What You Need to Know About the Injury Settlement Negotiation Process
Did you know that the vast majority of personal injury lawsuits are not settled in the courtroom? Instead, these are part of the injury settlement negotiation process that may be handled by your personal injury lawyer, you, and the insurance company. Identifying the next steps you need to take to protect yourself is important because the determination of your injury settlement amount will have far reaching impacts on your life.
Personal Injury Settlements
You may be able to recover compensation to assist you with your medical bills, pain and suffering and other damages tied to the accident. The support of a lawyer cannot be overstated during this time as the insurance company may be counting on your lack of knowledge about this situation to encourage you to take a settlement amount far less than what would truly support you for many years to come.
You deserve to have an attorney who will review every aspect of your case and tell you more about what you can anticipate going forward with the injury settlement negotiation process. A few typical steps in the settlement process include:
- Requesting a high amount for settlement in your written demand letter.
- An insurance adjuster contacts you and tells you that there is a concern about liability or the care you received.
- You respond to these arguments in full with documentation.
- The adjuster will make a counter offer to determine whether or not you are in a hurry to accept a settlement amount and whether they may be able to encourage you to take one.
- You may concede and come back with another demand that is slightly lower than your first but higher than the one that the insurance carrier offers to you.
Back and forth, you and the insurance adjustor may go trying to arrive at a number that fully and fairly compensates you for the injuries you sustained. However, you may not understand the full scope of your injuries until you have had an attorney look at your case.
Schedule a Consultation With a New Jersey Personal Injury Lawyer
This is primarily because the severity of your injury may not be readily apparent to you and you may be confused with how to proceed. If you accept a settlement offer that is far too low, you cannot come back after the fact and argue that the insurance company should give you more money. This can be a major mistake in your case and one that can be easily avoided with the support of the proper personal injury lawyer. Contact an experienced New Jersey personal injury lawyer today.
The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.