Your personal injury claim begins the moment you are involved in a car or truck accident. The first thing you need to do is dial 911 to have paramedics dispatched and the police come out to write a report. Your insurance company as well as your attorney will need that report.
Then you should head immediately to an emergency room to get checked out by a medical professional for any injuries, as well as a timeline of how long it’ll take your injuries to heal. If you undergo any surgeries or testing, such as x-rays or CAT scans, then those may be billed immediately to your health insurance. When you receive your medical bills it is important to hang onto them so you can be reimbursed later by the liable party’s insurance. More on that later.
Hire A Personal Injury Attorney
It is important to hire a personal injury attorney as soon as possible so they can help you get started on your personal injury case. There are many reasons why you should not delay. First, every state has a statute of limitations on personal injury cases. You will have to check what it is in your state. For example, in the state of New York, the statute of limitations is three years from the date of the accident. The statute of limitations is the time limit you have to bring forth a personal injury claim.
The other reason is that your medical bills will eventually pile up and can be sent to collections if they are unpaid. This is going to add more stress to your situation.
According to the website https://lawyers-for-injuries.com/, personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis which means that you do not pay unless your attorney wins for you. Their payment should come out of the award.
Discovery
In the discovery phase of personal injury law, your attorney has filed a lawsuit with the court, the other party has been notified, and now each party will send documents to each other and ask each other questions. During this phase, your attorney will also take depositions from the key witnesses in your case. This can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months or even a year.
This is why it is vital to get important documents to your personal injury attorney right away. Documents include but are not limited to:
- Incident reports
- The police report
- Photos from the scene of the crime accident
- Opinions of expert witnesses
Settlement
Hopefully, this is the last step in your personal injury claim. Usually, the insurance company gives a low offer that an attorney has to argue against. But an intrepid attorney is going to try to save their client from having to go through the stress of a trial as well as the delay in compensation. If the two parties cannot agree, however, then the case can go to trial.
Trial
If your case goes to trial then you need a strong attorney fighting for you. A trial can take months or years. This is why your attorney will fight hard for the settlement you deserve.