An attorney’s help is advised for filing both claims and lawsuits.
In the world of personal injury law, two terms are often bandied about in a way that can be confusing to injured individuals: claims and lawsuits. These are actually two distinct, but potentially connected, processes.
What Happens When You File a Personal Injury Claim
A personal injury claim is pursued against the individual who has caused you to suffer an injury or loss and their insurance provider. You will provide the insurance company with information about the circumstances leading up to your accident, the costs associated with your injuries and suffering, and the amount of compensation you believe you require. Based on this information, the insurance company will open a claim for you under the at-fault individual’s policy. After reviewing your information they will come back to you with a settlement offer. You may accept this offer or continue to negotiate until you receive an offer you can accept.
What Happens When You File a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
Very rarely does an injured individual immediately go to court to try to recover compensation. Instead, they file a claim first. If the claim negotiation process is unsuccessful in securing the amount of compensation they need, the next step is to file a lawsuit.
Filing a lawsuit involves many additional steps and costs that are not required for settling a claim out of court, such as:
- Filing a petition with the court
- Having your lawsuit served on the defendant
- Making depositions
- Ordering and copying transcripts, medical records, police reports, etc.
- Securing expert testimony from doctors or accident reconstructionists as needed
After the evidence has been prepared and presented to the court, the judge and/or jury will then make the determination as to how much compensation should be awarded to the injured individual.
Why Do Claims Turn into Lawsuits?
Because of the additional costs associated with going to court—as well as the lengthy delays involved—it is typically best to try to resolve your case as an insurance claim rather than file a lawsuit. However, if the negotiation process breaks down, you may have to face a difficult choice as to whether you want to risk a lawsuit. Typically, the decision depends on how close the settlement offer is to your requested compensation. If it is just a few thousand dollars off, you may not want to risk a trial. But, if you have been offered a pittance or nothing at all, and you believe you have a strong case for deserving more, you would likely want to go to court.
Hire an Attorney Either Way
A personal injury attorney’s help is vital for both the personal injury claim process and for filing a lawsuit in court. It is advisable to hire an attorney to represent you as soon as you suffer an injury, as your attorney will be instrumental in collecting evidence for your case and ensuring that you calculate your damages accurately.
For a free initial consultation with Fernando D. Vargas about your injury, please call us at 909-982-0707.
