When you’re hurt, you need to know how to maximize your bodily injury settlement amount.
The experienced San Bernardino personal injury lawyers at LA Century explain.
How Do You Maximize Your Bodily Injury Settlement?
Seek medical attention as soon as possible following the bodily injury. Promptly document the case, soliciting witness statements and preserving evidence. Determine case value so that you can engage in informed settlement proceedings with a sound legal strategy. Be prepared to pursue the case as long as necessary. Always stay calm and professional when discussing the case.
What Qualifies as a Bodily Injury Claim?
A bodily injury claim is a physical injury.
Chatton v. Nat. Union Fire Ins. Co. defines a bodily injury as harm from corporeal contact, resulting in physical injury. Bodily injury does not include humiliation, mental anguish, or suffering, but it may include sickness or disease.
California’s tort negligence liability law doesn’t use the phrase “bodily injury.” The law says that everyone is responsible for the results of lack of care or skill in the management of their property or person (California Code, Civil Code § 1714).
Despite the phrase not appearing in California’s tort law, the phrase “bodily injury” is common in insurance policies. When an insurance policy states coverage for “bodily injury, sickness, or disease,” the policy means physical injury, excluding non-physical and mental damages. Death is included as a bodily injury.
Bodily Injury vs. Personal (Physical) Injury
In the context of California personal injury law, you may hear the terms bodily injury and physical injury or personal injury. They are similar terms. Bodily injury refers to harm to the body. Personal injury encompasses non-economic damages and a holistic evaluation of the person’s losses due to bodily injury.
California insurance policies that cover bodily injury typically also cover pain and suffering relative to physical injuries. When the damages are covered by the policy, that policy might pay damages that the insured is legally obligated to pay due to bodily injury.
Steps To Take Immediately After an Injury
To maximize your bodily injury claim settlement, take these steps immediately after an injury:
- Try to minimize additional harm until help arrives.
- Seek medical attention immediately.
- Don’t admit fault, say you’re sorry, or speculate about what you could have done differently.
- Ask someone to preserve evidence, including witness information, at the scene.
- Follow up with witnesses to get written statements.
- Document injuries with photographs and medical care.
- Stay silent on social media.
- Take your recovery seriously.
- Report the accident to an employer, the property or business owner, and others involved.
The Importance of Medical Records and Consistent Treatment
Medical records form the basis of any personal injury claim. They establish your injuries at a point in time relative to the incident that caused them. Medical records show how serious your injuries are, what they will cost to treat, and how long treatment will likely take. Medical information can be used to argue the likely pain and suffering associated with injuries.
Consistent treatment is key to making the most of a bodily injury claim. You don’t want to give the defense room to say that you didn’t do all you could to heal from your injuries. Consistent treatment also creates a pattern of healing and costs associated with medical care.
How To Calculate the Full Value of Your Injury Claim
Knowing the full value of your injury claim can help you evaluate settlement offers. You need to know what the possible amounts of compensation are and what the likely compensation amount could be.
Calculating the full value of your claim requires understanding economic and non-economic damages that may be claimed. It also requires evaluating the legal strength of the claim.
Mistakes That Could Lower Your Settlement Amount
- Failing to seek medical care promptly
- Taking too long to report the incident
- Trying to go back to work too soon
- Doing activities beyond your restrictions, including sports or travel
- Accepting a settlement too soon
- Automatically believing what the insurance representative says about your case.
- Failing to include non-economic damages in your settlement amount
- Posting on social media
- Not going to court
- Apologizing
- Excluding future damages and punitive damages, when appropriate
Negotiating with Insurance Adjusters: What To Expect
Maximizing a bodily injury claim requires negotiations with insurance adjusters. Remember that they’re not on your side. It’s their goal to minimize compensation. They want to pay zero.
You’ll need to provide documentation supporting your demand, including evidence that the insured was at fault.
Be prepared when you speak with insurance adjusters. Stick to the facts. Remember that they are an adversary. Keep your interactions professional. Sometimes, it’s best to present information, while other times, it’s best to keep your case strategy quiet. A lawyer can assist you with effective insurance negotiations.
The Role of Legal Representation in Maximizing Compensation
Legal representation can help you maximize your compensation by:
- Preserving evidence quickly.
- Talking to the insurance company on your behalf.
- Guiding you through journaling your pain and suffering.
- Soliciting the right questions for you to explain your injuries.
- Protecting you from harassment or attempts to embarrass you, such as the insurance company wanting complete access to your medical records.
- Prompting the insurance company when they are slow to respond.
- Understanding the realistic value of your case so that you can negotiate effectively and not minimize it or overstate it.
- Responding to the insurance company’s defenses and ways they try to minimize compensation.
- Writing a demand letter to state your side of the case.
- Reviewing settlement documents so that you understand what you are signing.
- Representing you as far as needed through legal proceedings.
Contact an Experienced San Bernardino Personal Injury Lawyer
If you’re ready to make the most of your bodily injury claim, we invite you to contact an experienced San Bernardino personal injury lawyer.
LA Century Law maximizes case value for our clients. Call or message us now.