When Should You Hire a Personal Injury Attorney?

After an injury, there are a lot of unknowns. You may be struggling to answer when the day will finally come that you’ll make a full recovery (if a full recovery is expected), who will pay your medical bills and living expenses while you’re unable to work, when the insurance company will finally offer you a settlement, who is really to blame for your injuries and what your rights are, and whether or not you should hire a personal injury lawyer.

While the majority of the above questions cannot be answered without the opinions of various professionals, whether or not to hire a personal injury attorney is a decision you can likely come to on your own. Here is a look into various injury situations, and circumstances when a lawyer either is or is not an essential case asset:

Your Injuries Are Debilitating, Severe, or Long-Term

One of the key signs that working with an attorney is in your best interest is in the event that your injuries are debilitating, severe, or long-term. Severe injuries are those that impair bodily function, or that cause disability or disfigurement.

The reason an attorney may be especially important if your injuries are severe is this: The more serious your injuries, the greater the value of your claim; the greater the value of your claim, the more an insurance adjuster will try to avoid paying you your full settlement amount. In such cases, it is very important to have skilled legal counsel in your corner aggressively advocating for your rights and interests.  

You Think You’re Being Shorted or Cheated

Most of us expect our insurance companies to work for us, especially if we’ve paid our premiums on time and in full for months or years. Similarly, we also expect that if we are involved in an accident and we file a claim against the liability insurance of another party, that insurance company will also work promptly and in good faith to provide us a fair settlement.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out this way. In fact, unscrupulous tactics are often used in the personal injury claims determination process. For example, an insurance adjuster may “spy” on you and document your whereabouts in order to undermine your claim of injury, use your social media posts against you, try to place fault for the accident on your shoulders, offer you a lowball settlement offer in hopes that you will accept it out of resignation, or completely fail to call you back altogether, hoping that you’ll become so frustrated that you just give up and the clock will run out.

If you get the distinct impression that you are being cheated or shorted by an insurance adjuster, contact a personal injury lawyer right away. At the very least, an attorney can review your case for free and provide you with some additional insight and a professional opinion as to what may be going on.

Your Virginia Injury Case Is Complicated

While some personal injury cases are relatively straightforward, many are very complex and there is doubt about liability, there are multiple potentially liable parties involved, the extent of injuries and losses has yet to be determined, the primary defendant isn’t insured, the claim has been denied, etc. When your case is complicated, trying to manage it yourself can be overwhelming, especially if you don’t have any legal training, and made more so by the fact that you are recuperating from your injuries. Instead of attempting to tackle the claims process on your own, contact someone who has years of experience and a trusted reputation.

When You May Be Able to Manage Your Case on Your Own

There are some cases wherein it may be possible to handle the case without a personal injury attorney. If your injuries are minor, everyone involved has insurance, fault is agreed upon, and you feel like you’ve been offered a fair settlement that you’re happy with, it might be in your best interest to accept the offer and move on with your life.

That being said, seeking a free consultation from a personal injury lawyer is never a bad idea. Even if your case is “easy,” an attorney’s opinion can offer comfort and reassurance, and provide you with guidance moving forward. If you do decide to hire an attorney, know that personal injury attorneys always work on a contingency fee basis. This means you only pay attorney fees if they win your case.

Our Virginia Personal Injury Lawyer Is Here to Help

At the Straw Law Firm, our Virginia personal injury lawyer is ready to answer your questions and review your case for no charge. Please call us at (434) 595-3581, visit our office in person, or send a secure and confidential message through our web contact form telling us more about your situation.