Founding Attorney
After being injured in a car accident, you may be pretty excited to get notified by the at-fault driver’s insurance company that they are going to give you money in a settlement offer. Yes, the prospect of getting monetary compensation and a light at the end of the traumatic car accident experience tunnel, can be exciting. This is especially true because of the financial difficulties injured parties all too often faced after an accident. Medical bills are a substantial burden. Missed time at work can mean missed paychecks and that can be stressful. The insurance company knows all of this and they often look to take advantage of people who desperately want the process to be over and get much needed financial support. Be extremely wary of accepting any settlement offer from an insurance company!
Should I Accept a Settlement Offer From the Insurance Company?
Insurance companies are not on your side. They are, in essence, businesses looking to protect their bottom line. That means, prior to accepting a settlement offer, you need to assume that the insurance company is looking to seriously undermine the value of your claim. That being said, most personal injury claims end up being settled out of court and so there is such a thing as a good settlement offer, you just need to be sure about this before accepting. Once you accept a settlement offer, the insurance company will require a release of liability. This means you are unable to further pursue compensation from them regarding this particular claim. It is a big deal.
This settlement should take into account the medical bills you have incurred as a result of your accident injuries. It should also account for the cost of continuing medical treatment and physical therapy you will need into the future. Any lost wages or reduced earning capacity should also be included in the settlement offer. On top of all of this, a settlement offer should also reflect your pain and suffering damages. Without a settlement offer reflecting all of these damages, it would most likely not be in your best interest to accept.
In order to help ensure that your settlement offer most accurately reflects your medical expenses as well as your future medical expenses, it is often best that you wait to accept any such offer until you have reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). When your doctor determines that you have reached MMI, he or she is saying that, while you may benefit from continued treatment and therapy to avoid making your injuries worse, it is unlikely that your injuries will show any further improvement. Waiting until you reach MMI helps to avoid several potential problems such as injuries turning out to be much more serious than they may have appeared at first.
Person Injury Attorney
Before accepting a settlement offer from an insurance company, talk to knowledgeable personal injury attorney Michael LoGiudice. Insurance companies do not have your best interests at heart. Attorney LoGiudice does. Contact us today.