Car accidents injure thousands of people each year, sometimes severely. Under both Minnesota and North Dakota law, people who are injured in wrecks that are the result of someone else’s negligence can recover for their crash-related losses. The overwhelming majority of these cases are settled out-of-court by the at-fault party’s insurance company. Litigation is expensive and time-consuming and, when liability is clear, it simply doesn’t make sense for the insurance company to litigate the case.
If you have been hurt in a collision and the insurance company is offering you money without putting up a fight, you may be considering trying to handle your case without the assistance of a lawyer. Doing so is almost always a bad idea. It’s highly advisable to retain a lawyer to represent you in settlement negotiations. Below we’ll explore some of the reasons why. For more information, call our office today to schedule a free case evaluation with a personal injury team member in Fargo-Moorhead.
You Only Get One Chance to Settle Your Case
When you settle a car accident case, that’s it. You can’t go back later and ask for more money, even if you later determine that the settlement offer you took was grossly inadequate. For this reason, it’s critical that you determine all of your crash-related losses prior to accepting a settlement – including non-economic losses like pain and suffering and any future damages you may incur. While it may be fairly straightforward to figure out how much your repair bills are, how much is your pain and suffering worth? What about future medical expenses because of chronic back pain related to your wreck? An attorney can help you figure how much your case is really worth and ensure that any settlement you accept adequately compensates you for all of your losses.
The Insurance Company Does Not Have Your Best Interests in Mind
It’s also important to keep in mind that the insurance company is actively trying to settle your case for as little as it possibly can. In fact, if they can find any reason to deny your claim completely, they will. For this reason, it’s important that you have an attorney protecting your legal rights throughout the entire claims process.
Insurance companies have a lot of tricks to get you to take less than your case is actually worth. Some of them include the following:
- Pressuring you to provide a recorded statement in order to process your claim, hoping that you will say something that indicates that you were at fault for your wreck
- Waiting for your bills to start piling up before making an offer, knowing you’ll be under financial pressure to settle
- Contacting you with an offer as soon as they can after a crash, hoping that you haven’t had a chance to talk to a lawyer to find out how much your case is really worth
- Misrepresenting your rights (e.g., telling you that you are not entitled to compensation for your non-economic losses)
An experienced Fargo-Moorhead personal injury attorney will be aware of these tactics and make sure that the insurance company treats you fairly and that you get the compensation to which you are entitled under the law.
Call Us Today to Speak with a Fargo-Moorhead Personal Injury Attorney
If you have been hurt in a vehicle crash in the Fargo-Moorhead area, you should speak to an attorney as soon you. At O’Keeffe O’Brien Lyson Attorneys, we are committed to helping injured victims recover compensation and work to maximize insurance settlements and court awards. Contact one of our experienced personal injury attorneys Tim O’Keeffe, Tatum O’Brien or Sara Monson by email, or call O’Keeffe O’Brien Lyson Attorneys at 701-235-8000 or toll-free 877-235-8002.
