Spring, Texas Personal Injury Lawyers

How Can I Strengthen My Personal Injury Case?

Many folks assume that a claim for personal injury is an easy process. The fact is that personal injury claims are a fight with the insurance company. At every turn, the adjuster will look for reasons to deny your claim or reduce what they want to pay. 

Despite having strong evidence of liability, the insurance company will fight tooth and nail to pay little. Covering your bases to reduce their opportunity to fight your claim is best.

Here are things you can do to strengthen your case:

Get medical treatment early

Being evaluated by a medical professional in the emergency room or your primary care physician is critical if you intend to pursue a personal injury claim. The longer you delay the initial diagnosis, the bigger the hammer you give the insurance company to hit your claim. 

Documenting your areas of injury is vital. With this early documentation, it becomes easier to attribute the injury to the accident. Likewise, mention every area of injury in your first medical evaluation.

Leaving out a minor pain in your first medical treatment that later develops can hurt your case.

Avoid talking to the insurance company

Many people assume that giving a recorded statement to the adverse insurance company is required. It is not, and nothing good will come out of it. 

People also assume that talking to the insurance company is their opportunity to explain their side of the story. It is not. Adjusters are trained to take recorded statements on the telephone that give them defenses to your personal injury claim. 

The adjuster will use leading questions such as:

 “When did you first see the other vehicle” That assumes that you did see the car.

The adjuster may also ask, “When did you first apply your brakes” or “How far away were they when you first saw them?”

And similar questions designed to give them defenses.

If you are severely injured, you should hire an injury attorney to handle all communications between you and the insurance company that will ultimately pay your claim.

Never initiate or engage in injury claim settlement discussions while treating your injuries.

Preservation of evidence

With very severe injuries or losing a loved one in a fatal accident, your vehicle should be preserved. The other vehicle should be inspected before destruction, as all cars may contain essential evidence. 

Most modern cars have onboard computers. They can provide the vehicle’s speed before impact, when the brakes were first used, and other evidence. Also, if a defective product caused the crash, preserving the car is mandatory to assert that claim.

Stay off social media

Courts are now allowing defendants to use some social media posts to contest liability or damages. That innocent post about your vacation or dinner at a restaurant can’t be misconstrued into making you look like you are faking. 

Skilled defense attorneys use social media posts to cross-examine the injured and make them look bad. It is best not to refrain from posting anything on social media during the pendency of your case.