It’s tough to know when you’re being offered a good deal when the whole time you suspect that someone is trying to short you. This situation is all too common with insurance company settlement offers. While many drivers believe that the settlement will be enough, anyone with an injury will know immediately that their settlement check won’t cover their medical bills so it makes it easy to know when to accept a settlement offer.
Knowing when to accident a settlement offer starts with have a clear image of what you need to pay the expenses for your damages and what you hope to recover. From there, an auto accident attorney in Atlanta should help put together a strong negotiation platform to recover as much as possible without having to go to court.
What to Expect in a Good Settlement Offer
A good settlement offer should cover all of your expenses, as well as the pain and suffering, experienced because of the crash. Not only should you have enough in your settlement to cover your medical bills and property damage but also your legal expenses. Working with an attorney is one of the very few ways that you can get a reasonable or fair offer at all.
What happens usually is that drivers will receive a compensation check and then have to worry about the gap yourself. You don’t actually have to put up with that. You should layout that you need compensation in the very least for your medical bills and property damage.
Knowing When You’ve Reached the Highest Offer
It is incredibly challenging to know when you’ve hit the highest offer possible. That means that you’re going to have a guess and feel out the insurance company’s offers to understand that you’ve hit the point where the insurance provider would rather move the matter to court than to make a settlement offer.
There’s also the issue of handling a settlement and turning down a great offer only to learn you may go to court and not get anything at all. These civil cases can take a turn when they get into a courtroom, and for many people, that’s terrifying.
Always talk to your Atlanta attorney when you have a settlement offer on the table. You’re paying for their know-how but also their experience in settlement negotiations. They should have a good sense of when they’ve reached the highest and most reasonable limit before going to court.
Should You Go To Court?
It’s a huge question, and you should give it careful consideration. Moving your case to court will definitely mean higher legal fees and additional fees for filing the formal lawsuit, acquiring evidence through subpoenas, and more. But is it worth it? For many drivers who are victims of someone else’s carelessness, it can be. It can also be a last-ditch effort to get a top settlement out of the insurance company.
Most cases are resolved in settlement moments before anyone should enter the courtroom. But playing chicken with insurance companies isn’t always a good idea. When you take your wreck claim to court, there is always the risk that you won’t get anything at all.
Additional Fees May Make Court Less Desirable to Atlanta Car Accident Attorneys
Many attorneys will work against going to court because of the legal fees that come with it. Not only do they now need to provide copies of updated medical records, pay the filing fee for the lawsuit, but they will likely increase the percentage that they take as payment as part of the contingency agreement.
Before jumping into a courtroom, you should thoroughly fight for a fair settlement because it can save you money in the long run. Even if it means taking a good settlement rather than a great settlement, it may be the more desirable option.
Contact a Car Accident Attorney in Atlanta for Specific Help
Although an attorney for car accidents should certainly be able to help you know when a settlement is worthwhile, the choice is always up to you. You don’t have to fit within certain restrictions, and if you’d rather take your case to court, that is your right. Find an Atlanta car accident attorney that can focus on your plan for reaching a resolution, contact The Weinstein Firm.
Our attorneys are veterans when it comes to negotiating for settlements that are fair and should provide full compensation for the damages. Ideally, we resolve cases through the car accident settlement process, but we are always ready and willing to take a claim to court.
