Personal Injury Lawsuit

Sara was involved in a car accident that left her immobile for two weeks. Due to her injuries, she was only able to return to work after four months. Since the accident was not her fault, Sara filed a claim for a personal injury settlement. During the negotiation process with the insurance company, Sara was able to successfully defend her claim and win an appropriate settlement amount.

How did Sara manage this? The key to her success lies in simple tips that are listed below:

Tip 1: Understand the claim process

Most people are wary of dealing with insurance companies because they do not understand the negotiation process involved in a personal injury settlement. It’s quite simple really. After you file a claim, the insurance adjustor will call you up to discuss your claim. Then, he will make you a settlement offer for an amount lower than your claim. You will counter with another offer. This process will continue until both of you agree on a settlement amount.

Tip 2: Calculate your compensation amount

When you file your claim, mention the compensation amount you deserve. This includes medical costs, salary lost for the time you were unable to work, repairs for damaged vehicles, etc. At this time, decide on a minimum injury settlement you are willing to accept. Use this amount as a benchmark during your negotiation process.

Keep this amount a secret, as you do not want the adjustor to know how much you are willing to settle for. This could influence the negotiations as the adjustor can use this amount to bargain for a lower deal.

Tip 3: Ask the adjustor to justify his offer

Sometimes, the adjustor will make you an offer that is much below your claim amount. This is just a negotiating tactic. Instead of jumping in with your counter offer, ask for the reasons why this offer is so low. Write them down as they are listed out. Then, respond to these reasons in a formal letter to the adjustor and the insurance company. Wait for a reply to your letter. The insurance company will then be ready to offer you a more reasonable amount as part of your personal injury settlement.

Tip 4: Get it in writing

Once you and the adjustor have agreed on your personal injury settlement, the final step is to confirm it. Write a short letter to the adjuster detailing the agreed claim amount, the damages it covers, and the time it will take for the insurance company to send you the requisite documents. Having a written record prevents the adjustor from going back on his word.

People are never aware of the risks they are submitted to after having dealt with an accident. A minor car accident can have serious repercussions and one must never leave aside making a whiplash injury claim, if their condition demands it.

What is worse, people don’t seem to even bother thinking about their losses. They are quite content with the fact that they have escaped the incident with only minor injuries. But is that ever really the case? Minor injuries such as whiplash injury or neck injury can turn your life upside down, therefore you must never underestimate them or under-compensate. You must never think it in terms of “it was a mere whiplash, it will go away”. They never do.

From medical records, and patients’ feedback we can very clearly see that whiplash injuries tend to fade out with the passing of time, but after a while the patient starts to feel some discomfort and even pain in the neck area, which is actually the effect of an untreated whiplash.

Unfortunately, because of the ever increasing number of whiplash claims, accident solicitors also tend to overlook these cases, and tell the victims that this type of claim won’t get them a very large compensation. Whether you believe them or not, it’s your decision, but our advice is to go ahead with your claim and try to make justice, to get compensation for all your losses, and injuries. Although it is very easy to assess the cost for repairing the damaged car, or calculate exactly ho much money you spent because of the accident you were in, it is never easy to ask for compensation for your personal injuries.

It is quite normal that your pain and discomfort will not disappear with the compensation, but it will bring you a little peace of mind. The basic condition being, of course that you learn to express your physical pain in numbers. So, in simple terms, if you are ever in the situation to suffer from a whiplash injury your thoughts must be directed, firstly, at getting back the money spent on medical treatment or consultation, and secondly, on how much money do you think suited for the pain you are experiencing until it goes away.

Of course, us talking about it does not implicitly say that all whiplash injuries will have long-term consequences. There are certain time boundaries for every claim that you can make. A normal, simple whiplash claim can be made within a three year period of time from the accident. Outside that period it is virtually impossible to get any kind of compensation.

Our advice would be to pay attention to your own situation. Get documented on the “hows” and “whats” of a whiplash injury claim. Get the help of a good legal expert, and don’t leave anything up to chance because life has a funny way of paying you back. You don’t want to overlook any aspect of your injury that could come back and cause you problems. Then, it will probably be too late to ask for any compensation, and you will only be left with your pain, and a sour taste.