As a pedestrian, it can be dangerous to try to navigate main roads, crumbling sidewalks, poorly marked crosswalks, and large intersections. No matter how well community planners design for pedestrian safety, there is no guarantee that you will be 100% safe. In many instances, the accident that a pedestrian is injured in is the result of these unclear guidelines for traffic safety, who has the right-of-way, or simply because of driver negligence or recklessness. Regardless of how the accident happened, the reality is that if you have been injured as a pedestrian because of someone else’s behavior then you deserve compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and a variety of other impacts on your life. You didn’t cause the accident, and you do not deserve to suffer the consequences without support.
1-800-Injured provides victims of pedestrian accidents with free access to a broad network of personal injury attorneys who are ready to take their case today. Trying to find an attorney at the start of an accident can be daunting, and in many cases, a victim decides to simply file a claim on their own and see what happens. Once you have gotten a lowball offer from the insurance company for a settlement, a lot of the damage has been done—hiring an attorney as soon as possible is the first step to improving your chances of a fair and comprehensive settlement.
Read more below to get a better sense of how an attorney can help you get a fair settlement for your pedestrian accident, and contact 1-800-Injured today to be connected with a pedestrian accident lawyer in your area as soon as possible. The sooner that you are able to start working with a lawyer, the more time you will have to build a comprehensive and aggressive case for getting the money that you truly deserve.
Why Hire a Lawyer After a Pedestrian Accident?
After any accident covered by an insurance policy, you will need to file a claim in order to get compensated for your injuries and the financial impacts of the accident—this is true in a pedestrian accident as well. Something that many people fail to realize, though, is that from the moment a claim is filed, insurance representatives spring into action to identify every possible reason to limit the victim’s final settlement amount. Whether or not it is the moral thing to do, the reality is that an insurance company is a business, and an insurance company that pays out what victim’s deserve will not stay in business for long.
Handling Your Claim
When you hire an attorney before filing a claim, every communication between you and the insurance company will be handled through the lens of legal understanding and the goal of maximizing your settlement amount. Insurance companies will often use seemingly innocuous statements as justification for limiting your payment or will rely on technicalities in their policy coverage to dismiss aspects of your claim. Your attorney will have the legal firepower to push back on these tactics.
Negotiating Your Settlement
Once the insurance adjuster concludes their investigation, you will receive a settlement offer from the insurance company. In exchange for this shockingly low one-time payment, you will be required to waive your right to any future legal action against the insurance company or their client in regards to this accident. However, this is where your attorney will step in and initiate a series of aggressive, fact-based negotiations to get the money that you rightfully deserved.
Taking Next Steps
If the insurance company is unwilling to settle your claim for a fair amount, the next step may be to file an official complaint in your local court and initiate a lawsuit. At this point, you most definitely need a lawyer; however, if you have not hired a lawyer until now there will be many steps that you have taken that you will not be able to undo, and will have a negative impact on your case. If you’ve been working with a lawyer the entire time, you will be ready to go immediately.
1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service that connects accident victims with attorneys.