After you or a loved one has suffered an injury in a motorcycle accident, your thoughts turn both to your health and potential financial compensation. As you deal with physical challenges, you must also handle other details, including the legal process. There is simply no way that you can competently deal with your case after suffering an injury in an accident. You have physical limitations, and you do not have the legal knowledge to take on the insurance company.
Any motorcycle accident case has a wide range of outcomes; no matter how clear-cut the facts seem, you can never be sure of success. You should only sign a settlement agreement once the insurance company offers you everything you deserve.
You Need an Motorcycle Accident Attorney to Handle the Details of Your Case
You may wonder how you get yourself in a position to get every dollar you need for your motorcycle accident injuries when you cannot do it on your own. You need a motorcycle accident attorney in San Marcos to represent you when dealing with the insurance company. Otherwise, insurance companies can and will steamroll you and compromise your legal rights, costing you significant money.
Your attorney handles every aspect of your motorcycle accident case and can give you practical help on other matters. They can even negotiate with insurance companies, relying on experience and knowledge of applying pressure through the legal process. Insurance companies will never fear you, and trepidation is the only thing that makes them pay up in a settlement agreement.
Your Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Can Investigate Your Accident and Gather Evidence
The first task in a motorcycle accident legal case is to prove that someone else was at fault. Usually, this will be the driver who caused the accident, but there may be other potential defendants in a motorcycle accident lawsuit.
Your attorney will first investigate your accident and gather any evidence that can be useful in a legal case. They can do the following:
- Interview witnesses who saw the crash and what happened immediately beforehand
- Obtain evidence from the scene of the accident
- Review pictures of the accident scene and any potential footage of the accident
- Review the police report of the accident
- Work with expert witnesses to get their opinion about the cause of the crash
The Evidence Can Prove Liability for Your Crash
Your motorcycle accident attorney will use the evidence they get to show who was responsible for your accident. Sometimes, the liable party is obvious and, sometimes, they are not as clear.
One of the main responsible is the driver of the car that hit you. Whether it's a car, truck, or another motorcycle, if the driver acted negligently or violated traffic laws, they should be liable for the accident. This can include speeding, distracted driving, failure to yield, or driving under the influence.
Employers of drivers can also be liable if the accident happened while the driver was on the job. This is called vicarious liability. This may only apply if the driver was doing work-related activities or driving a company vehicle at the time of the accident.
In some cases, government agencies or construction crews can be liable for your motorcycle accident. This can happen if poor roadway conditions or inadequate signage contributed to the accident.
A Lawyer Explains all Legal Options to You
Then, your attorney will review your legal options and explain your case. Many motorcycle accident victims and their families do not have any idea of what it takes to get financial compensation. They know that they suffered an injury from someone else, but they do not know how to make them pay for losses. Your attorney will review your options and what you can expect from the legal process. This way, you can make better decisions for critical choices that will impact your financial future.
The main two options for motorcycle accident victims are as follows.
- Filing insurance claims - The first option is usually to file insurance claims against every liable party. You might think insurance claims should be easy, but they are usually much harder than you think. From the start, the insurance company will work against you, so your motorcycle accident lawyer should handle everything with insurance adjusters.
- Filing personal injury lawsuits - Another option injured accident victims have is to file injury lawsuits in civil court. Usually, this is the second option when an insurance claim does not result in the money you need. Your lawyer will tell you when a lawsuit is appropriate and they should know how to handle the litigation process.
Your Lawyer Will Determine the Amount of Your Damages
Before taking any steps to obtain financial compensation, you must know precisely how much you seek, and just like liability, you also have the burden of proof to demonstrate your damages. Insurance companies will never give you the benefit of the doubt. On the contrary, they will do everything to minimize and contest your damages at every step.
Without an attorney, you will have no idea how much you may deserve for your injuries. You may as well be picking a number out of thin air, and then you will struggle to justify it when the insurance company invariably pushes back.
Insurance companies know how much your case is worth right after they see your claim. They have their medical professionals and adjusters who understand the nature of your damages. Their goal is to avoid paying you at all costs.
How Your Attorney Estimates the Value of Your Case
You need to determine the value of your case. An attorney knows all the concepts behind personal injury damages and how to work with experts to truly understand how you have been affected by your motorcycle accident injuries.
Your case is even more challenging because you must know your past and future damages, and you will get paid for both simultaneously. Thus, you need to look into the future when you file your claim or lawsuit.
Your lawyer may work with the following experts to learn the value of your case:
- Medical experts
- Vocational experts
- Life care planning experts
- Economic experts
Your Damages in a Motorcycle Accident Case
Then, they will arrive at a total number for your motorcycle accident claim. You are entitled to get paid the following in your case:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income
- Pain and suffering
- Property damage
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Embarrassment and humiliation
Your Lawyer Will Have to Battle with the Insurance Company
Filing the claim is only part of the hard work in a motorcycle accident case. The real battle begins after the insurance company receives the claim or you file the lawsuit in court. Even if the insurance company accepts liability, you must still negotiate compensation, and this fight may be the toughest in your motorcycle accident case.
You may think you have to take what the insurance company offers, but it does not have the power to dictate terms. Having a lawyer gives you the knowledge and confidence to reject an unfair offer and fight back.
Hiring a Lawyer Gives You a Credible Threat of a Lawsuit
Your lawyer’s skills as a negotiator can be invaluable to your case. When the insurance company makes you a low settlement offer, your lawyer will say the most important word: “No.” They will advise you to reject the settlement offer and keep the pressure on the insurance company to raise its offer. Insurance companies can bend and break over time once your lawyer has applied pressure to them at the right points.
Your lawyer’s presence is essential because it tells the insurance companies you can sue them if they try to exploit you. Insurance companies hate and fear litigation. While complaining about “litigation happy” attorneys raising business costs, they know these lawyers can hold them accountable in front of juries. In a severe motorcycle accident, insurance companies often want to avoid the inside of a courtroom because they have fears. When they see a solid lawyer with a track record of success, they know they may have to pay a significant amount of money to a motorcycle accident victim.
Your Lawyer Will Defend You from Unfair Allegations About Your Conduct
One primary reason why you need a motorcycle accident lawyer is that the insurance company is far more likely to point a finger at you after you have suffered an injury. Insurance companies know the right buttons to press if it means that they save money. They know that there is a societal perception that motorcyclists are riskier than the average person, regardless of whether it is true. In reality, motorcyclists are like anyone who operates a motor vehicle on the road; some people are safer than others, but not everyone is dangerous.
When you hire an attorney for your case, you can push back and set the record straight. The insurance company may be trying to blame you for your motorcycle accident, either entirely or partially. Either way, the effect is the same, and if the insurance company gets to determine the record without any pushback, it will cost you a substantial amount of money.
There are various ways that insurance companies can accuse you of wrongdoing. They know full well that they may owe you substantial money, so by puncturing your story a little bit, they may successfully cut the size of your settlement check. Depending on the law in the state where you live, they can even eliminate your ability to get a settlement altogether. You must take it very seriously when insurance companies say or hint that you may have done something wrong.
They may even try to talk to you about the accident to get you on record, saying something that will undercut your case. When a motorcycle accident attorney represents you, insurance companies must speak to your lawyer instead of you. Their ability to trip you up and get you to say something compromising goes away because your lawyer is a barrier between you and them.
You Do Not Have to Take What Insurance Companies Offer
Your lawyer enters the picture as your defender, and at the same time, they are trying to prove that the driver was the one at fault for the accident. As unfair as it may seem, your lawyer may need to present evidence that clears your name when the insurance company has targeted you for blame. In the end, the jury is the one who decides who is at fault if you cannot agree with the insurance company on liability. You do not have to accept what the insurance company decides; your lawyer can and will fight back.
Insurance companies do not have the power to make you a “take-it-or-leave it” offer, and it is definitely in your power to reject an unfair settlement.
Hire a Lawyer Immediately After Your Motorcycle Accident
You should contact the attorney immediately after the accident. If you cannot do so yourself, have a family member call for you. An attorney cannot initiate contact - you must connect with them. The lawyer may even come to you to discuss your case and can always conduct the free initial consultation virtually or over the phone.
You Do Not Have to Pay a Motorcycle Accident Attorney Upfront
Money should never play a part in deciding whether to get a lawyer because going without legal help in your case can cost you a ton. Study after study shows that personal injury victims end up with more money in their pocket, even after paying a lawyer, than those who try to represent themselves.
The clincher is that you do not have to pay a motorcycle accident attorney for their time while your case is pending, and you do not have to pay them if you do not win your case. There is no money due at all at the time that you hire a motorcycle accident lawyer. You will also not receive any bills while your case is pending.
Seek your free consultation with a motorcycle accident lawyer today.