Filing Personal Injury Claims: How To Recover Damages After A Car Accident

In this article, you’ll discover:

• A step-by-step guide that explains what to do if you’ve been in a car accident.
• The common questions people have about car accident claims in Arizona and Washington State.
• How a team of experts can help you determine whether you have a Diminished Value Claim – risk-free!

What Do You Do If You’ve Been Injured In A Car Accident?

Call The Police

If you are able to, calling emergency services is the first, most important step in any accident. This step is crucial to ensure that everyone who needs it receives medical attention, hazards are cleared from the road, and every fact of the accident is well-documented.

The police reports that are created at the scene will provide the evidence necessary to prove liability in your injury claim later on. Very often, people admit fault at the scene of the accident only to retract their culpability when the insurance company gets involved.

Seek Medical Attention

Sometimes, car accidents can cause injuries that don’t cause symptoms at first. If you wait to go to the doctor, it may be too late to treat the cause of it. What’s more, medical records will be important to recover compensation for the medical attention you may need down the road.

It’s important to note: In some cases, the value of a claim will change if a person waited to have their injuries treated days or weeks later by a primary care physician as opposed to the emergency room, an ambulance, etc.

Contact Select Law

It’s often very challenging to speak to the other party’s insurance provider without an attorney. Insurance companies often do whatever they can to minimize the value of your claim and settle at the lowest possible dollar amount. This includes your own insurance company.

Because insurance companies have robust resources at their disposal, working with a personal injury will mean that you have an expert advocate in your corner working to find the compensation you need and deserve.

Will It Hurt My Personal Injury Claim If I’m Partially At Fault For An Accident?

One of the key aspects of any personal injury claim is liability: Who caused the accident?

Liability is directly concerned with the question of “who owes who?” And because of the court’s view of liability as a spectrum of percentages, you are still likely to be entitled to compensation – even if you were partially at fault for an accident.

What does this mean for your case? The value of your claim will be determined, and you will be entitled to receive that amount minus the percentage of your liability that has been agreed to or calculated by the court.

How Long Do You Have To File A Personal Injury Claim?

Each state sets its own Statute of Limitations for different civil and criminal court matters. This Statute of Limitations is the period within which you can file a lawsuit, before the matter is considered “expired”.

In most cases, the Statute of Limitations for personal injury claims in two years in Arizona and three years in Washington State.

Can I Recover Damages In A Personal Injury Claim If I Was Hit By An Uninsured or Underinsured Driver?

There are legal options available to those who have been hit by an Uninsured Motorist (UM) or Underinsured Motorist (UIM) in an accident. Typically, your personal injury claims attorney will do research to help you decide how you will seek to recover damages. This research usually shows the better of two options:

In the first, your lawyer will look to find the insurance policy of the at-fault party. Based on the information compiled in the investigation of that person’s overall assets, your attorney may suggest pursuing a claim against that person or their insurance provider.

In the second, your attorney may suggest filing a claim through the UM/UIM benefits you hold on your own insurance policy. Alternatively, you may pursue coverage through the Medical Payments/PIP portion of your personal auto insurance policy.

Do You Still Need A Personal Injury Attorney When It Is Clear Who Is At Fault?

Just because the fault of the accident is clear, it doesn’t mean that you are assured complete coverage or compensation for your claim. In fact, many personal injury lawsuits are not concerned with who was liable for the accident, but with the value of the claim.

Insurance companies seek to undercut the value of claims against them to save money. With the resources at their disposal to call into question every aspect of your losses, you need a skilled personal injury lawyer to level the playing field and ensure that you get the most out of your claim.

We Handle Property Damage Claims, Too…

Select Law Assists Personal Injury Clients With Their Car Damage Claims

Some attorneys choose not to assist their clients in the property damage cases that often occur in tandem, but separately from personal injury claims. Many Attorneys also charge a separate fee to assist with the property damage portion of the claim. At Select Law, we want to ensure that clients have consolidated access to every aspect of the auto accident claims process.

Our attorneys focus on holding your hand from filing to settlement and beyond. Our aim is to create a smooth process throughout the claims process so that you don’t have to struggle as you try to tie up loose ends.

What Is The Diminished Value Claim, And What Would Be Your Firm’s Role In Such A Claim?

Diminished value claims focus on recovering financial compensation for the lost value in an accident-damaged vehicle. Not every case qualifies for a Diminished Value claim. However, some vehicles – especially newer and classic cars – will have a value that warrants the pursuit of recovery.

Why? Our office handles diminished value claims like this: The damaged vehicle is repaired to the best possible condition, after which you gather documentation of all the work done on the vehicle to make a property damage estimate.

Once the property damage estimate is created, our team works with a team of experts to make an opinion on the claim. If the claim presents something of value, Select Law will be ready to take the case to the next level.

Our firm offers this preliminary estimate completely free of charge. Our experts are more than happy to help you determine whether or not you have a claim risk-free! If we don’t find a claim to pursue, you can walk away with no obligation.

For more information on Auto Accidents In Arizona or Washington State, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (425) 891-6691 today.