A car accident in Georgia may leave you wondering when you will be able to get compensation for your injuries. You may be experiencing significant financial stress in addition to medical expenses and lost income. When faced with these challenges, it's essential that you have an experienced car accident lawyer in Duluth, Georgia, who can help you get compensation.
Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers has nearly three decades of experience obtaining just and fair compensation for clients. Our firm handles all aspects of our client's injury cases so that they can focus on recovery. The staff at our firm is known for being friendly, approachable, and providing clients with regular updates.
Our team at Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers wants to help if you were injured or lost a loved one in an auto accident due to someone else's recklessness. For a free case evaluation, contact us at 404-842-7700 to learn more about your legal options.
The length of time it takes to settle a personal injury claim depends on many factors. For instance, some cases may take just a couple of months, while others may take many years.
Because some cases are complicated, it is impossible for an attorney to give you an idea of how long it will take. However, they will do everything in their power to ensure that your case is resolved as quickly as possible.
You must file a personal injury claim to begin the settlement process when you are injured in a car accident. Before you speak with an insurance company, consult with a Georgia car accident lawyer. If you need advice on your claim, you can talk to Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers in Atlanta or Duluth, GA, for free.
A lawyer will review the facts of your case with you and explain how the personal injury claims process works. They could also help you decide what steps to take based on your unique case.
After your consultation, you can hire an attorney to help you recover compensation and protect your rights in dealing with the insurance company.
The insurance company will review your medical bills and damages when you file a claim. After that, they may deny your claim or offer you a low settlement. In that case, your lawyer can negotiate with the company to ensure that you get the compensation you deserve. There may be some waiting involved, including sending demand letters and waiting for responses. The lawyers at Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers are not afraid to take your case to court if a fair settlement cannot be reached.
Several steps play a role in settling a typical Georgia car accident case following a car accident.
Collecting Evidence
In order to begin gathering evidence for your injury claim, your car accident lawyer will meet with you as soon as possible following the accident. The team may gather medical records, police reports, witness statements, and more to help compile evidence.
Your medical records are crucial to your personal injury case. Medical treatment must be completed before the value of your claim can be determined. In some cases, healing takes months or requires ongoing treatment. It is essential to include all of these expenses in your personal injury claim.
Filing Your Claim
After your medical treatment is complete, your doctor will give you all your medical records. The process of collecting these records can take up to 45-60 days in some cases.
Your lawyer may then file a claim on your behalf against the insurance company of the at-fault party. A demand letter may then be sent by your lawyer detailing all of your damages.
Insurer Negotiations
It is the insurer's responsibility to respond to your demand letter promptly after receiving it. Because insurance companies hope to convince you to accept low settlement offers, they drag their feet in responding. A lawyer with experience will know whether to follow up with the insurance company at this point.
In some cases, the insurance company may respond quickly to your claim, but with a very low offer. Due to your financial needs, they hope you will accept this offer out of desperation.
The first thing you should do if this happens is to reach out to a car accident lawyer if you don't already have one. Personal injury attorneys like those at Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers have handled cases like yours for years and could determine if the insurance company's offer is appropriate.
Filing a Lawsuit
Depending on the situation, your lawyer may recommend filing a lawsuit if the insurance company won't increase their offer. Litigation preparation can take a month or more. Normally, the other party has 30 days to respond to your lawsuit after you file it. When a lawsuit is threatened, insurance companies are usually less inclined to take the case to court and are more inclined to settle. If they don't offer a fair settlement, then your lawyer may prepare you to take them to court.
Discovery and Trial
A discovery phase occurs when both sides ask questions and request documents to gather information. If the case is complicated, it may take several months.
In many cases, the discovery phase leads to a settlement. The trial will proceed if this does not happen. Typically, Georgia car accident trials last around two days, but much preparation takes place beforehand. During the trial, you will be required to attend, while a jury or judge will decide whether or not you should receive compensation.
How long your claim takes to settle can be affected by a number of factors. Some of these include:
Injury Recovery Time
It will take you some time to fully recover from your injuries before you receive a final estimate of your medical bills. Once you have fully recovered, you can estimate how much your medical costs will be and what future medical treatment you may need. In addition, you could include any lost income resulting from time missed at work for medical reasons. You may be able to settle your claim with the help of an accident lawyer after recovering from the accident.
Insurance Company in No Rush to Settle
Generally speaking, the more significant an accident is, the longer it will take for a lawsuit to be resolved. An insurance company will investigate your claim in order to find any small piece of information they can use against you. Additionally, they may take a long time to offer or pay settlements.
You may benefit from the services of a car accident lawyer if you have been injured in a car accident. A legal professional has a good understanding of insurance companies' tactics and can communicate with them effectively.
Questioning of Liability
Proving negligence and establishing liability can be challenging after a car accident. In situations where fault is shared, comparative negligence determines which party is responsible for damages. The settlement process could be delayed if liability has to be determined.
Depending on the details of each case, the time it takes to settle a car accident claim varies. After an accident, you should contact a Georgia car accident lawyer as soon as possible. Contacting an attorney is the first step in putting the process in motion for your claim.
Attorney Allen Broughton is here to assist you after you've been injured in a car accident. After helping thousands of victims of car accidents get the settlements they deserve over the past three decades, our firm knows what it takes to get the best outcome.
Fill out the quick online form or call 404-842-7700 to speak with an attorney at Broughton Accident & Injury Lawyers.
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