Hiring a personal injury claim lawyer can be a difficult decision.
Not all injury cases will need an accident attorney. Before you hire one, you need to ask yourself 3 main questions:
1. Did I Suffer a Serious Personal Injury?
The question of whether or not you should hire an accident attorney, will come down how serious are your injuries.
Insurance companies divide your injuries into two broad categories: “Soft injury” or “Hard Injury”.
A soft injury is when you suffered minor injuries to a muscle and other soft tissue. This includes injuries like a strain neck, bruised thigh, or sprained ankle.
A hard injury is when you suffered injuries that will have a long term or permanent impact on your life. This includes injuries such as lost limbs, broken bones, head injuries etc.
Hard injuries are considered more “serious” since they result in extreme pain and suffering that can last a long time. Since these type of injuries are viewed as being more painful, they also have a higher potential of getting a larger insurance settlement.
Soft injuries don’t have this high potential because their impact is not viewed as being long lasting or permanent. Getting a personal injury lawyer for a soft injury can actually end up costing you more money.
A typical accident attorney will take nearly one third of your final insurance settlement. Since the settlement value for a soft injuries is usually lower, hiring a personal injury lawyer won’t increase your final settlement check.
Financially speaking, you are better of dealing with the insurance companies on your own.
If you suffered a “hard injury”, then you should definitely hire a personal injury claim lawyer.
Read Personal Injury Settlement Amounts: Which Injuries Pay the Most
The next question you should ask yourself is that…..
2. Did I Receive a Low Settlement Offer?
Insurance companies are known to give low settlements for personal injury claim. Insurance is a business just like any other. And just like any business, the goal is always to maximize profits.
Unfortunately, the insurance company wants to maximize their profits by giving you the lowest insurance settlement possible.
To determine if you have received a low settlement offer, use the personal injury settlements calculator to see what your claim might be worth.
If you feel that you have received a low settlement offer and want to fight back, you have two options. You can either negotiate your accident settlements by yourself or hire a personal injury claim lawyer.
Most people don’t feel comfortable negotiating, especially with the insurance companies. Insurance companies tend to be really aggressive in getting you to accept their offer. Most people cannot handle this stress.
If you feel that you will be unable to negotiate a higher insurance settlement by yourself, you should hire a personal injury claim lawyer. An accident attorney has years of experience negotiating settlements for injury cases just like yours. Hiring an accident attorney gives you the best chance to fight back a low settlement offer.
5 Benefits of Personal Injury Claim Attorney
The final question you need to ask yourself is….
3. Do I Want to Invest the Time and Energy?
A personal injury case will take up a lot of your time. Most injury cases can last between a few months to a few years. During this time you will have to invest months of your time meeting with your personal injury claim lawyer, gathering your medical information, documenting your injuries etc.
The entire process can be mentally and emotionally draining.
However, if you are willing to invest your time fighting for your insurance settlement, you should hire a personal injury attorney. Once you are determined to get a fair settlement, an accident attorney can help you focus your energy in preparing a solid case. This can result in you getting a high insurance settlement for your injuries.
Bottom Line
Deciding whether or not to hire a personal injury claim lawyer will always depend on your specific circumstances. However, if you were seriously injures or received a low settlement offer, you should definitely seek help from an experience attorney.
To help you better understand the type of lawyer you should hire, read Best Personal Injury Lawyer Questions Checklist
Want to know How Much Your Injury Claim is Worth? Get a free settlement estimate right now.
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