After being involved in an accident, it’s hard enough to get back on your feet and keep going as you used to, but thinking about money and finances puts unnecessary additional stress on you and is a real strain on your mental and emotional well-being.
Thankfully, with the help of the right legal assistant and an expert lawyer with the necessary knowledge and expertise, you can always seek compensation, whether from your insurance company, a third party, or if the injury is work-related from your employer.
Now, understandably, how much of a compensation it will be is debatable and depends on various circumstances and factors influencing the outcome of the lawsuit. But there are a few things you should know ahead of time on how to potentially maximize your compensation if you’re not completely satisfied with the initial offer you’re given.
Read on, as we’ll discuss exactly that and more in the text below!
Getting the Help of a Medical Professional
In the case of a personal injury, the first thing anyone should do is seek immediate medical help and go see the doctor. Besides your personal well-being and overall health, it’s also partially because of the medical report you can later use as evidence in court.
The medical report signed by a professional is unmistakable proof of your injuries and all the consequences they cause. They show you’re telling the truth and give a better insight into the injury itself, what might have caused it, and what the planned treatment is afterward to make a full recovery.
Both the treatment and recovery plan and the cause of the injury itself prove to the court the specific circumstances of the injury (you can prove negligence) and you can seek and ask for compensation depending on the time you’ll have spent off work due to the recovery process.
Keep All the Documentation
Speaking of evidence, one thing to have in mind is to keep all your documentation safe and in one place. Keep track of the paperwork, and believe us, there’ll be a lot of papers.
Categorize them and have them with you whenever there’s an important court hearing or negotiations with the insurance company. Also, your lawyer needs it to keep track of the whole injury and the circumstances around it.
Keep Track of Details
Details are the most important part when it comes to a personal injury. The time, place, location, and circumstances. You’ll need to have everything on record, and you’ll have to pay special attention to every little detail that might help you later on in court.
Don’t take any second guesses with location, time, and place, as they can be used against you, and the court might drop the charges if they hear or see a conflicting retelling of the accident and how it happened.
Getting a Personal Injury Attorney
Of course, without the help of a professional, you’ll be lost, and you’ll feel incapable of doing anything right.
The expertise of a personal injury attorney will help you build a strong case, they’ll take care of negotiations with the insurance company, they’ll present in court whenever needed, and they’ll consult you on how to approach the matter to maximize payout and minimize the chance of the court dropping the charges.
Your personal injury attorney is your best chance at getting your rightful compensation with ease. We advise going for someone local with years of experience and knowledge, as they’ll also know the specific laws for that state or county.
You can always look for and ask for a personal injury lawyer in Okotoks, AB, or any other place to find the right person for the job. Your attorney will give you the right instructions on how to move forward with the case if there’s still a hold and how to prepare for the next court hearing. The experience and knowledge will come in handy at the right moment.
Avoid Oversharing Your Case
Whether it’s on social media or with friends in a bar, avoid speaking too much about your case except with a few trusted and close people in your life. Oversharing details can be evidence against you at some point.
Speaking about your accident and injury on social media and sharing it with thousands of people you’re following can prove to be a real trap. We advise you to stay off social media during that period, at least while the negotiations are ongoing and happening.
Also, speaking to work colleagues and friends can be a bit tricky. They’ll probably ask you too many questions, and you’ll end up answering them all, meaning some of that information can be misinterpreted in a way that does not benefit you.
Don’t Fall for the Early Settlement Offers
Often, at the very early stages of the negotiations, insurance companies are trying to minimize your payout and offer you certain settlements at the beginning.
Those offers and settlements are only a fraction of what they owe and what you can get. Your attorney will advise you to do otherwise and you’ll be better off taking the advice and waiting out the early stage of negotiations until things get interesting.
People often, due to a fear of not getting anything at all, accept the initial offer, but with a bit of patience and the right attorney to do the negotiations on your part, you can maximize the payout and enjoy the recovery with peace of mind.
Maintain Consistent Communication
Transparency is the key to success; you’ll have to share all the details with your attorney to help yourself and your situation. Any detail you might miss or hide due to certain reasons is self-sabotage and can only affect you in the end. We advise complete honesty and transparency, sharing everything there is to know, and being patient, as the outcome will be beneficial.
Personal injuries are one of the most common court lawsuits and often end in two ways, the first being complete compensation and the second being hundreds of people walking away from the whole thing without any money whatsoever or little and having to deal with the aftermath alone. With the right attitude, you’ll fall into the first category rather than the second.