Personal Injury Car Accident Claims: What You Need To Know

Whether you recover accident compensation from your own insurance company or the other driver’s insurance company depends in part on the state where you live. Currently, twelve states (as well as Puerto Rico) have no-fault insurance. Drivers who live in no-fault states carry personal injury protection (PIP) and file accident claims with their own insurance company, regardless of fault. However, in at-fault states, insurers determine which driver caused the accident, and that person’s insurance pays for the victim’s damages.

Insurance companies are notorious for “lowballing” accident victims with below-market settlement offers. Just remember: you have the power to reject an unfair settlement and negotiate a higher payout. Don’t feel pressured to accept the first offer—or any offer—an insurer makes. And don’t hesitate to contact Morgan & Morgan when negotiations break down. Sometimes, filing a lawsuit is the only thing that gets an insurance company to pay up. Our car accident attorneys have turned low pre-trial offers into multi-million dollar verdicts at trial.

Filing a lawsuit may prove to be necessary in your case, but you do not have an unlimited amount of time to take legal action. Each state has laws known as “statutes of limitations,” set a maximum amount of time to initiate a lawsuit. The clock starts ticking from the moment of injury. Depending on where you live, the time limit for filing a personal injury lawsuit is usually between two years and four years. This time can be extended under limited circumstances, but missing the deadline could mean you are permanently barred from filing suit.

It’s a perfectly normal reaction to want to share a traumatic experience on social media. From a legal point of view, though, you need to be very careful about posting anything related to your accident. What you say online can—and will—be used against you.

Insurance adjusters can see what you post and use it to dispute your claim. For example, an innocent statement like “I’m feeling better” could be used as evidence that your injuries are not that serious. Even something seemingly unrelated, such as pictures of you and friends at a get-together, might give the insurer an opening to downplay your injuries.

Morgan & Morgan is the country’s largest injury law firm, with 800 attorneys and the resources to litigate against the biggest companies. We’re also the country’s largest contingency-fee law firm, meaning we don’t charge any upfront legal fees for any of our cases. And we only collect legal fees if we win a case. If we don’t win, you owe us nothing. Contingency-fee litigation ensures that everyone can afford a great attorney and is another way we’re dedicated to protecting the People, not the powerful.

There’s never a good time to be in a car accident. An injury puts your life on hold and can affect everything from your career to your family to your independence. But you don’t have to go through the claims process alone. Morgan & Morgan is here to help. You can count on us to provide the support you need to get your life back on track. For your free, immediate case evaluation, call 888-407-3205 or contact us.