Car Accident Settlements
A car accident can create unpredictable injuries in an instant. Recovering from a vehicle crash can be complex and confusing, involving expensive medical bills and time-consuming doctor visits and therapies, all while fighting insurance companies for money you’re owed. Sometimes you can’t wait for a lengthy trial and you may try to obtain a car accident insurance claim settlement. Getting a settlement means forgoing further legal action for a sum of money. Hiring an experienced attorney can earn you three times more than fighting your case alone.
What Is a Settlement?
To avoid the extensive complexities of a trial, courts have processes for pretrial negotiation. If this discussion is successful, the result is a settlement. With an experienced attorney on your side, negotiating a settlement can work to your advantage.
How Long Do Settlements Take?
There’s no way to tell in advance how long it will take for your legal team to arrive at a settlement you think is fair. There are several variables that will affect it, including the cooperativeness of the insurance company, the strength of your case, and your willingness to accept settlement offers. A settlement will always be quicker than seeking a ruling through trial. Depending on your case, you may be eligible to receive all of your money at once as a lump-sum settlement or in periodic installments as a structured settlement.
How Much Do You Stand to Receive?
There are several variables that will affect how much you stand to receive in a car accident injury claim settlement. An experienced attorney knows that with car accidents, there are often unforeseen expenses that most clients don’t think about. Without a competent attorney, most clients will be left with expensive medical bills and possibly job retraining costs. Some factors that will impact the size of a settlement include:
- Monetary expenses you need to cover
- Policy limits on the defendant’s insurance
- Monetary resources of the defendant
- Whether you can return to work
When you agree to a settlement, the court will issue a court order stipulating its final terms, which may be modified by the judge.
How to Claim a Car Accident Settlement
To be awarded a car accident insurance claim settlement, your injuries must be the fault of another party. This may be another driver, an employer, a vehicle manufacturer, or even a combination of these parties. To initiate the process of claiming a settlement, you must first file a civil suit or tort alleging monetary damages. Then the defendant must be willing to negotiate terms of a settlement to avoid trial. A defendant may find it worthwhile to avoid trial since records are public and may draw scrutiny.
Sometimes, often because of a manufacturer defect, you may be eligible to collect a preexisting settlement. When many consumers are injured by a product in the same way, these people may constitute what’s known as a class and could be eligible to file suit against the manufacturer collectively. Such a case, known as a class action lawsuit, involves several similarly injured clients represented by a team of lawyers who take legal action on behalf of the class. If a class action has already been won, or a settlement negotiated, you may be eligible to collect a predetermined sum as part of the class.
File Your Claim Today
If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, ClassAction.com is here to help. We have won our clients over $5 billion in damages, and we’re ready to fight for you. Our team will work to recover compensation you are due for medical bills, lost wages, death benefits, job retraining, emotional distress, and more. Recovering from a car accident can completely derail your life, so get started securing the support you need by filling out a free case evaluation.
