How do you determine the value of my personal injury claim?
The value of a personal injury claim is going to depend on several factors, from the permanency of your injuries, to the amount in lost wages and medical procedures, to the affect that the pain has had on your day to day activities. All of these and more all thrown into the calculation to determine the value of a personal injury claim.
One of the most important factors is the permanency of the injury. For many soft tissue injuries, the pain goes away with time in treatment. The same with cases involving a broken bone or simple skin abrasions. However, in more severe cases of bodily injury, the accident will remain for the remainder of the victim’s life. For example, where there is the loss of a limb, or serious disability, like when the victim can no longer walk without assistance from a cane. Where there are long lasting physical affects, the value of the claim may increase by large increments.
Another important factor is the amount and type of treatment received by the injured person. Generally, the more involved and protracted the treatment, the higher the value of the claim. In many car accident cases, clients may receive weeks or months of chiropractic treatment. These cases may often have less value than a case involving spinal surgery and a year of rehabilitation.
Yet another item that is considered when calculating the value of a claim is the level of change that the injury brings to the victim’s life. Some of our clients have missed weddings, births, graduations, or other life events due to pain or incapacitation. Others have not been able to continue with the activities that make life enjoyable, like horseback riding, hunting, hiking, or roughhousing with children.
These are just some of the considerations made when valuing a claim. If you or a loved one have been injured due to the negligence of another and you do not know whether your claim has value, then please, feel free to call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta personal injury trial lawyers today. Our consultations are always free.
Do I still have a personal injury claim if my health insurance paid my bills?
Just because health insurance paid for your medical bills after your car wreck does not mean that you do not have personal injury claim. In fact, it is generally a good idea that you use your health insurance after an accident.
One of the primary factors that determines the value of your personal injury claims is the amount of the medical bills that are incurred due to your treatment. Who pays for the treatment, whether it’s your health insurance, your medical payments insurance, a rich relative, or some other source, will not affect the value. From the standpoint of the law, the medical bills continue to be a barometer of the value of the claim even though they are paid.
Using your health insurance has some advantages. Primarily, having your health insurance pay for your bills means that you won’t have to worry about how your bills will be paid. You would likely only be responsible for your deductible. Why is this an advantage? When you have a pile of medical bills, you are more likely to settle fast and for less than fair value.
However, you will still be responsible for your medical bills in this way: the amounts paid by health insurance will likely have to be reimbursed from your recovery. Still, this amount may be a sum lower than the incurred bills. Further, an experienced personal injury lawyer may further negotiate the bill down on your behalf. This puts even more money in your pocket.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a car accident, or in a nursing home, and you are wondering whether the use of health insurance will affect the value of your claim, then please do not hesitate, call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta car accident lawyers today.
What if a person dies before bringing a personal injury claim?
When an injured person passes away prior to the filing of a personal injury lawsuit or bringing a claim, what happens next will depend on the circumstances surrounding the death.
If the injured person died due for reasons other than the injury, for example, cancer or complications due to emphysema, then any personal injury claim will continue, but it will now be brought be the estate of the deceased.
If the injured person died because of the injuries, or for reasons related to the underlying injury, then the personal injury claim may become a ‘wrongful death’ claim. In Georgia, wrongful death is the legal term used to describe death caused by the negligent, intentional, or otherwise wrongful conduct of another person or company.
Obviously, no lawsuit can bring back our loved ones. The true purpose of a wrongful death action is to recover compensatory damages from the person or party responsible for causing the death.
Generally, wrongful death claims are divided into two portions:
In the first instance, certain survivors of the deceased, usually a spouse or the children, make a claim for the full value of life. So, for example, the amount of lost wages that would have been earned throughout the deceased persons’ life.
In the second instance, the estate of the deceased brings a claim for the medical bills, funeral expenses, and any pain and suffering that occurred prior to the death.
Of course, there may be other claims available depending on the facts of the case. If your loved one has been gravely injured or killed in a car accident, or in a nursing home, and you are wondering what types of claims you may bring against the responsible party, then please do not hesitate, call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyers today.
Do I still have a personal injury claim if my health insurance paid my bills?
Just because health insurance paid for your medical bills after your car wreck does not mean that you do not have personal injury claim. In fact, it is generally a good idea that you use your health insurance after an accident.
One of the primary factors that determines the value of your personal injury claims is the amount of the medical bills that are incurred due to your treatment. Who pays for the treatment, whether it’s your health insurance, your medical payments insurance, a rich relative, or some other source, will not affect the value. From the standpoint of the law, the medical bills continue to be a barometer of the value of the claim even though they are paid.
Using your health insurance has some advantages. Primarily, having your health insurance pay for your bills means that you won’t have to worry about how your bills will be paid. You would likely only be responsible for your deductible. Why is this an advantage? When you have a pile of medical bills, you are more likely to settle fast and for less than fair value.
However, you will still be responsible for your medical bills in this way: the amounts paid by health insurance will likely have to be reimbursed from your recovery. Still, this amount may be a sum lower than the incurred bills. Further, an experienced personal injury lawyer may further negotiate the bill down on your behalf. This puts even more money in your pocket.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a car accident, or in a nursing home, and you are wondering whether the use of health insurance will affect the value of your claim, then please do not hesitate, call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta car accident lawyers today.
What if a person dies before bringing a personal injury claim?
When an injured person passes away prior to the filing of a personal injury lawsuit or bringing a claim, what happens next will depend on the circumstances surrounding the death.
If the injured person died due for reasons other than the injury, for example, cancer or complications due to emphysema, then any personal injury claim will continue, but it will now be brought be the estate of the deceased.
If the injured person died because of the injuries, or for reasons related to the underlying injury, then the personal injury claim may become a ‘wrongful death’ claim. In Georgia, wrongful death is the legal term used to describe death caused by the negligent, intentional, or otherwise wrongful conduct of another person or company.
Obviously, no lawsuit can bring back our loved ones. The true purpose of a wrongful death action is to recover compensatory damages from the person or party responsible for causing the death.
Generally, wrongful death claims are divided into two portions:
In the first instance, certain survivors of the deceased, usually a spouse or the children, make a claim for the full value of life. So, for example, the amount of lost wages that would have been earned throughout the deceased persons’ life.
In the second instance, the estate of the deceased brings a claim for the medical bills, funeral expenses, and any pain and suffering that occurred prior to the death.
Of course, there may be other claims available depending on the facts of the case. If your loved one has been gravely injured or killed in a car accident, or in a nursing home, and you are wondering what types of claims you may bring against the responsible party, then please do not hesitate, call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyers today.
What should I do if the insurance company offers me a settlement of my claim?
It is almost always a bad idea to accept an offer from an insurance company without first consulting an experienced personal injury lawyer. Why? Because the insurance company’s business model is to take in as many premiums as possible and to pay out as little as possible on claims. This means that when they are able to get away with undervaluing a claim, even yours, they will.
In other words, through various methods, the insurance company will attempt to pay less than the full value of your claim.
First, the adjuster will attempt to convince you that you do not need legal representation. You will be told that personal injury lawyers will take all of the recovery. In fact, studies continue to show that injured persons represented by lawyers recover upwards of 40% more than those going it alone. Without a personal injury lawyer acting as a watchdog and advocating on your behalf, you may leave a good deal of money on the table.
Second, the adjuster will nit-pick your medical treatment and bills. Did you go to a chiropractor? Why didn’t you go to a medical doctor? Why did they charge you x amount for an ice pack or heating pad. You will essentially get the third degree about the decisions made by professional medical providers. Many times, people throw their hands up and give up, just to get a little bit of cash.
Third, the adjuster will not even consider how the injury affected your life. The times you were unable to do the things you enjoy doing, like hiking, walking, or playing with your children. All the times that you lost sleep due to the pain. These are the types of damages called ‘pain and suffering,’ and you are entitled to be compensated for them. However, adjusters will almost always leave these out of the calculation.
These are just some of ways the insurance company will attempt to undervalue your claim. If you or a loved one have been injured in a car accident and you are unsure about taking the insurance company’s offer, then please, feel free to call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta car accident lawyers today. Our consultations are always free.
Can I recover if I was injured in a car accident during icy conditions?
Almost ten years ago, on the afternoon of January 27th, 2014, hundreds of thousands of drivers took to the interstates, highways, and roads of Atlanta, trying to reach kids, pets, and home before snow and ice covered the city. Unfortunately, things did not work out too well, and the largest gridlock in Atlanta’s history ensued.
Snowpocalypse 2014 caused an unprecedented number of car accidents. Thousands of Atlantans were injured due to collisions on the icy roadways.
But how does the icy and snow affect a personal injury claim? If the wreck occurred under the conditions of a Snowpocalypse, can a claim still be made? The answer is yes, but it will depend on the specific facts.
Georgia law provides that drivers must adhere to a reasonable standard of care with regard to the particular weather conditions at the time. A jury may take into account the distance between vehicles and the speed of the vehicles in snowy or slick weather. So, for example, what might be a reasonable distance to keep between the you and the car in front of you in dry or even rainy weather might not be reasonable in snowy or icy weather. The same for the speed of your vehicle. Driving excessively fast in snow may would not be within the reasonable standard of care.
This is important for one simple reason: In order to recovery for a personal injury, the other person must have been negligent. This means that the other driver failed to adhere to the reasonable standard of care, and this failure caused the car accident, and by extension, your injuries.
So, whether you have a case for a personal injury from a car accident in snowy conditions will still be a matter of proving the other party was negligent. It’s just that the standard of care may or may not be a little higher.
These are just a couple of the considerations to be made prior to filing a claim or a lawsuit based on a car wreck in icy conditions. If you or a loved one have been injured in a car accident and you are unsure about what to do next, then please, feel free to call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta car accident lawyers today. Our consultations are always free.
4 Things to Do If You Were Injured in a Car Wreck in a Parking Lot
Some people may believe parking lot accidents are not as serious as roadway accidents, but that is a misconception. Even where the damage may appear minor at the time, it is important to take all precautions and treat these accidents like any other.
First, if you have been injured or feel pain, you should seek prompt treatment. Although that seems pretty straight forward, sometimes your adrenaline may prevent you from feeling the symptoms of certain injuries, such as whiplash, at the scene. Go to a medical provider and get checked out. Keep your medical records and bills.
Second, gather as much information on the wreck as possible. Take pictures of both vehicles. Find out if anyone saw the collision. Parking lots are usually full of people, which means that they are also full of witnesses. If someone did witness the wreck, get their name, number, and address so that you can contact them later.
Third, call the local police department. Generally, parking lot accidents occur on private property. This means that the police will not issue a typical police report. However, you can request that a “Georgia Uniform Motor Vehicle Private Property Accident Report” be prepared by the officer. This document will record all the pertinent information about the wreck and will be useful later on.
Fourth, be sure to contact your insurance provider. Under your policy, you have a duty to cooperate with your insurance company. Almost all polices require that the insured report accidents. Many times, failure to help your insurance company investigate may result in loss of coverage.
Regardless of the amount of damage to either vehicle after a parking lot accident, if you were injured, then you have the right to bring a claim against the at-fault driver. Pure and simple.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a parking lot car accident and you are wondering what to do next, then please do not hesitate, call and speak to one of our experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyers today. Our consultations are always free.
