There’s a degree of safety and security we expect or assume as we move about our days, whether running errands, commuting, or simply getting a break from it all. Then, from out of nowhere, the negligence of others causes that sense of safety to evaporate. Perhaps it was a distracted driver not paying attention to the road, a product that failed to perform, or a danger left about on someone else’s property.
Whatever the cause, shock and confusion fill the void left by our feeling of security. Even more pressing is the need for medical care to recover from the injuries the accident may have caused. What should be simple—getting the medical treatment you require—is often a maze of questions with no clear path out. Maybe you’ve heard of hiring an attorney at times like these, but aren’t sure why or how they can help.
At Montlick, one of the most important services we provide to our clients is putting their minds at ease. From the first phone call, our attorneys go to work answering client questions and addressing concerns with empathy and respect. One of the most common questions regarding an injury settlement is “how much is my claim worth?” or said another way, “how will I be able to cover my expenses?” In this article, we’ll explore what the settlement process entails and how you can maximize your personal injury settlement with Montlick.
Understanding The Personal Injury Settlement Process
An unfortunate reality is that accidents and injuries occur just about every minute of every day across Georgia and the country. For example, there are over 350,000 car accidents on Georgia roads every year leading to injuries, insurance claims, and auto accident settlements. Given the sheer quantity of accidents and injuries, there’s no typical personal injury settlement. Why?
- Few Trials: Data on injury settlements are sparse in part because so few go to trial. The Bureau of Justice Statistics found that in large U.S. counties, only 3 to 4 % of tort claims (the legal name for injury claims) went to trial. Trials provide an opportunity to set precedents and standards around injury claims, for better or worse.
- Confidentiality: Insurance settlements sometimes include a confidentiality requirement. While trials are public record, settlements are not. This means only the insurance company and injured victim know how much the settlement was worth, making it impossible to estimate the average settlement.
While we may not be able to predict how much a claim is worth at the very beginning of your case because your case value is determined by many variables, we are often able to provide a case value once you have finished your treatment.
Speak With An Attorney
Whether it’s a car crash settlement question or another type of injury settlement, it’s best to speak with an attorney before the insurance company. While you’re still in the hospital or receiving treatment for your injuries, it’s not uncommon for the at-fault party or their insurance to attempt to negotiate a settlement. While these parties are banned from negotiating settlements with hospitalized victims within 15 days under O.C.G.A. § 51-1-35, they may try to rely on you not knowing the law.
To avoid signing any settlements unknowingly, or releasing an at-fault party from liability altogether, it’s best to speak with an attorney as soon as you’re in a stable condition. They can step in to prevent the insurance companies or at-fault parties from speaking with you in the first place so that you can heal and let your attorney handle the rest.
File Your Claim
After you’ve spoken with an attorney and safely placed them in your corner, you can then proceed to filing your insurance claim. At first, you may think only of the medical expenses that you incurred as a result of the accident. However, an experienced personal injury settlement attorney will help you identify the total loss you’ve sustained from the accident. These include:
- Medical Expenses: In the US, unintentional injuries lead to over 3 million hospitalizations and an average medical cost of $56,131. Documenting and tracking your expenses for all medically necessary treatment, like surgeries, hospitalization, physical therapy, and medications provides your attorney with the best chance of getting the full value of your claim.
- Lost wages: In some injury settlement cases, the accident causes an innocent victim to miss work or completely alter how they work. Whether you can’t work for a couple of weeks, need to change careers, or can no longer work after an accident, you should notify your attorney what your wages were just before the accident.
- Funeral expenses: An unfortunate reality is that some accidents take more from us than others. Providing documentation of your loved one’s expenses can help your attorney recover the costs related to your loss.
Help Your Attorney Investigate
When the at-fault party notifies their insurance company of the claim—even if you haven’t submitted documentation of your losses yet—the insurance company will begin their investigation. If you haven’t already spoken with an attorney, this could put you at a disadvantage, especially in claims where the insurance company repairs or replaces the potential cause of your injuries. If you do have an attorney, they can get to work offsetting the power imbalance between you and the insurance company.
The specifics of the investigation vary depending on the specifics of the accident and injuries, but typically, your attorney will investigate:
- The accident scene: Providing your attorney with as detailed information as possible about where and when the accident occurred can help them investigate the accident scene and recreate the conditions of your accident. Depending on the case, they may also want to go to the scene personally to investigate and recover as much evidence from the accident as they can.
- Documentation: If you have photos, videos, or other documents related to the accident, you can provide these to your attorney to help them better understand the specifics of your case and develop strategies to advocate for your rights. Beyond the accident itself, you can provide documentation about your injuries, your expenses, and other losses directly caused by the accident.
- Eyewitnesses: A thorough investigation will also require interviewing eyewitnesses. Unlike photographs, our memory fades with time and the first 24 hours provide more accurate eyewitness testimony. Getting eyewitness contact information at the time of the accident speeds up the process for your attorney.
- Security footage: While you or eyewitnesses may have footage, there can also be security or CCTV footage available from nearby businesses that may have a camera. Sometimes this footage is automatically deleted. Getting there first before this happens can help preserve this vital information.
Expect a Notice of Approval or Denial
One of the most challenging aspects of any injury settlement is the waiting. But there is usually some amount of waiting involved in any personal injury settlement. Once you file a claim, the insurance company has 15 days to notify you that they’ve received the claim. Georgia Insurance regulations 120-2-52 also stipulates that the insurer must notify you of their decision within 15 days of receiving your proof of loss forms in an auto accident settlement. For other types of claims, this window is 30 or 60 days. If the claim is approved and satisfactory, the insurer must provide payment within 10 days. But what if the insurance company’s offer isn’t adequate for your needs?
Your Attorney Can Negotiate On Your Behalf
You have the right not to accept the insurance company’s offer. Should you refuse, you are allowed to have your attorney present with you in any negotiations between you and the insurance company regarding the settlement. At first, this may take the form of direct negotiations between you, your attorney, and the insurance company.
In some cases, the dispute might arise from paperwork or another type of technical error. However, in other cases, the insurance company may doubt or downplay your losses. They may attempt to question your injuries and the extent of the accident’s impact on your life. The insurance company’s top priority is returning profits to shareholders, not you, your health or your wellbeing. Having an attorney present ensures that someone with knowledge and experience of personal injury settlements is standing up for you.
If initial negotiations are unproductive and result in repeated unacceptable offers, the injury claim could move to mediation. Again, your attorney is allowed to be present with you as you present your claim before a licensed mediator. This neutral third-party will hear both sides and offer potential solutions. If this is still inadequate, the next step could be a lawsuit.
Getting to a lawsuit could be a lengthy process, one that can be costly. Thankfully, there are protections in place to encourage insurance companies to make “good faith” personal injury settlement offers.
For example, O.C.G.A. § 33-6-34 lists 16 different insurance company settlement practices that are considered unfair and subject to legal penalties. Among these are refusing to pay claims without conducting a reasonable investigation and not making a good faith attempt to settle a claim when liability becomes reasonably clear. Having a trusted attorney with you who understands these regulations can push an insurance company to make a fair offer, faster.
Six Steps to Maximize Your Personal Injury Settlement
Now that you have an understanding of what the injury settlement process looks like, how to receive the maximum injury compensation becomes clearer. Technically speaking, Georgia law O.C.G.A. § 51-12-4, provides what the maximum compensation available will be. That law states that damages are compensation for injuries.
Critically, what those injuries are goes beyond just the physical. Your lawyer will work with you to determine all the injuries you’ve sustained as a result of the accident to get the full value of the claim. That starts with getting all the medical care you need.
1. Seek Medical Treatment Straight Away
What you don’t know can hurt you. When there’s an accident, especially a sudden and unexpected accident. In these situations, adrenaline can mask the pain and leave you blind to the injuries you’ve sustained. For the sake of your health, seek treatment after an accident. There could be injuries below the surface that weren’t readily apparent.
Not seeking treatment, only to have pain and symptoms appear later, can create challenges for your personal injury settlement in addition to your health. First, you cannot seek compensation for losses and treatment you did not receive. Second, the insurance company can use the failure to seek treatment immediately as a way to lower your maximum injury compensation.
Essentially, they can argue that your injuries would have been less had you gotten treatment directly following the accident or that your treatment is unrelated as it happened so far after the crash occurred. Therefore, they shouldn’t have to pay the full cost of your current treatment. Avoid these painful tactics by calling EMS to the scene of the accident and following up for treatment right away if you have pain.
2. Choose the Right Attorney
Choosing the right attorney and firm can help ensure you receive the full value of your claim. An experienced attorney understands that an accident may have more than one cause and that multiple parties can share responsibility. They’ll pursue every possible avenue to ensure maximum accident injury compensation on your behalf.
A complete investigation of your claim is required, but that takes time and resources. Choosing the right firm puts those resources and time in your attorney’s back pocket.. A well-resourced firm can help find and provide expert witnesses and eye-witnesses to substantiate your side of the story. Both help remove doubt, leaving less room for the insurance company to negotiate down.
3. Continue Evaluating Your Choice
You may feel like you’ve found the perfect firm for you right after the injury, or an attorney may have appeared unasked for. As your claim proceeds, know that the firm you hire works for you. Like any employer, you can and should evaluate their performance over time and make changes as needed.
There are some red flags that should signal a time to change firms and attorneys. A major red flag is if an attorney is reaching out to you after an accident that you did not reach out to yourself. If this attorney has convinced you they’re the best choice, it’s worth keeping an eye on them. They may be interested in compensation for their sake, not yours. They may push for quick settlements so they can get to another case, or leave you in the lurch.
Equally troubling is a firm that doesn’t let you speak with their attorneys. As you evaluate options and call firms, you may have spoken with a legal assistant or paralegal during the initial consultation. But once you’ve hired the firm, you should be able to speak with your attorney. If you find that’s not the case, you can switch to another firm.
4. Develop A Strategic Plan for Your Injury Settlement
If your initial consultation with the firm did directly lead to a conversation with your attorney, they should have laid out a strategy for the road ahead. A key component of this strategy is following the treatment plan laid out by your doctors. Failing to follow your treatment plan to the letter can put you in a similar situation as not seeking treatment straight away. It gives the insurance company a chance to argue that your injuries are your responsibility and not theirs.
Your attorney should also lay out a communication plan. As they negotiate your injury settlement with the insurance company, they need as much information from you as possible. This includes documentation and receipts for the treatment you’re receiving, as well as other information regarding the damages you’ve sustained. They should also look to make sure your mental and emotional health are compensated for in the final personal injury settlement.
5. Be Part of A Winning Team
It may sound repetitive, but you should evaluate the firm you’ve hired at every step along the way. A firm may be great in one phase, but fall flat in another. How were they in direct negotiations? Did you feel they advocated strongly enough for you in mediation? Some firms may lack trial experience and do whatever it takes to avoid the courtroom, even if that means getting you less than the maximum injury compensation you’re owed.
6. Don’t Risk Your Settlement
There can be a long road from injury to injury settlement. Along the path are pitfalls that can result in an injured victim receiving less than what they were initially owed.
Avoid Settlement Loans
As a household juggles medical care with routine expenses, they may seek funds to bridge the gap caused by the accident. Unfortunately, lenders can prey on this vulnerability with settlement loans. These loans charge high interest rates based on the lender’s belief that your claim will succeed. They will then take a percentage of your settlement, plus the interest.
Avoid Social Media
In a similar vein, it’s best to avoid posting on social media as you and your attorney work towards a settlement or claim. Even if you post an old photograph or video, the insurance company may try to use that as evidence that you’re “faking” or “exaggerating” your injuries. You can avoid giving the insurance company ammunition to challenge the loss you’ve sustained as a result of the accident.
Montlick. We Know How to Maximize Personal Injury Settlements
For over 40 years, our attorneys have worked tirelessly to maximize our clients’ injury settlements because justice depends on a full recovery. With our 24/7 hotline, injured victims can reach a member of our team and get their story heard. Our clients then receive the personal attention and determined advocacy their case demands, whether through an injury settlement or a trial. Getting the full value of your claim begins with the right firm. Real Help Begins Here.®
Contact us today to see how Montlick can make a difference. Your initial consultation is free.
