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Accidents can be overwhelming. After the collision, if you try to file a claim by yourself, you will encounter insurance companies. It can be frustrating, and more than that, you are probably leaving a lot of money on the table.
Problem:
The problem is that people don’t usually know how to deal with these companies. Insurance adjusters have one goal in mind; paying you as little as they can.
Car accident lawyers are here to balance the scales and help you obtain the compensation you actually deserve.
In this guide:
- Why Legal Help Is Needed After An Accident
- The Way Car Accident Lawyers Can Protect Your Claim
- If Your Claim Gets Denied: What To Do
- When To Hire A Lawyer
Why Legal Help Is Needed After an Accident
Traffic accidents are extremely common. According to NHTSA estimates, 39,345 people died as a result of traffic crashes in the United States in 2024. Those numbers are only regarding fatalities. Millions of other people get injured every year. Many of these victims suffer from an uphill struggle when it comes to obtaining fair compensation from insurance companies.
Insurance companies have entire teams of experts working on ways to reduce payouts. And in the majority of the cases, without the proper legal help, accident victims accept a settlement that is way below the worth of their case. Working with experienced injury lawyers can provide a car accident victim with a major advantage. Experienced car accident attorneys know the tactics insurance companies are using to avoid paying. They also know exactly how to counter them.
The Way Car Accident Lawyers Can Protect Your Claim
Car accident lawyers do a lot more than people may imagine. They are not just for going to court. Below, you can read about the exact things they usually cover:
Evidence Collection
Building a strong case begins with the collection of evidence. Lawyers gather police reports, medical records, witness statements and photos of the accident scene. This documentation will be used to prove liability and damages. Insurers will try to lowball or deny claims without proper evidence.
Dealing with Insurance Companies
This is a big one. Insurance adjusters are trained negotiators. Their main job is to figure out how to make the person that is filing a claim accept less money than they deserve. Accident victims working with car accident lawyers allow them to handle all the communication with insurance companies so they do not say anything that will hurt their cases.
Calculate True Damages
Most people do not know how to calculate the true value of what they are owed from the damages of the accident. Car accident lawyers do that, including:
- Current and future medical expenses
- Lost wages and earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Property damage
- Long-term rehabilitation costs
This will ensure that nothing is left out of the settlement demand.
Negotiating a Higher Settlement
Something that most accident victims do not know is that statistics show that the people who choose to hire an attorney to defend them receive a settlement that is, on average, three times higher than the ones who do not. This is a massive difference.
Insurance companies know the second someone hires a lawyer. They take the case more seriously, since they know the lawyers will fight back.
If Your Claim Gets Denied: What To Do
Claim denials are more common than you might think. Insurance companies try to avoid paying by denying claims for different reasons. Some of those are legitimate, some are not. The most common reasons for claim denials are:
- Policy exclusions or lapses
- Disputed liability
- Insufficient documentation
- Delayed reporting
- Pre-existing conditions
A denial of your claim does not mean that you have lost the opportunity to be compensated. Claim denials can be overturned by using the right approach. In fact, the percentage of successful appeals is pretty high. According to the statistics, about 44% succeed at the first internal review stage.
If a claim gets denied, the first step is to go through the denial letter you have received. The insurance company must give you a letter with a detailed explanation of the reasons it did not accept the claim. From there, you will need to gather additional evidence to file a formal appeal. This will often be enough to reverse the decision.
This is exactly where having an attorney from a car accident law firm really pays off. The lawyer you choose will know the appeals process from the inside out. He or she will be able to single out the weaknesses in the insurer’s argument and build a case that will be way stronger during the appeal.
When To Hire a Lawyer
While not every little fender bender requires a lawyer, you should contact one when the situation is serious. There are some occasions when having legal help is absolutely needed.
Consider hiring a car accident lawyer if:
- Injuries are serious or long-term. High medical bills and ongoing treatment indicate that the stakes are high. Recovering proper compensation becomes critical.
- Liability is disputed. If the other driver and their insurance company claim that you were at fault, having legal support is necessary to protect your interests.
- Insurance companies stall the claim. Insurance companies can play with people’s time and money. Hiring a lawyer will speed up the process and hold the insurer accountable.
- The settlement offer seems too low. The first offer almost always does not cover the actual damages. If the insurance company you have chosen makes an offer that does not include at least everything on the list above, a car accident lawyer can renegotiate the amount of the settlement.
- The claim was denied. As mentioned above, claim denials can be overturned in the appeal. However, if you want to have a positive outcome, you need to contact a car accident law firm and hire a professional attorney.
The good news is that most personal injury attorneys work on contingency, which means they will not get paid if the case does not win. This will remove the financial risk of hiring legal help.
The Settlement Process Explained
Understanding how settlements work will help you set realistic expectations. After the accident, the injured party or his or her lawyer files a claim with the insurance company of the at-fault driver. Then the insurer will investigate and make an initial offer.
And here is the first problem. The first offer is almost never fair.
Negotiations will begin, and they will last until both parties agree on a specific amount. If an agreement cannot be reached, the case will go to trial. However, the majority of the cases are settled long before that. The whole process may take several months to a year or more, depending on the case’s complexity. Patience is the key here. Settling the case early will often mean leaving a large amount of money on the table.
A good lawyer will be able to tell his or her client when to push further and when the offer is just right. Lawyers can help people avoid costly mistakes during the settlement process.
Wrapping It All Up
Car accidents can have an absolutely devastating impact on people’s lives. Dealing with injuries, medical expenses and lost wages at the same time, accident victims find themselves under enormous pressure to stand on their feet.
Insurance companies count on it, and they do their best to make victims accept a quick settlement that will cover a minor part of what they are owed.
Car accident lawyers exist so that this will not happen to their clients. They:
- Handle all insurance negotiations
- Gather and preserve all the evidence
- Calculate the true value of claims
- Fight all the denied claims through the appeals process
- Obtain higher settlements for their clients
The legal help these professionals provide can make a significant difference in the result of any car accident claim. For all the people who are in the middle of struggling with injuries and a growing expense list, hiring a qualified attorney is one of the smartest things they can do.
Do not allow insurance companies to control the situation. Get the representation you need to protect your interests and, as a result, your future.
