Accidents happen. When they do, it’s vital that they are handled correctly. Incorrect handling of an accident could lead to compensation not being paid. After an accident that has caused injury and has been caused by another person’s negligence, compensation is owed. If you have been involved in an accident of this kind then you need to get in touch with a lawyer. A lawyer will be able to determine your eligibility for compensation and fight for it for you.
In this post, you will learn about some of the things that a lawyer will check before they can make a claim on your behalf.
Finding Legal Support
Before covering the different things lawyers look for when they are assessing a client for compensation eligibility, it is important to discuss finding a lawyer. Finding a personal injury lawyer is not something that’s especially difficult to do; you can find them everywhere. However, you need to make sure that the one you hire has got good reviews and a positive reputation. If they do not then it is unwise to hire them. Bear in mind that some lawyers fabricate their reviews so that customers and clients think more highly of them. Fortunately, such reviews are easy to find. All you need to look for are ones that are written in bad English and in quick succession, one after the other.
1. Evidence of Injury
The very first thing that a lawyer will want to see before they can take you on as a client is evidence of injury. Ideally, they will want footage from the scene of the accident and of course photographs of your injuries. Because of this, it’s always wise to have a camera phone with you so that if you do get injured, you can photograph the guilty party and the accident itself. If you do not have footage of your accident then you could potentially ask local shop owners for access to their CCTV tapes.
2. Guilty Individuals
In order for you to be able to claim compensation, you will need the guilty party’s insurance details. Without this information, your lawyer will have nobody to claim compensation from. As such it is important to immediately memorize the guilty person’s license plate after a road traffic accident. Having their license plate memorized will ensure that if they take off or provide false information, you can hand their details over to the police or your lawyer. Hit and run is a very serious offense and is a crime of its own. If the person who injured you does try and get away then you need to phone the police.
3. Providing Witnesses
Ideally, you should be able to provide witnesses. Of course, this isn’t always possible though. Clients with witnesses tend to be taken on by lawyers immediately as their cases are very easy to prove. Make sure that any witnesses you provide give truthful accounts of your accident. If the witnesses are your friends or family then they will instinctively want to give false information, exaggerating your injuries and the accident. Make sure that you tell them to be honest. Honesty will benefit your case and claim.
4. Medical Certificates
Once you have found witnesses the next step is to think about medical certificates. As mentioned earlier your lawyer will want to see some kind of evidence of your injuries. Medical certificates are the ideal type of evidence. You can easily get one from the doctor that sees you in the hospital or you can get one from your own personal physician, as they will likely want to see you after you are released from the hospital.
5. Severity of Injury
To get the highest amount of compensation your injuries will need to be severe. No insurance company is going to award a claimant hundreds of thousands of dollars, for example, if their injuries are not life-changing. Life-changing injuries can even result in you getting millions of dollars in compensation. That being said, you can still receive compensation even if your injuries are not severe. You just won’t get as much compensation in such cases as somebody with life-changing injuries.
6. Exaggerated Claims
Under no circumstances should you ever exaggerate your injuries. Exaggerating your injuries is technically fraud and can get you into a lot of trouble. You likewise need to make sure that your witnesses and loved ones do not exaggerate them either. The problem with exaggerating injuries is that if you are caught lying, your claim will be thrown out and the insurance company will take you to court. If they take you to court then they can sue you in return and get you convicted of fraud, which can lead to a prison sentence.
7. Returning to Work
If you are to claim compensation, the insurance company from whom your lawyer is claiming will want to see evidence that you are unable to return to work if you cannot. If you have been unable to go back to work in the wake of your accident then it’s sensible to apply for disability benefits. Disability benefits will make you look like you are so severely injured you cannot work and are relying on government money. There is not much arguing an insurance company can do with a lawyer if the lawyer’s client is on disability benefits, as disability benefits are notoriously hard to get, meaning by virtue of successfully receiving them it is clear evidence that the client has been seriously injured.
8. Personal Responsibility
The last thing that you need to think about is personal responsibility. Accidents are not cut and dry. Sometimes more than one person is responsible and sometimes the victim is as guilty as the person from whom they are claiming compensation. If you are responsible for causing the accident that you were involved in, then your lawyer won’t be able to get you a lot of compensation (if any). Think about your own personal involvement before applying.
Personal injury claims are complicated. If you want to make one then you need a lawyer’s help. Your lawyer will want to see evidence of your injuries and some of the other things mentioned here. Read through this post so you can understand what is expected of you when claiming compensation.