Many car accident victims end up accepting settlement offers from insurance companies because of their financial hardships. The good news for victims is that they can settle their claims without getting into a complex legal court case. However, several factors should be taken into account before making this decision. Most importantly, you should not agree to any offer without a lawyer. A car accident lawyer can easily be hired by navigating his official website. If he believes that the offer sounds genuine and appropriate as per the injuries and damages, he will ask you to accept it.
Factors affecting your settlement
Several factors may play a vital role when it comes to settling the case outside court. They have been discussed below:
Medical treatment and your wellbeing
If your treatment is still going on in a hospital, you will have to wait until you are fit. If you settle it before the treatment is over, you will end up obtaining a much lower amount. Your wellbeing plays an important role in setting the case outside the court. Moreover, the lawyer will not agree to a lower amount as he will also consult your medical practitioner before accepting any offer.
Investigation of the case
If you have been injured in a car accident and file a police report, your settlement will take time. Establishing liability is a complicated issue and a lawyer will have to work with officials to do it in the right manner. Many a time, experts need to be involved if the damages are huge. In such cases, you might have to wait for a long time to get fair compensation.
Negotiations
Most negotiations occur between the lawyer and the insurance company. He will send a demand letter to the company stating your injuries, damages and other losses so that you can get the right amount. The insurance company will make its first settlement offer after reviewing these facts. From this onwards, several counteroffers are made until both parties reach at a common ground. If the insurance company refuses to pay a genuine amount, the lawyer may decide to file litigation.
Litigation
If your case has been filed in court, you will have to wait for several months to obtain the compensation. However, a lawyer can expedite it so that you don’t have to wait that long.
It is always a good idea to have an attorney with you so that you can win the compensation.
