What Steps Should Someone Take To Help Their Personal Injury Case?
The first step that someone should take to help their personal injury case is to secure quality medical care for his or her injuries. While many people have major medical insurance that provides an opportunity for them to go to the doctor, almost half of the clients who contact me do not have major medical coverage, and they need help getting medical care.
What Are Some Tactics Employed By Insurance Companies To Avoid Paying Out On Personal Injury Claims?
The first thing to remember is that an insurance company is a corporation, not a person. They don’t have morals or ethics, and their only guiding principle is making as much money as possible. An insurance company will manipulate the facts in any way they can, in order to pay as little as possible or nothing at all. Insurance adjusters are trained to do this kind of manipulation. For example, if you went to the doctor right away, an insurance company adjuster would say you didn’t give your injury an opportunity to heal on its own. If you wait a week before you go to a doctor, they’ll say if you were really hurt you would have gone to the doctor right away.
You should never talk to an insurance company at all following a crash, because they will take your innocent statements and use them against you. An example of this can be something as mundane as when you first introduced yourself. If you said that you were fine, like many people commonly say in conversational language, an insurance adjuster will say that you were fine meaning that you were not hurt. Insurance company adjusters simply cannot be trusted in any way whatsoever because they have a goal, and their goal is not based on moral or ethical guidelines. It’s based on saving money for the insurance company.
What Kind Of Information Or Evidence Will My Attorney Need Prior To Filing A Claim Or A Lawsuit?
There are several types of information or evidence that an attorney will need prior to filing a claim. First, it’s critical that photographs are taken. The saying that a picture speaks a thousand words has never been truer than in a personal injury case. Photographs should be taken at the scene of the people involved and their injuries, the vehicles involved, and any evidence at the scene that could be relevant. This could include property damage, skid marks, and even road signs. Photographs are critically important, and ultimately are what are used as evidence in the case. Second, you should always call the police on the scene of the crash, so that the person who caused the crash doesn’t later try to come up with some story to deny fault. A police officer’s report will cement the facts as to how that crash occurred, and will directly relate to medical bills and medical records. Those 4 things—the photographs, the police report, the medical bills, and medical records—become the foundational pieces of evidence in a personal injury case.
Should Someone Assume That Their Medical bills Will Be Paid In full When They Receive Settlement?
It should never be assumed that medical bills would be paid in full when a settlement is received. That is one of the biggest fights in a personal injury case. The insurance company will take the position that the medical bills charged to the injury victim were too high, and that the insurance company shouldn’t have to pay for it. Then the jury is ultimately put into the position of questioning whether the bills are too high—just because an insurance company takes a position doesn’t mean that it’s true. If the bills are too high, the jury then has to decide who should have to pay them—the injury victim or the person who caused the crash? Sometimes you have to hold the insurance company and their lawyers to task on that question, so that the victim won’t have to pay their own medical bills.
Do You Recommend That Clients Pay Their Medical Bills In Full As They Come In Or Wait For A Settlement?
I recommend that clients wait until a settlement has been reached. We often issue letters of protection or guarantee to healthcare providers, which are contracts where we promise to pay reasonable charges for the medical bills upon the conclusion of the case. This way, the injury victim doesn’t have to feel saddled or bothered with the weight or burden of those medical bills as their case is pending. While a case is pending, we try to relieve clients from those bill collection efforts.
How Does Your Reputation, Experience And Style Impact The Outcome Of A Personal Injury Case?
The reputation, experience, and style of a lawyer will determine whether they win or lose. Lawyers that win get paid more and lawyers that lose don’t. I don’t think that there is a personal injury lawyer in the state of Texas that has a higher winning percentage than I do. I’ve tried close to 100 jury trials, and out of those trials, through all disputed cases, I was victorious in over 90 of them.
For more information on Personal Injury Cases In Texas, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (713) 425-4300 today.