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Three Things You Need To Know About Your Accident Case

1. Get prompt medical treatment and follow-up care. The value of your personal injury case is directly related to the amount and type of medical treatment you receive, as well as the seriousness of your injuries. It is important to get medical treatment right away after your accident. Do not delay treatment! If there is a delay in treatment, or substantial gaps in treatment, the insurance company will try to minimize the amount they have to pay. For this reason, it is important to have an experienced lawyer who understands traumatic injuries and the types of medical treatment and diagnostic testing needed to treat and prove your injuries.

2. Not all insurance companies are the same. Some insurance companies are more difficult to deal with than others. While some insurance companies may try to deal fairly with you, other companies will only offer “lowball” settlements, even if there is clear fault and undeniable injuries. With these types of difficult companies, you almost always have to file a lawsuit to force them to pay fair compensation. An experienced personal injury attorney should have good litigation skills and trial experience to protect your interests when dealing with companies making lowball offers. Please see our article on “Seven Excuses Insurance Companies Use” to see how insurance companies try to avoid paying in full on claims.

3. Most personal injury attorneys accept cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that you do not have to pay any money out of pocket to hire an attorney if you have been injured in a car accident, or at work, or through the negligence of another person. In a “contingent fee” case, we only get paid if you win. The fee is a percentage of the money you actually recover by verdict or settlement, usually 1/3 of the recovery in civil cases, and a lesser percentage (20%) in Worker’s Compensation cases. If there is no recovery, then you do not owe us anything.

At the Law Offices of John J. LaCava, we have handled all types of accident and personal injury claims and have won substantial verdicts for our clients… and we know how to deal with difficult insurance companies.