Hiring an Attorney

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FAQ's about Hiring an Attorney

Is it necessary to hire an attorney if the insurance company makes us a decent settlement proposal?

That’s a good question. You do not need an attorney if the settlement satisfies you and your family. However, the difficult question is determining how much is a fair settlement offer. Many people try to settle their cases too quickly and are left paying for their future medical care for the injuries caused by another person’s negligence. Are you sure that today’s decent proposal will still be a satisfactory settlement three weeks or two months from now?

There are several reasons why this may not be the case:

Many injuries have symptoms that only appear gradually and at a later stage. This is often the case with concussions or back and neck injuries. Retinal detachment, for example, can blur the vision after many days or weeks and must be treated immediately when it is discovered.
The same reasoning applies to the material damage. Are you sure your car will be repaired within the quoted budget and in the same condition as before?
Some people are not aware of the full medical bills they owe. Hospitals, for example, usually show up in 2-3 separate bills. One from the treating doctors, one from the facility, and one from the radiologist (if any imaging was performed). The hospitals will often send their bill to the auto insurance company. It may take months before the hospital receives a rejection from the auto insurance company. When this happens, the hospital will pursue you directly for the bill.
Insurance companies always want to settle as quickly as possible. Doing so prevents you, the victim, from claiming additional medical and other costs when they occur.

The answer depends on how sure you are that all the present and future costs of the accident will be compensated. We recommend that comprehensive medical examinations be made and that you make sure all the bills and expenses have been taken into account.

Should I hire a lawyer specializing in truck accidents to settle this case?

Large or small transport companies offer a different kind of challenge than the average car driver when claiming fair compensation after an accident in El Paso, Denver, or elsewhere in Colorado. The rules enacted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) deal with truck inspection, maintenance, and repair, truckers’ hours of service and rest time, the permissible size and weight of cargo, and driver qualifications. Even though trucking companies are all supposed to operate under very detailed and strict rules, some companies will be law-abiding. In contrast, others put profits and on-time delivery before safety.

In Colorado and elsewhere, transport companies operate hundreds of trucks and deal with accidents almost daily. Trucking companies and insurers work hand-in-hand to limit their exposure to claims whose frequency and size could wipe out their profits. Knowledge and firsthand experience of the trucking companies, the FMCSA regulations, and the insurance companies’ tactics is essential to a successful claim for just and complete compensation, and this is precisely what a truck-accident attorney like Anderson Injury Law Firm offers.

How long will my case take?

A successful case takes time. We handle a case as it should be done from start to finish. The only one that benefits from a fast settlement is the insurance company. If a claim is fast, it is not fair to you. We must evaluate the claim and your total losses over time to get you full compensation for the other person’s bad driving.

Do I need a personal injury lawyer?

Not always. It depends on several factors, including the type of claim you are making.

If you have a property damage claim only, you may be able to resolve issues with the other driver’s insurance company without a lawyer. There tends to be a fairly established market value for a vehicle, and it is not too difficult to establish the amount of the loss. If you are having difficulties with a property damage claim or have any questions about this type of claim, contact a lawyer. If your claim also involves personal injury, see the paragraph on bodily injury below.

You may have a bodily injury claim if you are injured through someone else’s fault. For this type of claim, a lawyer generally is needed. There is no set schedule or formula for payouts on bodily injury claims. Most people who handle these claims obtain less compensation than they are entitled to. This is because there are no hard–and–fast rules for evaluating the claim. Each case is unique, and a combination of many factors goes into adequately assessing the claim.

In a bodily injury claim, a person is dealing with an insurance adjuster who is well–schooled in building goodwill to settle the claim for low dollars. In the long run, an adjuster is evaluated and promoted based on how little money is paid on a bodily injury claim. Whether it is “fair” has nothing to do with it. Every dollar the insurance company does not pay you is a dollar more profit to the company. It is a one–to–one relationship. Even if you are dealing with the same company as your own insurance company (because the same company insured the other driver, or you are making an uninsured motorist claim), odds are a lawyer will better represent you. The adjuster at your company is not evaluated based on whether you are happy or keep your insurance with the company but on the amount the insurance company pays out.

How long do I have to bring my claim?

The statute of limitations for automobile accidents is generally three years from the accident date. This means a formal complaint must be filed with the appropriate court, or the claim is lost. Much work must go into the claim well in advance of this deadline. However, cases involving death typically have a shorter limitation period.

Care must be taken to confirm the statute of limitation that applies to your case. The time for bringing a claim can vary depending on a person’s age, mental state, entity against which a claim is brought, type of claim, and type of vehicle involved.

For example, a minor’s three–year period may not start to run for several years. A person injured in a motorcycle accident may have a two–year limitation period. A death claim has a shorter timetable. A claim against a third party for negligently allowing someone to operate their vehicle may have a two–year limit. Some claims against drunk drivers or claims for punitive damage may have much shorter limits. A claim against a Colorado Governmental entity has a very specific notification requirement. Other factors can make the statute of limitations one year.

As you can see, many factors can affect the application time limits. You should contact a personal injury lawyer to see what limitation period exists in your claim. Failure to do so can unknowingly cost you the right to pursue your claim.

How soon can I get my claim resolved?

It varies.

Claims for property damage typically get resolved within two weeks, although the repair may take longer than that. Most lawyers take no fee for helping resolve the property damage claim if they also handle the bodily injury claim.

Claims for bodily injury other than death claims usually take much longer to handle properly. Insurance companies often want to settle a bodily injury claim immediately, but that is almost always in their interest, not yours. The true value of a non–death bodily injury claim cannot be determined until the extent of injury and recovery is known. Depending on the injury, this is usually between two months and two years. Most lawyers handle this type of claim on a contingent fee for a percent of the recovery. This allows an injured person to be represented and owe nothing for lawyer fees until and unless money is produced.