Auto Insurance Claims

Some lawyers will charge you a percentage of the claim. After an accident, you may want to seek legal advice, but you may not necessarily have to rush to retain a lawyer. You probably don't need to retain counsel when the accident was a simple rear end accident and you were not injured. Just exchange details, settle for property damage, get your medical bills paid, if you have any, and let it go.

Seeking legal advice under those conditions is a waste of your time. Many times, accident injuries are not severe enough to warrant the outright rejection of a company's first offer.

When to Get Legal Advice for Your Auto Insurance Claim

There are cases in which hiring a lawyer may be the next logical step. If there's a dispute about who's at fault in the accident, we recommend that you at least have an initial visit with a lawyer. And anyone who is seriously injured in an accident should seek legal counsel. Serious injuries are not always evident right away, so even if you receive emergency care, you should have a follow-up visit with your regular doctor.

Claimants also don't often know to seek and document medical treatment right away after an accident. If you don't and your injuries are still with you six months later, claims of long-term injury are hard to prove because you don't have a doctor's documentation to back you up.

The Lawyer's Cut

Most personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis and don't charge a fee for an initial consultation. However, expect to give up — at the very least — 25 percent of your settlement to your attorney.

Most lawyers take one-third of the settlement agreement, but if you go to trial, expect your attorney's cut to reach 40 percent. Some lawyers even take as much as 50 percent of the settlement after a trial.

In rare cases, lawyers will charge an hourly rate, but 99 percent of the time attorneys will take one-third of the settlement. The fees lawyers can take may seem exorbitant, but they are within the limits of the law. Most states have authorized personal injury lawyers to take up to 40 percent of a settlement they negotiate.

How long till I get my money?

Many severe auto accident cases last about nine months; but that includes only injury-recovery time and arbitration, not the trial process. The injury-recovery process is the most time-consuming, but most important, lasting six months on average. The general time frame for an injury settlement is about nine months. If you decide to file a lawsuit, but the suit is settled before it goes to trial, expect a resolution about 13 months after the accident. If you go to trial, it may take over a year before it is settled.

Questions & Answers Regarding Obtaining The Services Of A Lawyer:

QUESTION: “Is it necessary to obtain the services of a lawyer who will take a cut of one third of the settlement he recovers from the insurance company of the individual who struck you?“

ANSWER: “Yes, there are some situations where it makes sense to do so“. HOWEVER: Especially in a case where the impact is absolutely not your fault in any way, shape, manor or form - - you should be clear with the lawyer you choose that those out-of-pocket expenses you would have been paid (weather they represented you or not) should not be part of his settlement!

Let’s say, for example: You were at a dead stop while waiting for a light to change from red to green, when struck a tremendous blow in the rear by a distracted driver. It’s 100% clear to all concerned that the damages you received will be paid by the insurance company of the individual that struck you.

The property damage to your motor vehicle is $2,800, your lost wages are $450, your final Doctor’s bill (plus all your other Out-Of-Pocket “Medical Expenses”) comes to $750 for a total (Property Damages/Lost Wages/Medical Bills) of $4,000. you live in an area where the lawyers typical “Contingency Fee” is 33 1/3%. QUESTION: “Should that lawyer take 33/13% ($1,333.33) of that $4,000“? ANSWER: “No“! QUESTION: “Why not“? ANSWER: “Because you were going to get that $4,000 weather there was a lawyer representing you or not“! In a situation where the liability is clear the attorney should take, as his fee, 33 1/3% of everything he gets above and beyond , that $4,000!

So, let’s say the attorney obtained a settlement of $4,800 for your “Pain and Suffering”. When that figure is added to the $4,000 of Out-Of-Pocket Expenses (as detailed above) the total would come to $8,800. To be fair he should not take 1/3 of $8,800 ($2,933.33 - - thus leaving you with $5,866.66) but 1/3 of the $4,800 ($1,600 - - thus leaving you with $7,200). QUESTION: “What has he done to earn that additional $1,333.34? from your Auto Insurance claim? “ ANSWER: “Absolutely nothing”!