You’ve gone through the entire process, and now you’re waiting for your check. The issue is that people in this step of the process have already spent their patience. It’s likely that you waited through the claim investigation, waited for a settlement offer, waited for another offer after you provided a settlement demand. Does the waiting ever stop?
Yes, it does. Initially, you might think that the settlement agreement leads to them cutting a check and just waiting a short while to get your check in the mail. That’s not quite true. You will have to wait about four to six weeks to receive your check.
Your Car Wreck Lawyer in Atlanta on Releases
It’s an intimidating part of the process, but before any insurance company will release the funds for a settlement, you must sign a release This release will detail that you’re accepting the amount of money as part of closing this claim or case. Additionally, you will give up any right to sue the person or company after the settlement.
After signing the release, you cannot pursue legal action against the insurance company, or the person directly at fault for the damages in your case. When the insurance company has this release in hand, they will begin processing your funds.
Processing Your Checks and Closing Out Fees
Usually, after you sign a release, your settlement check will go to your Atlanta car accident attorney. They will then process your settlement check and pay any liens which are against your funds. These liens will include your medical bills that have gone unpaid up until this point.
After paying any liens, they will take their attorney’s fees and additional expenses. The attorney’s fees are the payment methods that you agreed to upon hiring your lawyer. Most personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis, and this will be a percentage of your check. Additional expenses might include what the attorney had to pay an investigator, or an expert to recreate your crash.
When all the deductions are made, you will receive the remainder of settlement as a check directly from the law office you used. This process may take an additional week or more depending on the ease of processing payment.
Other Factors Impacting Settlement Time Frames
There are a few other issues at hand. Consider the struggle that comes with processing large checks, tracking bank transactions, and ensuring that everyone has the appropriate documentation in place.
If your case involved extensive damages, then it is vital that everyone ensures they have done their due diligence. Due diligence in large settlements will include investigating every aspect of damages, and your claim.
Insurers will often spend extra time investigating seemingly small aspects of your settlement to acknowledge proper liability. They may want to conduct a statement where you speak on the record about the crash and your injuries.
Work with a lawyer in these cases to identify if you must speak with the company, or not.
Another factor which impacts settlement processing time is the maximum medical improvement. Georgia works with a static metric on medical recovery. If you have not yet hit the maximum medical improvement, you might not want to settle your case.
Accepting a settlement too early on may leave you unable to recover all the damages that you end up with after your full recovery. For example, if you’re still receiving treatment for spine surgery, you would probably want to wait to include that treatment in your settlement.
The few cases where you may have reached the cap for damages may be the only time you would consider accepting a settlement before reaching your maximum medical improvement. Because the state of Georgia works with this metric, most insurance companies act within reason and will wait to settle until you are fully recovered.
Atlanta Car Wreck Lawyers
Atlanta auto accident attorneys can offer guidance through the settlement process. If you’re not sure if hiring an auto accident lawyer is right for you, consider scheduling a consultation. As part of your consultation, you can discuss items such as timeframes for settlement and attorney’s fees.
If you’re looking for the fastest settlement option, you will likely lose out on a large portion of your possible compensation. People who accept insurance companies’ first settlement offer will usually not receive a fair amount of compensation.
Working with an attorney at The Weinstein Firm will allow you to know what is fair and what is not. Fair compensation may not come quickly, but it can help you mitigate extreme financial debt from medical bills and property damage.
