WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ACCEPT A CAR ACCIDENT SETTLEMENT

You were hurt in a car crash. You are on the road to recovery and you want to move forward with your life. Your medical bills are piling up and there are other costs related to the crash that you have to deal with as well. What do you do when the insurance company contacts you and offers you a settlement?

You may be tempted to accept it. Before you do, please consider what will happen.

You will first be asked to sign a release and other documents. Then you will likely receive a lump sum payment by check. There may already be liens filed against the settlement. A lien is a claim to payment filed by medical providers or parties that paid all or part of your bills, including your health insurance company or your auto insurance company. In many cases, a substantial portion of the car accident settlement disappears almost immediately due to liens. Because you signed a release, you will not be able to go back for more money if the settlement is depleted before you can cover all costs associated with your accident. If your injuries do not heal as expected and you need follow-up surgeries or additional care, you will be left to cover those costs.

Beware that insurance companies want to pay out as little as possible on car wreck claims. You may be entitled to more than what you have been offered. One way to be certain that you get fair compensation and you are not left covering expenses related to the wreck is to review your case with an experienced lawyer.

When You Have An Attorney On Your Side

A personal injury attorney will review all expenses related to the car accident. All medical costs will be added up, and your doctors and outside medical experts may be consulted to determine if future treatment might be required and how much it is likely to cost. All lost wages will be calculated, as well as any future lost earnings associated with your injuries. There are also less tangible costs that need to be taken into consideration that are more difficult to calculate, such as pain and suffering.

Once the appropriate amount of compensation has been calculated, your attorney will negotiate with the insurance company. If the insurance company is unwilling to negotiate and continues to make lowball offers, the case may go to trial.

At Lloyd & DuPuy in Denton, we are trial-tested. We have the strength to go up against powerful insurance companies in order to obtain fair settlements. We will fight to get you all the money you deserve. Let us review your settlement offer in a free consultation.

On behalf of Devon DuPuy of Lloyd & DuPuy PLLC posted in Personal Injury on Friday, January 22, 2016.