The term “winning” a personal injury claim can be misleading, as it suggests gaining something unexpectedly. In reality, it means receiving financial compensation for the tangible and intangible losses you have suffered.
Winning fair compensation means recovering damages that fully cover your losses. This guide explores strategies to improve your chances of securing fair compensation, making it a valuable read before you file a claim.
Get Medical Attention
The best time to start your treatment journey is while you are at the scene of the accident because, besides offering timely medical intervention, their documentation will help pace you at the scene.
If you do not get medical help at the scene, ensure you visit the ER within the day or not more than 72 hours after an accident to avoid creating treatment gaps. Medical records are a critical part of the evidence you will need to build your case, so you want to make sure you preserve all the documents produced throughout the journey.
Gather Evidence
In a personal injury claim, you don’t need to prove your case beyond a reasonable doubt, but you must present sufficient evidence to show that the defendant is more likely than not responsible for the accident that caused your injuries. This means gathering evidence should begin immediately.
For instance, if you experience a slip and fall accident in Alsip, you should start documenting the incident at the scene. This includes taking photos, recording videos, speaking with witnesses, and collecting their contact information.
Get a Lawyer
The outcome of your personal injury case can significantly impact your life. For instance, if you suffer a permanent disability from an accident, your ability to earn a meaningful income could be drastically reduced. If your lawsuit does not secure compensation that accounts for a lifetime of lost earnings, your quality of life could be severely compromised.
Hiring a lawyer can increase your chances of receiving fair compensation by up to five times. Even after accounting for legal fees, you are still likely to recover more with a lawyer than without one.
Additionally, most personal injury lawyers offer free initial consultations. If you decide to hire one, you typically won’t pay anything out of pocket unless they win your case, as their fees are taken from your settlement.
Recoverable Damages
“Most claimants in a personal injury claim are concerned about how much they can recover in a claim. The truth is there is no way of knowing how much you can recover because it largely depends on several factors, such as the severity of damages, the at-fault party’s insurer coverage limit, and whether or not you have a lawyer,” says personal injury lawyer William Umansky of The Umansky Law Firm Criminal Defense & Injury Lawyers.
However, recoverable damages are similar across all types of personal injury claims; only the value of them may change. If you are successful in your claim, you will recover economic damages, which is a sum of expenses and losses such as lost wages present and future, medical expenses past and future, and property damage and non-economic damages, which a valuation of your intangible losses such as disability, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
