If you were injured in an auto crash, you need the compensation you could be entitled to from the negligent driver to reimburse you for your mounting medical bills and lost wages. You may have been unprepared for how costly your medical care would be or how long you would need to be off work recovering from your injuries. One of your first questions when you meet with an attorney could be: How much is my case really worth?
Factors That Influence the Value of Your Case
While an attorney cannot give you an exact amount of compensation you will receive in a settlement, an experienced attorney should be able to value your case after talking to you and investigating the cause of your wreck and your damages. He should be able to give you a ballpark idea of what your case is worth based on your facts and his experience handling other similar cases. Factors that could determine the bottom line of your case include:
Extent of your injuries.
If your injuries are serious and your medical expenses high, this could result in the value of your case being more, and your pain and suffering damages being taken more seriously by the insurance company as well.
Lost wages.
If you were off work recovering from your injuries – especially for a longer period of time – this also helps prove that you were really injured seriously and increases how much your case is worth.
Insurance coverage.
The bottom line is that you need to get paid the amount of compensation you are entitled to. The other driver having good insurance coverage increases the value of your case because you have a good source of money to pay you the compensation you deserve.
Witnesses support your claim.
If you have witnesses – especially neutral parties you do not know – who saw your accident and support your version of what happened, this strengthens your claim of the other driver’s liability – and ultimately your settlement.
Permanent injuries.
If you suffered permanent injuries, limitations in what you can do, or permanent disfigurement or scarring, these factors will mean that you will have more medical expenses, lost wages, and physical and emotional distress – increasing the settlement amount you should receive.
Documented pain and suffering.
Being able to document your emotional trauma through your testimony, witness testimony, a pain and suffering diary, and expert testimony, such as your therapist, can help convince the insurance adjuster that your case is worth much more than he is offering to pay.
Your attorney.
Having an experienced car accident attorney on your case can significantly increase the value of your claim. He will anticipate the insurance company’s tactics to deny or reduce your claim and will have strategies to defeat them, meaning that you will most likely receive more compensation than you could get on your own.
Have You Been Involved In A Henderson Or Las Vegas Car Accident?
If you’ve been injured in a car accident you need to speak with an experienced car accident lawyer as soon as possible. Contact us online or call our Henderson office directly at 702.405.6000 to schedule a free initial consultation.