Getting into a car crash can easily be one of the scariest things that will happen to a person. It’s so easy to convince yourself that you are perfectly safe out there on the road, just because of how frequently we drive. After years of driving daily with no incidents, we fall into a false sense of security behind the wheel. It’s easy to start to believe that you can go your whole life with ever needing a car accident lawyer.

 This complacency tends to be the issue in and of itself. We as daily drivers forget just how dangerous the road can be as we safely commute to and from work and errands every day. The fact that we are soft, vulnerable bags of water and flesh, that are travelling through space at speeds we are naturally never meant to travel at, in large hunks of metal and plastic, is lost over time. This is why you see people speeding down the road weaving in and out of traffic, desperately trying to save 60 to 90 seconds on their commute. These people have clearly forgotten just how dangerous driving like that is, and do not understand how close they are to hurting or killing themselves or others.

When that day finally comes and you are involved in a serious car accident, in the span of a single second, you will understand just how dangerous driving really is.  Depending on the seriousness of the crash, you could be forever scarred from the incident.

The last thing that you want to think about after an injury causing crash is finding a car accident lawyer. You may even consider not hiring an injury attorney at all. Certainly, the nice insurance adjuster that appeared out of nowhere minutes after the crash doesn’t think you need one. So, are there situations where you will not need representation after an injury causing car accident?

The Ways the Insurance Agencies will Try to Trick You

The insurance agencies train their adjusters to pretend that they are on your side. They will approach you in a very friendly manner and claim that they are there to help you get your money as fast as possible. Nothing could be farther from the truth. It is always in the best interest of the insurance agency to pay you as little as possible after you have been in a car crash. They will pull out all the stops to try to trick you into admitting that you were at fault, or even partially at fault for the crash.

The first thing they will do is call you immediately after the accident. They know that if you have been injured, you will be in pain and possibly on pain medication. They will make vague promises that they will pay your hospital bills and all you must do it make a statement on the record about the crash. This statement will ask a lot of leading questions with the purpose of trying to get you to admit fault. If you make this statement before you talk to a car accident lawyer, you will very likely damage your ability to get fair compensation.

The answers to their questions of the statement will be completely used out of context if the case goes to court. Even if you stated that you didn’t sleep very well the night before, the insurance agencies will claim that you were driving exhausted and that contributed to the car crash. One of the questions on the statement could ask “how are you today?” and if you answer “fine”, then they could use that as evidence that your injuries are insignificant and therefore, they do not have to pay.

How a Car Accident Lawyer Can Help You Get Paid

The insurance agencies will send out an insurance adjuster as quickly as possible, with the hopes that they will be able to get your statement before you have a chance to talk to an injury lawyer. Most ordinary folks will not know anything about personal injury procedure and therefore not understand just how much they may be entitled to in compensation. After getting your statement, the insurance adjuster may try to get you to agree on a low-ball first offer.

If you retain the services of an experienced car accident lawyer first thing, it will be your attorney that the insurance agencies will have to deal with.  Your lawyer will likely reject the first low-ball offer and begin gathering all the evidence and proof of damages. This evidence will be sent to the insurance agency by your lawyer along with a demand letter. This letter will have a dollar amount that your attorney demands that the insurance agency pay in order to avoid a lawsuit.

The chances of the insurance agency paying out a fair amount of compensation at this point will be much greater than if you did not retain a lawyer. At this point the insurance company will have to gauge whether paying the amount on the demand letter would be less expensive for them than to try to take the matter to court. This is where the evidence comes into play. Even if the insurance agency pays the massive amount of legal fees to take the matter to trial, the evidence will determine their chances of winning. They won’t risk paying out all that money in legal fees if there is a chance they will just end up losing at trial.

Are There Instances Where Retaining Lawyer Can Hurt Your Case?

 If you have been injured in an auto accident and another was at fault, it would always be in your best interest to hire a lawyer. Many car accident lawyers will not charge you for your consultation, nor will they ask for an upfront retainer like a divorce or criminal defense lawyer. They will take their fee out of the money you receive as a settlement or award in court. This makes hiring an injury attorney easy as you don’t have to come out of pocket to get them on your side.

However, just like any profession you will find some bad apples in the personal injury lawyer field. The majority of lawyers take their jobs very seriously and will do everything in their power to do the very best job possible for their clients. But that isn’t to say EVERY injury lawyer will act this way. If you are getting a divorce or are facing criminal charges, there are attorneys that will promise you the world just to get a retainer out of you. Fortunately, personal injury cases are different.

A good lawyer will sit down with you and obtain as much information as possible during the initial consultation so that they can determine your chances of getting a settlement for your injury. Unlike with other areas of the law, they do this so that they can determine their chances of getting paid as well. Since injury attorney’s will take their fees out of the money you are paid, it doesn’t make much sense for them to BS you on your chances of getting that money.

If you do hire a car accident lawyer, and they drop the ball, they are not only hurting you, but they are also hurting themselves. This is why when you are looking for a personal injury attorney, chances are when they tell you that you have a good chance of getting paid you can believe them.

Car Accident Lawyers at Justice Law Center

Our team of experienced personal injury lawyers at Justice Law Center have been fighting for the Ely Nevada community for over 25 years. Chances are one of your friends or neighbors have relied on Justice Law Center to get a fair settlement from the insurance agencies at one point or another.

We care about all our clients, and do not shy away from a fight. While a long, drawn-out trial is the last thing that anyone wants, if we need to go to trial to get what is fair for you and your family, we are always ready.

If you are injured, and you need an excellent car accident lawyer, call us today for a free consultation.