How to handle a personal injury claim
Thousands of people suffer various types of accidents and injuries every year in the United States. In the legal world, a Personal Injury case refers to a situation where someone’s negligence or carelessness inflicts some physical or emotional harm on another person.
If you are suffering any type of personal injury as a result of someone’s negligence, you may have a personal injury claim and as a result, can be entitled to injury or accident compensation.
Personal injury claims do not always have to result in a trial or even go through the court system. In fact, many such claims are resolved without resorting to filing a lawsuit or taking any court action. With a well-supported and properly presented personal injury claim, you can reach a fair settlement. But how do you handle a personal injury claim?
It is important to keep in mind that when you or a loved one have suffered a personal injury, it is always best to consult with a legal professional so that you can find out about your rights and options, and where you deem appropriate retain counsel in order to obtain the best result. Regardless of whether you choose to consult a lawyer, there are important steps that you can take in order to protect yourself and preserve your rights. Read on as we go through valuable tips to help you deal with a personal injury claim. These are by no means all that is involved in a personal injury claim.
5 tips for handling a personal injury claim
If you have suffered any type of personal injury, here are a few helpful tips:
Know the type of personal injury
Document to the extent possible
Hire a personal injury lawyer
Prepare a demand letter
Negotiate settlement offer
Know the type of personal injury
There are different types of personal injury. Some can be minor, including cuts and bruises and others can be very serious and life changing. Car accidents are among the most common situations that result in personal injury. Other common incidents that can involve injury are dog bites, workplace injury, product liability, slip and fall, medical malpractice, and so on.
For example, in California, dog owners are liable for injuries inflicted on others by their dogs whether or not there was prior knowledge of the dog’s propensity to attack third parties. This may not apply in all states. Some states have different standards.
It is important to know the type of personal injury you’re dealing with, your jurisdiction, along with a host of other factors, in order to help identify your rights under the law, and how best to proceed in order to reach a fair resolution.
Document to the extent possible
The first and most important part of handling your personal injury claim is to document everything. This includes photographs, videos, police reports, receipts, medical bills, and much more. If it was a car accident, you should assure that you have contact information, driver’s license, and insurance information for the responsible party. Additionally, you’ll want to have pictures of the damage to all vehicles involved as well as the injuries sustained.
To the extent that there are witnesses, you should collect their information, including names and contact details. Additionally, many witnesses may themselves take photos or videos. Those can be extremely valuable in seeking proper resolution of your case.
You may also want to detail in writing your account of the incident while they are freshest in your mind. This will help consolidate your personal injury claims.
Hire a personal injury lawyer
Personal injury claims require experience, expertise, and skill. Mistakes during the process can be costly and ultimately may preclude you from obtaining justice. Also, you might be going through physical and emotional pain, making it difficult to handle the situation yourself. As with anything, an expert can help avoid any mistakes, take the unnecessary burden off of your shoulders, and assure that you obtain the compensation that you deserve (and need). This is where a personal injury lawyer comes in.
You can use a variety of methods in order to hire a personal injury lawyer. To the extent that you’re comfortable disclosing your situation, friends and family can have good recommendations. As with anything these days, you can certainly conduct some online research. For example, if you’ve suffered a car accident, you can simply check for a “car accident lawyer near me” to find local attorneys who can handle your case. Evaluate their qualifications, certifications, and experience. It is important to look out for an experienced personal injury lawyer to guide you through your legal proceedings and increase your chances of getting compensation.
Issue a demand letter
Once you have hired an attorney to handle your injury claims, your lawyer will help guide you through the process. Among the next steps will be gathering the proper evidence to document your claim, assuring that you are seeking and obtaining the proper medical care, and getting any other experts, such as medical experts, to prove your case.
Usually, once those items are addressed, your lawyer will create a demand letter for the other party (many times an insurance company) in which he or she will provide the necessary documentation to prove your claim, and ask for an appropriate sum as compensation. This is typically referred to as a demand letter. The demand letter commonly also contains the facts and evidence that prove that the negligence of the other party resulted in your injuries. The demand letter is an important part of any personal injury claim during the pre-litigation phase.
Again, once you’ve retained an attorney, your attorney will guide you through this process. Each case has unique elements and facts. One size does not necessarily fit all when it comes to personal injury cases.
Negotiate settlement offer
Most personal injury claims end with a settlement. That means that they are resolved before a trial. This can happen in the context of informal negotiations between your attorney and the other side (usually an insurance company), or it can be done more formally, for example, in the context of a mediation. Either way, the parties agree on some form of resolution, commonly in the form of a monetary settlement paid by the allegedly responsible party to the injured party.
Once a compensation amount and other terms are agreed upon by the parties, everything is then put into writing and executed by the parties, making it a legal and binding contract. In some situations, the approval of the court may also be needed.
To the extent that the parties are not able to come to an agreed settlement, the case can proceed to trial. It is then up to the trier of fact, usually a jury, to decide whether the defendant was negligent, and if so, how much should be awarded to the plaintiff (the injured party).
The time limit for filing personal injury claims in California
Different states have different time limits for filing personal injury claims in court. This type of law is called the Statute of Limitations. The statute of limitations is the maximum amount of time that a party has to file a claim in court. If they fail to do so within that time, they may forever lose their rights.
The Statute of Limitations in California for personal injury cases is generally two years. That means that a personal injury victim has 2 years from the time of the incident to file a case in court. There are certain exceptions that may apply. That is why it is very important to consult a personal injury lawyer about the specific facts of your case.
For personal injury claims against a county, city, or the state of California, there is a time limit of six months to file a claim with the appropriate governmental agency. Victims need to follow strict procedures. This claim procedure is a prerequisite to filing a claim in court. This means that you must first satisfy the claims statute before even being able to file a case in court.
Exceptions to the Statute of Limitations
As noted above, there are exceptions to the two-year statute to file a personal injury claim. Certain cases also have statutes of limitations specific to them. Below are some examples:
Minors: In California, the personal injury statute of limitations does not begin to run until the minor reaches the age of majority (18)
Mentally incapacitated individuals: The statute of limitations does not run as to a mentally incapacitated person, unless and until such person regains his capacity
Shared Fault Law in California
In some personal injury situations, the party at fault may argue that the injured person(s) may also share some blame for causing the accident. This shared liability is commonly referred to as comparative liability. To the extent the injured individual shares some responsibility for the injuries they suffered, this may affect the total amount of compensation you receive from the party at fault.
California follows a “pure comparative negligence” rule in such situations. Basically, you will receive a reduced amount that equals the percentage of fault shared for the accident.
For example, if you were injured in an auto accident and you were judged to be 40% at fault and the other party was judged to be 60% at fault, then, typically, the party that was 60% at fault will be required to pay 60% of the damages. You will be responsible for the remaining 40%.
However, keep in mind that this is a general rule. There might be some exceptions that apply based on the situation or parties involved. If you have suffered an auto accident, it is best to speak to an auto accident lawyer to guide you through the process.
Conclusion
Suffering any type of personal injury can not only be painful, but it can have long-lasting and even life-changing effects. It is important to properly handle any such situation in order to assure that you address any and all resulting damages and issues. It is also crucial that you consult an experienced personal injury attorney in order to understand and protect your rights and also to learn and decide on your options.
It’s important that you do your research to assure that you have the best personal injury attorneys in Los Angeles to handle your personal injury claims.