Is It Worth Getting an Attorney for a Car Accident?

It’s worth getting an attorney for a car accident because insurance companies pay five times more money to victims with lawyers than victims without lawyers. A quick check of the math confirms that hiring a lawyer is worth it. If Sally has $10,000 in medical bills and negotiates her settlement, $10k is likely all she’ll get. She’d be lucky to get that. Insurance companies often refuse to pay specific medical bills because they aren’t reasonably necessary.

If Sally partners with a lawyer, she can expect about $50,000. The settlement amount is much higher because lawyers pour so much work into these matters and work with litigation partners, like medical experts, when necessary. So, she must pay legal fees and litigation expenses. Even if these costs eat up half the settlement ($25,000) and are rarely that high, Sally is still ahead of $15,000 ($25k vs. $10k).

Additionally, a California Car Accident Attorney has professional connections with doctors who focus on injury-related conditions, car rental agencies, and other providers. If Sally handles her case herself, she must deal with all these providers herself at a time when she’s most likely partially disabled. If Sally works with a lawyer, her lawyer does all the legwork.  

Immediate Assistance

We mentioned the two biggest immediate assistance areas above (medical treatment and vehicle repair/replacement). Now, let’s break it down a little further and examine some other immediate assistance areas where a lawyer makes a big difference.

Car crash injuries often include one or more kinds of head injuries. All three types have diagnosis and treatment issues:

• mTBI: Many car crash victims don’t feel the effects of mTBIs (moderate traumatic brain injuries), or concussions, until some time after the accident. Adrenaline masks their pain. As a result, the concussion festers and worsens.
• sTBI: The same is true for severe traumatic brain injuries. Victims often feel the initial symptoms, such as disorientation and soreness. However, they and their doctors often assume that accident shock, a temporary condition, caused these symptoms. Once again therefore, their head injuries get worse. sTBIs kill about 50,000 Americans every year. Sadly, many of these deaths are brain injury-induced suicides.
• PTSD: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, a brain injury that affects up to 50 percent of car accident victims, is impossible to initially diagnose. All trauma injury victims experience some post-traumatic stress. If PTS becomes PTSD, the victim is in real trouble.

As mentioned, a personal injury lawyer in California connects victims with doctors focusing on injury-related conditions. These doctors know the difference between accident soreness and head injuries and the difference between PTS and PTSD..

Many insurance companies offer immediate or near-immediate vehicle repair or replacement but don’t offer tailored service. The cheapest body shop isn’t always the best one. If a family loses an SUV in a wreck, they need another large vehicle, not a Corolla.

Speaking of insurance companies, a personal injury attorney also interferes with insurance company representatives. Lawyers handle all these communications, relieving victims of the responsibility and also ensuring they don’t unintentionally say something to hurt their cases.

Building a Case and Closing the Deal

We also mentioned legwork above. This legwork includes collecting evidence supporting your claims and refuting insurance company defenses.

People who handle their own car accident cases stumble in the dark in this area. They don’t understand the legal nuances of a negligence claim, so they don’t know what evidence they need. An experienced personal injury lawyer knows exactly what to do.

The evidence in a car accident case usually goes beyond the police accident report and medical bills. Electronic evidence, such as the vehicle’s Event Data Recorder, is often critical.

When the case goes to court, it may not go to trial. However, the insurance company will almost certainly file pretrial motions. Victims recovering from injuries must handle these matters themselves. That’s like throwing yourself down the stairs and trying to file a corporate tax return without using the instructions. Good luck with that.

A lawyer is a good negotiator as well as a good litigator. Lawyers have excellent poker faces during pretrial negotiation sessions. Furthermore, since they know the strengths and weaknesses of their claims, they know when to compromise and when to stand firm. 

Contact Our Car Accident Lawyers for a Free Consultation!

Even though it costs some money, getting an attorney for a car accident is worth it. For a free consultation with an experienced California Personal Injury Attorney, contact the Law Offices of Eslamboly Hakim. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.