Is It Worth Hiring an Attorney for a Car Accident?

The aftermath of a car accident represents one of life’s most important moments of truth.

How you respond after a vehicle collision determines the likelihood of you recovering the financial losses associated with the crash. The first item on your to-do list involves calling 911 to activate the emergency response system. Law enforcement officers responding to the car accident secure the area around the collision, as well as conduct a detailed investigation that leads to the filing of an official police report. Next on your to-do list is to receive medical attention, even if you feel healthy enough to remain at the scene of the accident. Some injuries such as whiplash and a concussion might take some time for symptoms to develop.

The next step in how to respond to a car accident concerns contacting an attorney. Unless you were involved in a minor fender bender, hiring a personal injury lawyer who specializes in handling car accident cases can help you receive the compensation that you deserve. However, you have to answer one question when it comes to retaining legal representation.

Is it worth hiring an attorney for a car accident?

You might wonder why you should hire an attorney to file an insurance claim. After all, the process for filing an insurance claim is not considered difficult. Nonetheless, getting a car accident lawyer in your corner increases the chances of you receiving approval for an insurance claim. In addition, if another party committed one or more acts of negligence that produced your injuries, hiring an experienced car accident lawyer helps you file a persuasive civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages.

At Morgan and Morgan, many of our clients ask us whether it is worth hiring an attorney for a car accident case. Our answer is always that it depends on the circumstances of the vehicle collision. However, most car accident cases require the legal support of an experienced attorney who understands what it takes to get clients the compensation they deserve. Since 1988, Morgan and Morgan has provided legal support for clients that got involved in a car accident resulting in one or more injuries. Since we opened our first office, the personal injury attorneys at Morgan and Morgan have recovered more than $20 billion in compensation for our clients.

Is it worth hiring an attorney for a car accident? The answer is yes if the attorney representing you is from Morgan and Morgan. Schedule a free case evaluation today to determine how to proceed with your case.

Why Is It Worth Hiring an Attorney for a Car Accident?

Hiring a car accident lawyer to handle your case pays off for many reasons. The point to remember that applies to many investments we make is you have to spend money to make money. As we see below, you do not have to spend any upfront money when you work with an attorney from Morgan and Morgan.

Let’s review the reasons why it is worth it to hire an attorney after a car accident.

Conduct a Thorough Investigation

Yes, the law enforcement agency responding to the car accident conducts an investigation to determine what caused the crash, as well as whether any party involved in the crash should assume legal liability. Hiring an attorney helps you collect additional physical evidence, as well as interview witnesses that verify your version of events. At Morgan and Morgan, we assign a properly licensed investigator to every car accident lawyer conducting an investigation. Our investigators capture images of tire marks, property damage, and any indication of negligence committed by another party. 

We also request the footage shot from traffic and security cameras.

File an Insurance Claim

Insurance companies typically love to see policyholders file claims without the legal support provided by an experienced car accident attorney. If you file an insurance claim without retaining legal representation, the insurance company you have to deal with might deny a valid claim or approve a claim that is worth much less than what you deserve. By working with an attorney from Morgan and Morgan, you can expect the insurance adjuster processing your case to offer a fair value for compensation.

A car accident lawyer also closely monitors the progress of your claim to prevent any unnecessary delays.

Determine Negligence

You need the legal expertise of an experienced car accident attorney to determine whether another party committed one or more acts of negligence. The lawyer you hire at Morgan and Morgan must prove the presence of four elements. First, your attorney must show the other party owed you a duty of care to protect you from harm. Second, you have to prove the other party breached the duty of care doctrine by committing at least one act of negligence. Third, your car accident attorney must demonstrate the car accident caused your injuries. Finally, your injuries must have generated financial losses.

File a Civil Lawsuit

If another party committed one or more acts of negligence, a personal injury attorney from Morgan and Morgan helps you file a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. You cannot expect to win a favorable legal judgment without the legal support provided by an experienced lawyer who has compiled a proven record of success. Your attorney crafts and sends a demand letter to initiate the legal process and also argues your case in front of a judge if your case reaches the trial phase of the litigation process. A demand letter presents an offer of compensation and a detailed description of how your attorney calculated a value for compensation.

Negotiate a Settlement

Most civil lawsuits for car accident cases never reach the trial phase of the litigation process. Instead, both parties agree to negotiate a settlement, which starts when your attorney submits an initial offer. The other party can either accept the initial offer or reject it. If the other party rejects the initial offer, you might receive a counteroffer or move on to the trial phase of the litigation process. Several rounds of counteroffers might follow the initial offer until both parties reach an agreement or decide to take the case to trial.

Negotiations often occur during the discovery phase of the litigation process, which involves both parties sharing physical evidence and the statements provided by witnesses.

No Upfront Legal Fees

Perhaps the most convincing argument for hiring an experienced car accident attorney from Morgan and Morgan is you do not have to pay any upfront legal fees. Morgan and Morgan operates on a contingency fee basis, which means the attorney assigned to your case receives a percentage of any compensation you get from an insurance claim and/or a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. Working on a contingency fee basis is in your best financial interest, as it motivates your lawyer to receive the highest value possible for compensation.

The lawyer assigned to your case gets paid only if you get paid.

What Are the Types of Compensation?

The main reason why it is worth hiring an attorney for a car accident is it dramatically improves your chances of receiving compensation. If a judge awards you a legal judgment, you might receive three primary types of compensation.

Special Compensatory Damages

Also called economic damages, special compensatory damages represent the tangible costs associated with your case. Medical bills by far represent the costliest type of tangible expense, as diagnostic tests, treatment programs, and physical therapy sessions can quickly put you in a deep financial hole. You have the right to seek compensation to pay for the costs of prescription medications and any assistive devices you need to improve your mobility. Special compensatory damages also cover the costs associated with lost wages and repairing property damage.

General Compensatory Damages

Victims of car accidents-especially crashes that cause serious injuries-are vulnerable to developing the symptoms triggered by Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD can produce various emotional distress issues like fear, anxiety, and even depression. The negative impact of PTSD and other types of emotional distress issues include diminished earning capacity, as well as the dissolution of once-close personal relationships.

Your car accident attorney calculates a value for pain and suffering by using a formula that factors in the value of economic damages.

Punitive Damages

Although negotiating a settlement saves you both time and money, there are circumstances in which filing a civil lawsuit makes financial sense. If another party committed an act of negligence, the judge hearing your case might award you punitive damages. This type of compensation does not pay for tangible costs such as medical bills. Instead, punitive damages punish the defendant for causing you harm. 

If the defendant committed at least one act of intentional negligence, you might receive a value for punitive damages that exceeds the combined value of special and general compensatory damages.

What Is the Deadline for Filing a Car Accident Lawsuit?

A car accident falls under the general practice of personal injury law. Each state has established a deadline for filing a personal injury lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. Most states have set a statute of limitations between two and four years, although you might live in a state that grants plaintiffs as long as six years or as short as one year to take legal action. The clock usually starts ticking on the statute of limitations on the day of a car accident. However, you can seek an extension if one or more of your injuries developed delayed symptoms.

Regardless of how much time you have to file a car accident lawsuit, you should act with a sense of urgency for two reasons. First, your attorney needs to interview witnesses as soon as possible after a vehicle collision. Witness accounts tend to be more accurate the closer they are given to the car accident date. Secondly, acting with a sense of urgency helps you recover financial losses much quicker than if you wait close to the deadline to file a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. Unless your healthcare providers agree to place a medical lien on your compensation, you are responsible for taking care of medical bills when they come due.

Now that you know the answer to the question, “Is it worth hiring an attorney for a car accident,” schedule a free case evaluation with one of the personal injury lawyers from Morgan and Morgan.