Evans, GA Personal Injury Lawyers
Negligence might cause a wide array of accidents that injure victims, entitling them to compensatory damages.
Victims sustain personal injuries when other parties act negligently and cause accidents. Car accidents cause many personal injuries, as does negligent property maintenance. Victims can file compensation claims after incurring damages caused by negligence, like medical expenses and lost wages. To get compensation for these damages, you have to prove them. Because of this, you must go to the hospital after an accident, no matter how serious your injuries seem initially. We can then use your medical records during settlement negotiations to illustrate the impact the defendant’s negligence has had on your life, convincing them to increase their offers or risk being found liable at a trial.
Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 to discuss your case for free with our Augusta, GA personal injury lawyers.
Examples of Personal Injuries and Their Causes in Evans, GA
Personal injuries are any injuries caused by negligence or recklessness. They happen because one party breaches the duty of care they owe another, causing them compensable injuries and damages.
For example, victims might sustain injuries in car accidents when another driver is negligent. Common car accident causes include speeding, distracted driving, and driving under the influence. These incidents are some of the most dangerous for victims, potentially causing life-altering or fatal injuries. If victims die in car accidents or other incidents caused by negligence, their survivors may bring wrongful death claims on their behalves.
Other auto accidents, including those involving bicyclists, pedestrians, or motorcyclists, could also be disastrous for victims, as they do not have the same protection during collisions as car drivers.
Victims could also be injured due to negligent property maintenance. Hazards like broken handrails, loose floor tiles, or dim lighting could make victims trip and fall. These accidents often lead to fractures in the hands and wrists, as victims might brace themselves for impact with the ground.
Our attorneys can help victims bring personal injury claims against all liable parties. For example, if injured due to medical malpractice, your claim could include the negligent doctor and the hospital that employs them. The same is true for other injury claims involving defendants acting within the scope of their employment when the accident happened. This could potentially open the door to additional damages, like punitive damages, so investigating all parties’ involvement and liability is important.
Why Victims Need Medical Records for Evans, GA Personal Injury Lawsuits
In personal injury lawsuits, plaintiffs must show they sustained injuries due to a defendant’s negligence. This requires medical records, and victims can start generating this crucial evidence by seeking immediate treatment after accidents.
Go to the hospital for any injuries, even if they appear minor initially. Stress or adrenaline could reduce pain temporarily, and waiting even a few hours to get assessed could hurt your future case. So, even if you feel okay after a car accident, fall, or other incident, go to the hospital. Victims can also call 911 so paramedics can arrive, treat their injuries, and take them to the emergency room.
Records from paramedics can detail your injuries at the scene, and subsequent records from the hospital can explain your eventual diagnoses and necessary treatment. This can lay the foundation for your case and help our personal injury lawyers show the severity of your injuries and the cost of care. As medical records accrue, so do medical expenses, and we can track hospital bills throughout your physical recovery. This enables us to calculate the exact medical damages you incurred from the accident.
You might need to return to the hospital or see specialists as you recover from personal injuries. Follow the advice doctors give you and stay committed to your physical recovery. If you miss multiple medical appointments, gaps could form in your treatment, giving the defendant room to question your need for compensation. To prevent that from happening, focus on healing physically and satisfying all necessary elements of your treatment plan.
Negotiating Fair Personal Injury Settlements in Evans, GA
Negotiating fair settlements starts with good preparation. We can begin by estimating your claim’s value and gathering proof of damages supporting our calculations. When we enter negotiations, we can be prepared to use strong evidence to convince the opposing side to increase their offers, lest victims take their claims to court.
To learn your claim’s value, we will refer to your medical bills, estimate your lost wages, and quantify your pain and suffering. The defendant might offer a very low amount initially despite possibly knowing what your claim is worth. Victims who need compensation urgently could accept lower offers, especially lump sum offers. These offers might seem substantial initially, only for victims to realize their damages are far greater than a settlement provides.
Before settlement discussions begin, we may enlist experts to give statements. For example, crash reconstruction experts can pinpoint liability for auto accidents, and medical experts can explain the severity of victims’ injuries. Pointing to these statements during negotiations can be very impactful since such evidence might sway the jury at a trial.
After reviewing initial offers, our lawyers will respond with counteroffers. We will use evidence to support counteroffers, such as proof of your medical damages and eyewitness statements confirming the defendant’s negligence. Defendants might try to lengthen settlement negotiations so victims become frustrated and accept lowball offers, and our lawyers can identify these tactics and address them accordingly.
Our lawyers can help victims proceed with trials in response to multiple unfair offers or attempts to undermine settlement negotiations. Defendants often want to avoid going to court, so indicating that you are ready to do so could lead to a larger settlement proposal.
Call Our Evans, GA Lawyers to Talk About Your Case Today
Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 for a free case evaluation from our personal injury lawyers.