Hiring the right personal injury attorney can help expedite the process
If you have been injured in an accident, you are obviously going to start incurring expenses right away. You will of course have your medical bills to deal with, and you may also have to miss work. Unfortunately for those feeling the financial pinch after an injury, it can take a significant amount of time to actually receive the compensation you deserve—especially if you have to take your case to court.
Even after your settlement amount has been determined, you will still face delays in receiving your payment. Here are 3 possible reasons why you may have to wait longer to get your money.
Paperwork
Settling with the defendant’s insurance company out of court provides a faster resolution to your case, but you still have to overcome many potential paperwork-related delays. First, you must draft a confirmation letter stating the details of the settlement you, your attorney, and the insurance company have agreed upon. Then, the insurance company must send back a release form. You should read this form carefully and discuss its contents with your attorney. If the terms are as expected, you can sign the release. Often, the release is mailed with your check, but this is not always the case. All this paperwork can mean you could have to wait 30 days from the time you verbally agree to a settlement to the time you cash your check.
Check Clearing Delays
When you cash a settlement check, it is not going straight into your bank account. Instead, it is going into your attorney’s trust account. Unless you are lucky enough to be receiving a check issued by the same bank where your attorney has a trust account, you are going to see delays here. It can take up to 10 days for a settlement check to clear a trust account.
Liens
One final activity that can cause significant delays is the need to pay any liens against your settlement. Because settlements are most often based on total medical costs, not out of pocket costs, your insurance provider will typically want to be reimbursed for the portion of your care that they have paid for. This happens through a lien. There could be delays because the insurance company is slow to send their final billing statement, or because your attorney is trying to negotiate with them to accept a lower amount than the lien is actually worth. This last delay is well worth being patient about, because the less cash siphoned off by the lien, the more of your settlement will go into your pocket.
Why You Need an Experienced Attorney
An experienced attorney like Fernando D. Vargas can help expedite the process of receiving your settlement cash. He can not only facilitate a fast resolution to your case, but also assist with speedy completion of paperwork and successful lien negotiations.
If you would like to learn more about how Fernando D. Vargas can help you as your personal injury attorney, please call 909-982-0707.
