Immediately after suffering an injury due to slipping and falling or some other type of accident, you will likely be confused and feel stressed about what your next step should be. Your first priority should be to take care of your health. When the time comes, you can move your focus to filing a personal injury claim. Note that no two personal injury cases are exactly the same; however there are certain common elements that will be encountered. Below is some information on what your next step should be after an accident.
Personal Injury Claims
The first step in when dealing with personal injury will be to file a claim. A personal injury claim involves negotiations between you and the negligent individual’s insurer. In most cases, these claims will involve the negligence of another person. Personal injury claims are commonly filed after automobile accidents, pedestrian accidents and slip and fall accidents. Steps that you can take to preserve your right to file a personal injury claim include:
• Collecting Evidence
Any evidence that can point to the person whose was at fault in the accident should be collected. Also important is evidence of the damage caused.
• Collect Witness Information
It is important to collect contact information from any witnesses of the accident and then contact those people to ensure that the information is valid.
• Document Expenses after the Accident
This means recording things like your medical bills as well as lost wages and lost work opportunities.
Speak to an Attorney
An experienced personal injury attorney will know how communicate with insurance providers and the best ways to speed up a claim and to get it settled. Additionally, if you want to ensure that your rights are protected, it is important that you have your claim examined by a competent attorney. Many attorneys will provide a free consultation.
What Happens When a Personal Injury Claim is Filed
When you file a claim with for injury compensation, a claims adjuster will handle the claim. They may want a recorded statement from you regarding the nature of the accident. It is important to remember that the claims adjuster works for the insurance company and their job is to minimize the payout. You should be truthful, but also be careful about what you say.
You will be asked to provide the insurance company with documentation to back up your claim. This is where the documentation of medical expenses, lost wages and missed work will be needed.
Personal Injury Lawsuit
According to The Helen Hsu Law Firm, PLLC, “The claim process can break down because the claims adjuster does not believe that the injuries were very severe or because they believe that the insured individual was not negligent. If the claims process breaks down and there appears to be no way to reach a compromise, the next step would be a lawsuit.”
About the Statutes of Limitations
It is important to note that if you are not able to file your claim within a reasonable timeframe, you may not be able to collect any sort of compensation. The term “statutes of limitations” refers to laws that dictate how much time you have to bring certain types of lawsuits. If you allow this time to elapse, you may find yourself unable to bring a lawsuit to recover compensation for your injuries.
It is often best to settle a personal injury lawsuit before it is brought to trial. While the amount of money may be less than you wanted, you should consider the cost of going to trial.
