What You Need To Know When You File An Injury Claim With The Insurer Of The At-Fault Party
Posted on: 13 February 2018
When you get injured in an accident by a negligent party, filing a claim with the insurance of the party at fault is something you should consider. If you do this, however, it is helpful to fully understand how the process works so that you will know which damages can be covered. The following are some things you should know when filing an insurance claim:
Coverage You Can Expect
When you are injured, you can expect many of your expenses to be covered by the insurance of the party at fault. This includes all of your medical expenses related to the incident, the income that you lost due to the injury, and any physical property that you owned that was damaged in the incident. If you have a permanent disability or disfigurement, you will also receive compensation commensurate with your injuries. Your emotional distress, if any, may also be paid.
How Fault is Determined
Before any payout takes place, the insurance company is going to want to be certain of who was at fault for the incident that caused the injury. One thing that the insurer will look at very carefully is everyone involved in the incident, including you, to determine what percentage of fault to assign. The insurer will be provided with the accident report. They will utilize a process that will assign a percentage of fault to all involved. If they determine that you had zero percent fault in your injury, you will likely be fully compensated by those who are assigned fault. If you have some percentage of fault, such as walking across the street while the "don't walk" sign was lit and you get hit by a car, the insurance adjuster working on your case will allocate a lower settlement to satisfy your portion of fault.
When You May Want an Attorney
You do not have to have an attorney in an insurance claim. However, an attorney can be very beneficial even if you do not have to take your claim to court. Personal injury attorneys deal with this process on a daily basis and can ensure that you are treated fairly. They will fight on your behalf if they believe that your at-fault figure is too high and work to lower it based on evidence.
Personal injury claims can be complex, particularly when determining just how much your injury is worth in monetary terms. The amounts always vary in these cases, so it is important that you choose an experienced attorney who only works with personal injuries to get your claim complete as quickly as possible. Contact a firm, like Smith, Jordan, & Lavery, P.A. Attorneys at Law, for more help.
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