GILBERT AUTO ACCIDENT FAQs
Our Gilbert Personal Injury Attorneys answer some of the most asked questions regarding auto accidents in Gilbert, injury accidents in Gilbert, and questions that our car accident lawyers are frequently asked. With reduced rate attorney fees, our Gilbert Injury Lawyers put more of your settlement into your pocket. We will never make more off of your accident than you.
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You may need to go to court eventually if you can’t reach a settlement with the other party. However, this is rare- approximately 95% of personal injury claims settle out of court.
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States vary on how they treat accident victims who weren’t wearing a seatbelt. In Arizona, your damages will be reduced to the extent that your injuries were aggravated by not wearing a seatbelt. For example, if your damages were 20% higher due to not wearing a seatbelt, your claim’s value will be reduced by 20 percent.
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You should first pull over to a safe area out of traffic, if possible. Check to see if you or any passengers are in need of immediate medical attention. Even if an ambulance isn’t necessary, you may want to call police to the scene. You should exchange insurance information with the other driver. You should also take pictures and/or videos of the scene to later use as evidence. If there are any passersby who witnessed the accident, you should get their information as well.
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If you are the victim of a hit and run, calling the police will be even more crucial to your case. You will need to file a report detailing the accident so the police can pursue the other driver. It will also be important to look out for witnesses and check nearby establishments for security footage of the incident. You should take detailed notes of the incident and seek medical treatment as soon as possible. Your next step should be to contact a personal injury attorney.
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If you have health insurance coverage, you may pay your out-of-pocket expenses and be compensated later for them through your claim. In this case, your health insurance company may also request subrogation, or compensation for their contributions towards your medical costs. You may also have medical coverage through your auto insurance policy, often known as MedPay. If these options aren’t available to you, you can receive treatment through medical liens. Here, your doctors would be paid out of your personal injury award.
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The process will begin when you send the insurance company your demand letter, or if the insurance company contacts you with a settlement offer. The insurance company will use adjusters, who will negotiate with you in order to settle your claim. If you are unrepresented, you will need to speak to the adjusters yourself, and will often need to speak on a recorded line. Any statements you make could hurt the value of your case. Contact a personal injury attorney before speaking with either driver’s insurance company.
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Insurance companies vary in how long they give you to report an accident. You should check the terms of your policy to make sure you report in the given time frame, as you may need your own insurance to cover some costs of your vehicle repairs and medical treatments.
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You don’t have to accept the first offer from the insurance company, or any of them, for that matter. Typically, there will be some negotiation with the insurance company after their initial offer or counteroffer. If negotiations are unfruitful or you never receive a sufficient offer, you will file your claim in court.
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Your insurance rates may be higher after an accident, especially if you were at fault in the accident. Some auto insurance providers offer policies with accident forgiveness, so that being in an accident won’t raise your rates.
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You can collect several types of damages in a personal injury claim, including medical expenses, future medical expenses, lost wages, lost earning potential, loss of consortium, wrongful death, emotional distress, and pain and suffering. It is rare, but you may also be awarded punitive damages in a jury trial.
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You aren’t required to hire a lawyer to represent you in a personal injury claim, but you also won’t be provided with a court-appointed lawyer. An injury lawyer will take care of every step of the personal injury claim process for you, including helping you with medical liens and MedPay, coordinating with doctors and accident professionals, calculating your damages, negotiating with insurance, and more. Another benefit is that when you retain a personal injury lawyer, all correspondence regarding your case must go directly to your attorney first. Most injury lawyers charge on a contingency basis, so you won’t pay anything up front. You should at least consult with an injury lawyer before initiating your personal injury claim.
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It may be unnecessary to call the police to the scene of a minor accident. However, you should call the police, or they may come on their own, to more serious accidents. Having a police report from the incident can speed up the personal injury process. While not definitive, the police may list one driver as at fault for the accident, which will be a piece of evidence used in your favor in your case. The police may also section off the scene from traffic, making it safer and easier to determine what actually happened in the accident.
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The rear driver is usually at fault in a rear end collision, but this isn’t true in 100% of cases. The driver in front may stop suddenly and unnecessarily, fail to use proper lights and turn signals, may have cut off the driver coming to a stop at an intersection, and more. Don’t assume you’re at fault just because you were the rear driver- call a Gilbert personal injury attorney first to assess the facts of your case.
ANSWER:
You may know someone in the area who hired a trustworthy attorney for their case, but if not, you will need to look for one yourself. You can check the state bar for a listing of personal injury attorneys in your area. You can also check search engines with client ratings like Yelp and Google. For more specialized searches, check attorney-focused search sites like Avvo and Nolo. And if you’re interested in the benefits of hiring our firm, call (480) 833-8000 or use our online form to schedule your free consultation today.
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