When you have been injured in an accident caused by another party’s negligence, you are right to believe that you should be compensated for all of your damages. Settlements are extremely common resolutions to many injury claims because insurance companies are often reluctant to pay the high costs of taking cases to trial.
Insurers do not easily supply people with what they are entitled to, and most insurance companies will do whatever they can to minimize the amount that they pay you. You must be extremely cautious in any dealings you have with an insurer because agents for these companies are specifically trained to try and divulge damaging information from victims that lessens the amounts they are able to recover.
Our firm will be able to ensure that you receive a just settlement that truly covers all of your past, present, and future expenses. Better yet, most lawyers handle these cases on a contingency fee basis, so you will not have to pay anything until you obtain a financial award.
Get yourself legal representation
Some people are tempted to believe that they can handle settlement negotiations on their own, but insurers know how to exploit individuals representing themselves. Many people will speak too openly about their cases and risk providing statements that are actually used against them.
You should be quick to find yourself an experienced personal injury attorney who can deal with an insurance company for you and speak to the insurer on your behalf so you need not worry about saying anything that jeopardizes your case. Wapner Newman Attorneys at Law has been getting justice for our clients for more than four decades. A lawyer will help not just with settlement negotiations, but they can also assist you with a number of other aspects relating to your recovery. For example, an attorney could be able to obtain a medal lien if you are having difficulty paying bills for continuing medical care, and the lien will delay payment until you obtain a settlement or a jury award.
Many settlements are based on the types of damages that people would be seeking to recover if they filed lawsuits. Juries typically award what are referred to as compensatory damages, and this is usually some combination of economic damages and noneconomic damages. Economic damages refer to tangible losses that can be calculated and proven. Noneconomic damages are far more subjective and do not have quantifiable values. Common kinds of economic damages include past and future medical bills, lost wages, and property damage. Noneconomic damages, on the other hand, might be awarded for pain and suffering, emotional distress, or loss of consortium. Lawyers often total all hard costs of economic damages and then multiply this figure by two to five or more to determine noneconomic damages. Whereas economic damages are difficult for an insurance company to dispute, the noneconomic damages aspect can often be the reason that settlement negotiations may take some time. The nature of a victim’s injuries often plays a critical role in determining the value of a settlement, as insurers become more willing to pay people with severe injuries that they know may shock a jury. Insurers are becoming less willing to pay for what they view as minor injuries.
Determining economic damages
Medical expenses often account for a significant amount of economic damages, so it is important for a victim to ensure that every single bill they have paid is accounted for. You should include all bills you received, even those that were paid by your health insurance provider.
You should be especially mindful of certain medical bills that are commonly forgotten or overlooked. These may include medical tests such as computerized tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tests, and x-rays.
Emergency room treatment could result in two bills, one from a hospital and another from a treating physician. Additionally, many kinds of medical equipment people receive, such as crutches or wheelchairs, could be paid by insurers but still have bills.
Justifying noneconomic damages
Noneconomic damages will always be the most difficult aspect of an injury claim to get an insurance company to accept, so you need to make your case as to why you are deserving of these awards. This will be true not only when negotiating a settlement, but also at trial should your case reach that stage.
You can often help prove your case with thorough medical records that clearly lay out the true nature of your injuries. You should focus on all of the ways that your injuries affect aspects of your daily life.
People need to have realistic expectations about their possible settlement, as seeking too much money can lead to an insurer simply offering you nothing. On the other hand, you also should not undervalue your claim.
Chances are very good that an insurance company could offer you a lump sum settlement to try and resolve your case, usually before you have even had the chance to seek legal representation. Most initial settlement offers are only a fraction of what people are entitled to, and you need to understand that accepting one of these offers could lead to you getting an amount that is not enough to cover all of your expenses and all future bills you incur will have to be paid out of your own pocket.
You want to have a lawyer handling your settlement negotiations because they are going to have a far better understanding of what the true value of your case is. You should not allow a claims adjuster for an insurer to tell you how much your kind of injury claim usually settles for, as your case could very well have unique factors that justify higher awards.
Common factors in settlement negotiations
The severity of your injuries is but one factor in settlement negotiations. Most cases will involve consideration of many other factors.
- Defendant’s Liability – A party that was clearly at fault for causing injuries will be much more likely to settle than a defendant who may contest a liability claim.
- Location – Where you were hurt and where a court case would be filed can be an important factor, as jurisdictions with histories of awarding larger amounts can give insurers additional reasons to settle.
- Contributory Negligence – A victim’s degree of fault in their accident can also impact settlement negotiations. Five states use a contributory negligence system that prohibits people from filing lawsuits if they contributed in any way to their accidents, a dozen states have pure comparative fault systems that allow people to file lawsuits regardless of their percentage of negligence, and all other states have some kind of modified comparative fault system that usually prohibits actions when a person was 50 percent or more at fault. Many states also allow damages to be reduced by the victim’s percentage of negligence.
Settling soft tissue injury claims
Soft tissue injuries are incredibly common, but also incredibly difficult to recover fair compensation for. Such injuries can often involve significant pain for a victim, but they are not as visible and apparent as other more serious injuries. As a result, insurance companies frequently try to resolve soft tissue injuries for much less than what people need and deserve. It will again be important for a victim to back their case with solid medical evidence, which an attorney will be able to help procure.
Challenging injury claims
The insurance company is more likely to try and deny or limit compensation in multiple scenarios. One of the most common accidents to recover fair and full compensation for being low-impact car accidents that do not result in significant damage to vehicles.
Another common reason insurance companies will seek reduced settlement amounts is when a victim has a history of prior similar injuries or certain pre-existing conditions. Long-term treatment that is viewed as excessive can also be problematic.
Contact an experienced attorney
People involved in less serious accidents that did not cause major injuries may be able to handle settlement negotiations on their own, but anybody who is facing long terms of care will want to ensure they retain legal counsel. A lawyer is going to be able to get you a just settlement to your case, and they can file a lawsuit when the insurance company is not willing to pay for what is right.
Personal injury settlements involve a complete consideration of all of the facts relating to your case, and it will be important for you to have an attorney who will ensure that everything is factored into your settlement offer. You deserve to get an amount that will truly provide for all costs you have incurred or will incur.
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