrian and bicycle crashes as well as wrongful deaths to obtain the compensation they deserve.
I am a long-standing member of the Million Dollar Advocates. We are a forum of trial attorneys who have won more than a million dollars for a client.
If you want to retain an attorney, you need to know about them and their practice. Learn about mine by reading client and peer reviews and how I resolved former cases on the following pages:
Seeking Legal Advice: Ed Smith
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