Do I Need an Attorney?

This is an important question that many people ask. There are several advantages that an attorney can offer you if you have been injured. I will itemize some of them below, but first please understand this about our firm:

Relationships

When we represent a client, we want that client to be so happy with the service we provide, that he or she will become a client for life – calling us for any other legal need which they may have.  In other words, we are in the relationship business.

The information below explains how you benefit by having a lawyer represent you.  But first please know that when our office represents you, we will be watching over you, ready to answer any questions you have at any time and will take good care of you. These personal relationships are what our law firm is all about.  They are what set us apart from our competitors.

Why Do You Benefit By Having An Attorney?

First, having the right lawyer can get you put into the hands of some of the best doctors and therapists in the area to make sure you get the health care you need. This is true even if you do not have health insurance or even if your health insurance plan does not cover the costs of these particular health care providers. This is very difficult to do without a good lawyer.

Second, we understand the intricacies of insurance law, and know the best way to set up your medical care. For example, we can advise you when it makes sense to use your health insurance, your medical payment coverage, your Personal Injury Protection, or when it is better to simply have the doctor and/or therapist wait until the end of your case to get paid. (This also is very difficult to do without a good lawyer.)

Third, we can save you time and stress. It is challenging work to properly handle a personal injury case, especially when it isn’t your daily business, as it is ours.

One has to know how to work with an adversarial adjuster, properly prepare claims in a fashion that cover all of your economic damages (including potential future medical needs), properly dissect, analyze and document wage claims, assemble demand packages in the manner that maximizes their impact and persuasiveness, negotiate in a fashion that effectively incorporates the Rules of Civil Procedure and handle all the unexpected twists and turns in a case We have been doing exactly that – every day – for many decades.  We know how to maximize the fair value of your case.

Fourth, we are familiar with the laws that may allow you to be compensated twice for the cost of your medical bills (there are laws which specifically allow this in certain situations). This can increase the amount of your recovery.

Fifth, one of the dangers that injury victims face is the smooth-talking insurance adjuster. Insurance adjusters want to settle your claim before you get legal help. The reason for this is simple. If they can, it will save the insurance company a lot of money.

Insurance companies have different adjusters who are assigned different tasks. The adjusters who speak with injury victims in the early part of a claim are carefully trained to do the following things:

• Be smooth, express compassion, and imply that their only interest is to help you
• Offer you a quick settlement
• Explain that a quick settlement will get you your money faster, and save you hassles
• Talk you out of calling a lawyer
• Convince you that a lawyer will cost you money
• Convince you that a lawyer will not be able to get your settlement increased

It is very profitable for the insurance company when an adjuster can talk you into settling your claim without a lawyer. That is why insurance adjusters will try to persuade you to accept a payment early on and sign a “Release”.

One of the ways that insurance adjusters will try to get you to settle a case is by “advising you” about what the actual value of your claim is. What they do not tell you is that there is usually no connection between the amount they offer and what a court would say your claim is actually worth. In other words, they try to take advantage of unrepresented accident victims.

Furthermore, there is no way an adjuster can know early on actual value of your claim. A quick settlement does not take into consideration the extent of physical injuries, as well as any lasting effects which may not show up until much later. Remember who the adjusters are working for. They get paid to represent the interests of the insurance company, not you. Who is protecting your interests?

The value of speaking to an attorney is multi-fold:

• It allows you to get an overview of what can and cannot be done for you;
• You will learn what your expectations should and should not be;
• You will learn how the process works, and what the applicable time frames are;
• It allows you to get your questions answered by someone who has your best interests in mind – not someone who has their own agenda;
• Most importantly, it puts you in a position to make an INFORMED decision as to what is best for you.

Sixth: For people savvy enough not to fall for the “fast and quick settlement” trick of the insurance company and who decide that they will wait until the end of their treatment to try and settle the case, there is an entirely new set of insurance adjuster traps which await.

1. The adjuster for the insurance company was very nice and very reassuring immediately after your injury and as you went through your treatment.

• The adjuster said all the right things to make you feel safe and comfortable.
• The adjuster assured you that you did not need a lawyer, and that they would pay for everything.
• HOWEVER, this adjuster never put any of these reassuring promises in writing.

This means you have no evidence or proof of what the adjuster said.

2. However, now that you have finished your treatment, THINGS HAVE CHANGED:

• The adjuster now has a completely different attitude.
• The adjuster is;

 

The reason their trap is so effective is because by the time you finish your treatment, you will have lost the opportunity to protect yourself

Delay in retaining a lawyer plays directly into the hands of the insurance company. By the time you have finished your treatment, tried handling the case yourself, and found out the insurance company promises were empty, it has become much harder for the lawyer to be able to help you.

Why?

Because a lawyer coming into a case long after the treatment has been completed is at a significant disadvantage.  The insurance company will have set many road blocks and obstacles in place by then, all or most of which the lawyer could have prevented had he or she been involved in the case from the beginning.

Seventh: What is the Golden Rule why insurance companies treat people without attorneys poorly in the end?

The reason is because THERE IS NO RISK TO THEM.  You pose no threat. You cannot hurt them.

• When an injury victim does not have a lawyer, there is no threat to the  insurance company of being sued if they do not act fairly. The injury victim presents no risk to the insurance company, so there is no incentive for the insurance company to act in good faith.
• That is why an insurance company never wants an injured person to hire a lawyer. Because when there is no lawyer, the insurance company is free to do what it does best – which is to deny, delay, and defend the claim.

 

Solution:

It is only when you have a lawyer who is skilled and experienced in navigating the court system that the potential threat of a high verdict from a jury can begin to weigh heavily over the heads of an insurance company.   That is how to get a fair and just recovery in an injury case.  That is how you get full compensation.  And since you are the one to decide whether you accept a settlement offer the lawyer gets for you, you remain in control.

If you’ve been injured in an accident, call attorney Bruce Blaylock. You can reach us toll free at 888-215-2968, or fill out a free online consultation form.