How Can You File For A Personal Injury Claim
If you are injured in an accident, you may need to file for a personal injury claim to receive compensation from the other person or the entity involved in the accident. It may become challenging if you have never filed a lawsuit for personal injury before. But, if you have filed for it previously, you should know it is not something you want to do through trial and error. A Los Angeles injury attorney is specialized in their field and will guide you through every possible step to file a lawsuit.
How can you file for a personal injury claim?
To file a personal injury claim, you must follow the steps mentioned below.
1. Seek medical treatment
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It is the most important thing to do after an accident. Some people think that they do not feel any pain after the accident and it would be unnecessary to seek medical treatment. But, it is wrong. Since every insurance company requires your medical bill and treatment paperwork to continue forward with your compensation process, and if you cannot provide legit medical proof, there will be high chances of terminating your compensation process.
It does not end here. The other party’s insurance company may use the fact that you did not seek any medical help and question the severity of your injuries and compensation.
2. Hire an experienced personal injury attorney
You can settle small injury claims on your own. If you are involved in a minor accident, you are only required to visit the hospital once.
But suppose you are involved in a significant accident where treating your injuries needs multiple hospital visits. In that case, you may need to hire a personal injury lawyer who will help you in compensating your entire cost of the medical treatment.
Even if you do not want to hire a professional injury lawyer, contacting one will be of much help. You can discuss the requirements and legal procedures for filing a claim.
3. Set up your claim and gather information
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The third step is to file a claim for yourself and inform the other party and their insurance provider that you plan to file a claim. To make this process successful, you need to gather information and get treated for your treatments. All you need to do is collect every possible information related to your injury treatment and other damages. Contact your doctor and ask if you need further future medical treatments, and make sure you include the information.
Should you settle your personal injury claim?
When the insurance adjuster comes to you to settle the claim, it may look tempting to settle your case, thinking this is the maximum compensation you will get. However, experienced attorneys advise you to remain patient and not settle your claim until you know the full extent of your physical injury.
Things to know before settling your claim
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Before you settle your claim, here are a few things to know:
- Calculate all the medical bills you have paid, including medications and future medical bills that you will have to pay.
- All the permanent or temporary physical and mental injuries.
- Your doctor’s report has linked all your physical injuries.
- How much amount your healthcare insurance company is asking back from your settlement amount.
- All the lost wages due to your injury and the work you will miss ahead.
- The extent of property damage due to the accident.
