How To File A Claim For Personal Injury

Filing a claim for personal injury is not easy, but it’s something you absolutely must do if you suffered injuries due to another party’s negligence. 

Considering the financial impact of treatment and lost wages alone, any hassle surrounding a personal injury is worth it. You should never be expected to pay anything out of pocket for an accident you didn’t cause, so you should do everything in your power to pursue justice, no matter how tricky the process may be. 

Step-by-step process of filing a personal injury claim

As soon as you retain an attorney, they’ll start working on your claim. Here are the stages you can expect:

1. Identifying liable parties

When filing a claim for personal injury, you first need to figure out who’s responsible for the accident since this is the person who you’ll be filing the suit against. In some cases, it may not be clear who the liable party is.

For example, if you were injured at work, your employer may not be liable if the accident was caused by equipment with a manufacturing defect. In this case, the liable party is the manufacturer of the equipment.

Similarly, in cases where road conditions cause your accident, you won’t file a claim against the other driver, but the governmental agency that maintains the strip of the road where the accident occurred. 

It’s also worth noting that you usually file a claim against the insurer of the liable party. This also requires deeper investigation as the name of the liable individual’s insurance company isn’t publicly available. Your attorney will likely file a request with the police or the DMV to gain access to this information. 

2. Gathering evidence

You should note down everything you remember about the accident. This is why taking photos of the scene is very helpful. 

Tell your attorney everything you can and they’ll take it from there. An attorney will speak to the police and receive a copy of the police report (if there is one). If available, they’ll also get video evidence from CCTV cameras. 

Lastly, an attorney will also contact any witnesses and ask for their statements. 

3. Assessing your injuries

Your attorney will also need evidence of your injuries and a statement that describes the impact of the injury on your life. It’s also necessary to gain access to your medical records. In most cases, attorneys hire medical experts who can offer an informed opinion on the impact of injuries on your life. 

The opposing party may also hire their own medical expert who will also assess your injuries.

4. Reviewing your recovery

Your recovery process may also have a significant impact on your claim. Thus, it may be necessary to arrange an additional medical assessment. 

This is a good opportunity for experts to evaluate your rehabilitation and determine how much care you will need in the future. 

5. Calculating the amount of compensation

Using all the medical information (as well as projections on your recovery), your attorney will calculate how much compensation you should receive. They’ll account for the following:

• Injuries
• Pain and suffering
• Medical costs (including treatment and rehabilitation)
• Travel costs
• Loss of income and loss of earning capacity
• Adaptive equipment and any home adaptations
• Compensation for items damaged in the accident

An attorney may also hire a life care planner and a vocational expert to account for losses you may reasonably incur in the future. 

6. Negotiating a settlement

With a full breakdown of the costs available, the attorney will negotiate the final settlement with the liable party. Generally, both sides make offers and negotiate a figure that works for all interested parties. 

You can accept the counteroffer made by the insurance company if it’s substantial enough to account for all your losses. 

If negotiations fail, you can take the claim for personal injury to court. This is the most stressful part of the entire process, which is why most attorneys push for negotiating an out-of-court settlement. 

In a court hearing, the judge will consider the evidence, witness testimonies, and expert testimonies. Using the information available, they’ll decide on the appropriate amount of compensation. You’re not required to attend the hearing yourself, especially if your injuries prevent you from doing so. 

Keep in mind that a settlement is still on the table and if the evidence points to your victory, the other party may offer an off-court settlement. 

7. Receiving your compensation

If the judge decides in your favor in your claim for personal injury, you get to decide if you want to receive the compensation as a lump sum or in yearly installments. The latter is more common if you require compensation for long-term care. 

If you’re unable to manage your affairs, the court may appoint a personal representative who will take care of financial matters on your behalf. 

In cases where you require ongoing care, you will have access to rehabilitation coordinators who can tend to your recovery needs. 

What happens if you lose

There are no legal fees if you lose as most attorneys work on a contingency basis and will only get paid if you recover compensation. This is why filing a claim for personal injury is a risk-free endeavor. 

You also won’t be required to pay any other fees associated with the claim, including those of medical or vocational experts. 

Any way you slice it, you can’t end in a worse financial position than you were if you lose the case somehow. In other words, you won’t receive compensation. 

Hire an attorney now!

Although it’s impossible to guarantee that you’ll win the claim, if you have evidence that you were wronged by another individual or organization, the chances of receiving compensation are high. 

Still, it’s worth noting that your attorney’s skills will play a huge part in the outcome of your claim, so you need to see to it that you’re hiring the best legal help available. 

Attorneys at the Law Offices of RITE are ready to fight for your rights until the very end. We’ll work as hard as possible to negotiate a settlement, but in the event part is unsuccessful, we’ll take your case to court. Speaking from experience, it pays to have someone on your side who has decades of personal injury claims behind them. 

Call (904) 500-RITE (7483) or send us an email at info@rite4justice.com to schedule a free case review.

Note: 

The information in this blog post is for reference only and not legal advice. As such, you should not make legal decisions based on the information in this blog post. Moreover, there is no lawyer-client relationship resulting from this blog post, nor should any such relationship be implied. If you need legal counsel, please consult a lawyer licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.