16 Dec Why You May Need to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer After a Road Accident
When you are involved in a road accident, the first few things on your mind include your safety and the safety of your loved ones in the car with you, how to get the necessary medical help as quickly as possible, damages to your vehicle, and compensation claims among other things.
The good news is that lawyers can help you with some of these things if you let them. If you find yourself in an accident, consider the following to determine if you may need the services of an attorney.
What’s the Extent of Damage to Your Property
Most people often suffer a considerable loss of their property after they have been involved in a road accident. Your car may even be so severely damaged that it is written-off entirely.
In any case, the insurance company will have to determine whether the vehicle is a total loss or they’ll have to issue payments for the vehicle’s repairs. To qualify, you’ll need to know what your insurance policy can cover, and whether yours or the other party’s insurer will have to pay.
Here are a few general rules to help break it down:
• If you were at fault, you will have to contact your insurance company for payment.
• If you weren’t at fault, it’s the at-fault party’s insurer’s responsibility to pay for your damages.
• For people who live in no-fault states, your best bet would be to seek reimbursement from your car insurance company.
• People involved in a hit and run accidents will also have to seek compensation from their own insurance companies.
Whether you’re seeking compensation from your insurance company or the other party’s insurance provider, you should know that their compensation may be inadequate and incapable of covering your expenses. If this happens, you might want to consider hiring a personal injury attorney to help pursue your claim and cover the difference.
Did You Suffer Any Form of Personal Injury?
Injuries in road accidents are pretty common. So if you have any injuries, the smart thing is to get to the hospital immediately.
Delaying your visit to the hospital, no matter how minor the injuries may seem to be, means you’ll have less chance of proving you sustained your injury from the accident. As a rule, it is advised that you should visit the hospital within 72 hours of an accident. After that, there’s little chance that you will get your compensation claims.
Your insurance policies will often determine how much of your medical bills will be paid by the insurance company. Typically, the at-fault party’s insurance policy pays for your medical treatment. People living in no-fault states will have to file for compensation from their personal injury protection (PIP) policies.
You don’t have to restrict your compensation claims to just your car insurance coverage or the other party’s coverage. You can file for compensation from your uninsured motorist policy and medical payments policy as well.
The former works if you have the coverage and were in an accident with a driver who has no insurance or is underinsured. It could also be useful for hit and run accidents. You should also seek compensation from your health insurance coverage.
You should know that insurance companies are likely going to try and pay less than your compensation claims.
For this reason, ensure that all your documents and receipts are well-kept. In particularly complex cases, or if you find managing a claim difficult given the circumstance, hiring a personal injury attorney like David Heil in Orlando to file and push for your claim can help make sure you get the compensation you need in order to recover.
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