What Can I Expect From a Personal Injury Claim?
Gregg Hollander | September 27, 2024 | Personal Injury
Many people assume making a personal injury claim is equivalent to filing a lawsuit against the at-fault party. However, most of the time, personal injury claims don’t see the inside of a courtroom.
A personal injury claim involves securing a financial settlement from the at-fault party’s insurance company. If you’ve suffered an injury in an accident, consult a personal injury attorney immediately to determine your course of action. Here is a look at what you can expect from a personal injury claim from start to finish.
Initial Consultation
During your initial consultation with your attorney, you can expect a sympathetic ear from someone who understands your situation and will compassionately guide you through the legal process. A personal injury attorney will want to hear your detailed account of the accident while reviewing any evidence you bring.
Items to Bring to Your Initial Consultation With a Personal Injury Lawyer
Some examples of documents, records, and other information you should bring to your initial consultation with an attorney include:
- Police reports
- Medical records (X-ray, and MRI results, CT or CAT scans)
- Photos of the accident and your injuries
- Auto insurance cards
- Health insurance cards
- Other driver’s insurance information
Bringing any of these documents or records you have with you gives your attorney a clearer picture of the specifics of your case. The more information you can provide, the better clarity, legal advice, and understanding you will gain from your initial meeting.
Prioritizing Your Recovery
Prioritizing your recovery will be heavily emphasized as your biggest focus after an accident. A caring and understanding attorney will stress the importance of seeking a medical evaluation (if you haven’t already) and following the doctor’s recovery plan and discharge instructions.
That includes following any limitations or restrictions they may put on lifting weights, driving, or working. It also means seeing any specialists they refer you to regarding your injuries, such as physical therapy and massage.
Performing a Thorough Investigation
Your personal injury attorney will thoroughly investigate and examine the details of your accident to build your case. Their investigation typically entails:
- Collecting Evidence: Gathering and preserving any evidence pertaining to your accident, such as police reports, photos of the scene and your injuries, and video surveillance footage of the accident. If you’ve not already provided medical records, they will also get access to and review those.
- Interviewing Eyewitnesses: Any witness statements given at the scene will be attached to the accident report the police filed. However, your attorney may locate other vital witnesses and collect their statements to establish the at-fault party’s negligence.
- Recreating the Accident Scene: Personal injury lawyers work with accident reconstruction experts to recreate your accident scene. It allows them to pinpoint critical moments that demonstrate negligence and liability. If your case goes to trial, they will use this data to present their findings visually to the insurance companies and the jury.
- Analyzing the Evidence: Your attorney will analyze all the evidence, drawing clear lines of negligence to present to the insurance company.
- Consulting Experts: Personal injury attorneys work with experts to build their clients’ cases. These experts may include medical experts who can explain injury severity and its long-term effects on an accident victim’s life. Economic and vocational experts may also help quantify the financial impact of the injury.
The investigation portion of your case is crucial for establishing negligence with the at-fault party’s insurer. Anything that you can provide your attorney with to help prove you were not at fault will strengthen your case and may secure a more substantial settlement.
Determining Your Losses
After establishing liability, your personal injury lawyer will determine your losses to calculate your economic damages and non-economic damages. Once your lawyer has calculated your total damages, they will present them to the insurance claims adjuster.
Negotiating With Insurance Companies
Settling your case may involve several rounds of negotiations before agreeing on final compensation. Insurance companies are notorious for sending lowball offers the first time because they aim to settle for as little money as possible.
However, personal injury lawyers are highly skilled negotiators who confidently reject those offers and fight for your rights for fair compensation. Your attorney will discuss and advise on any offers the insurer proposes before rejecting or accepting them.
Settling Your Case
Most personal injury claims are settled before ever needing to file a lawsuit. Your attorney and the at-fault insurer typically will settle through negotiations.
Filing a Lawsuit (If Necessary)
If your attorney and the at-fault party’s insurance companies cannot come to a compensation agreement, your lawyer will file a lawsuit by submitting a complaint. A complaint is a set of documents outlining the legal basis for your personal injury claim.
After litigation begins, you must give a deposition(s) (recording of you testifying under oath) about your injuries. Your attorney will present evidence to a jury, and if they successfully prove negligence of the at-fault party, the jury will identify how much compensation to award you.
Contingency Fee Arrangement
Personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, meaning they only get paid if you do. There are no upfront costs to retain a lawyer to handle every step of your personal injury claim.
Personal injury attorneys will typically collect a pre-disclosed percentage of your final settlement. This practice allows them to offer their legal services to everyone, regardless of financial status. It also comes with zero financial risk to their clients.
When to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer
If you have been in an accident due to the negligence of another party, you should consult with a personal injury attorney immediately. Because there is no financial risk, it makes sense to have a knowledgeable and skilled legal professional working on your behalf to ensure you receive a fair settlement.
Types of Personal Injury Claims People File for Financial Compensation
While many people associate personal injury with motor vehicle accidents, such as those due to auto, motorcycle, truck, boat, train, and airplane, there are several different types of personal injury claims, including:
- Pedestrian Accidents: The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (USDOT-FHA) reports around 76,000 pedestrian injuries and 6,000 pedestrian fatalities annually.
- Bicycle Accidents: The USDOT-FHA report also concludes there are 47,000 bicyclists injured in accidents annually, with 850 bicyclist fatalities.
- Micromobility Device Collisions: According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), injuries due to micromobility vehicles, including e-scooters, e-bicycles, and hoverboards, have been trending upward since 2017, increasing an estimated average of 23 percent annually.
- Dog Bites: Dog bites are the most common animal bites in the U.S. Over 4.7 million dog bites occur annually, with 800,000 serious injuries requiring medical attention.
- Workplace Accidents: When third-party negligence causes a workplace injury, it can result in a personal injury claim. An attorney can seek damages beyond your workers’ comp benefits.
- Construction Accidents: Construction is one of the most dangerous work industries in the U.S., with thousands of annual accidents resulting in injuries and fatalities. Nearly one in five workplace deaths occurs in the construction industry.
- Slip and Fall Cases: Slip-and-fall cases are a type of personal injury claim that occurs when someone suffers an injury on another person’s property. The property owner may be liable if your attorney proves their negligence caused the injury.
- Medical Malpractice: The American Medical Association (AMA) says patients will sue one in three clinicians for medical malpractice during their careers. That means a significant risk of being harmed by a medical provider. While 85,000 medical malpractice lawsuits are filed annually, the actual number of medical malpractice injuries is suspected to be much higher.
- Nursing Home Abuse: Nursing home abuse statistics demonstrate hundreds of thousands of senior residents are mistreated and neglected in long-term care facilities annually.
- Assault and Battery: Assault, battery, and other intentional torts fall under the umbrella of personal injury claims.
Types of Damages You Can Expect to Recover in a Personal Injury Claim
You can expect to recover various damages depending on the nature and severity of your personal injury claim. The most common monetary damages include:
Medical Damages
Medical damages include all medically related expenses incurred from the accident. Some significant medical damages include:
- Emergency services (ambulance, ER visit, and hospital stay)
- Doctor and pain management appointments
- Rehabilitation services (physical therapy, chiropractor, massage, and acupuncture)
- Mental health services
- Home healthcare costs
- Lab and diagnostic costs
- Medical assistive devices (crutches, braces, wheelchairs, and prosthetics)
- Prescription medicine costs
- Future medical expenses
Home modifications necessary to accommodate a temporary or permanent disability are additional medical damages you may recover in a personal injury claim. For example, stand-up showers, accessible bathrooms, chair lifts, ramps, lowered kitchen counters, handrails, lever handles, and wider doorways.
Professional Damages
Professional damages are any financial losses suffered at work due to your injury from the accident. Common professional damages include:
- Lost income, such as wages or salary
- Lost commission or bonuses
- Lost benefits, such as healthcare, retirement, or pension
- Lost promotion
Diminished earning capacity due to injury is another factor considered in applicable cases. Your personal injury attorney will determine damages for your loss of future earnings.
Property Damages
Property damages you have suffered because of the accident are recoverable economic damages in a personal injury claim. Vehicle repairs are a significant portion of property damages.
However, accident victims may also seek compensation for bicycles, skateboards, smartphones, sunglasses, clothing, and anything else damaged or destroyed in the accident.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are intangible or non-monetary losses relating to physical and emotional pain and suffering, such as:
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Mental anguish
- Psychological trauma (anxiety, depression, and PTSD)
- Loss of activities like driving
- Loss of consortium (inability to engage in companionship, emotional support, and marital relations)
- Scarring and disfigurement
Because non-economic damages are not quantifiable with invoices and receipts, they can be more challenging to prove. Having an experienced personal injury attorney represent your claim gives you a greater chance of substantiating compensation for non-economic damages.
Punitive Damages
Punitive or exemplary damages exceed typical compensation and punish the defendant. They are less common in personal injury law because they are only available through a judge or jury, and most personal injury claims are settled outside of court.
These damages can be at issue in personal injury claims where the defendant’s negligent behavior was particularly egregious and warrants additional consequences, such as driving intoxicated or distracted, resulting in severe injury or wrongful death.
Wrongful Death Damages
If you and your family have suffered the untimely loss of a loved one due to the negligence or wrongdoing of another person, you may be eligible to recover compensation in a wrongful death claim. Wrongful death damages compensate for financial and emotional damages, such as:
- Medical expenses incurred before death
- Funeral, burial, and cremation costs
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of services and support
- Loss of consortium (especially for a surviving spouse)
- Loss of income and earnings capacity of the deceased loved one
A personal injury lawyer can determine these losses and calculate the damages you can seek in a wrongful death claim or lawsuit.
Questions to Ask a Personal Injury Lawyer
During your free consultation with a personal injury attorney, you should come prepared to ask any questions not answered in the initial consultation. Some examples of questions you may consider asking include:
- “What can I expect from a personal injury claim filed through your firm?”
- “How many personal injury cases like mine have you successfully settled?”
- “How many personal injury cases like mine have you tried in court?”
- “How long will my case take to settle?”
- “What are your contingency fees?”
- “Do your contingency fees increase if my case goes to trial?”
Finding a compassionate personal injury attorney with experience settling cases like yours should be a top priority. Schedule a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer to discuss the specifics of your claim. You can gain immediate peace of mind by having a legal professional on your side, and they can begin building your case.