People often neglect minor accidents, assuming they are less worthy of claiming. However, this is not always true. There might be undetectable injuries but may cause you to suffer in the long run.
So if you are wondering whether I should hire a lawyer for a minor car accident, the simple answer is YES!!!
Let’s know why you should hire a lawyer, even for a minor car accident, and it is worth it to get compensation. Before that, learn about the injury types to understand the compensation claim.
Table of Contents
Should I Hire a Lawyer for a Minor Car Accident?
Whether in a private or public space, you should contact your injury lawyer as soon as you get into an accident. You would definitely get some settlement when you hire a professional. Eventually, you will stay stress-free when someone else works on your case.
Here are a few reasons why you should hire a lawyer after a car accident:
Provide legal advice
Most personal injury lawyers would give their clients a consultation for free. So, it would be best to talk to a reputable lawyer and understand their point of view. You should share every detail with them and know whether you need a legal representative for yourself.
Also, the lawyers’ are based on contingency. This means that if you win, only then they will get a fee. Therefore, there’s no chance for them to exaggerate your case. Hence, you can expect to get free advice when hiring a lawyer.
Aware of indistinct injuries
You don’t always need to get bodily injured when your vehicle is damaged. There are different reasons to get an injury like body posture, previous medical issues, angle of impact, etc.
Some injuries take time to show their effects, like whiplash. While you know about your injury, you may worsen it more with other leisure activities or work.
However, if you don’t treat such injuries immediately, you may face a tough to proving them later. Eventually, it will be questionable whether the injury occurred through a minor accident.
Reveal the real causes behind an accident
Sometimes, you will find that the other driver admits that they’re at fault. In most minor cases, the driver admits the fault. So, you might start wondering whether you need to hire a lawyer.
But what would you do if there’s a change in the story? Later, they might say that you caused the accident. And it would be a bigger problem if there was no witness to ensure the incident. For such situations, a lawyer can keep you out of problems.
Help you in claiming the case
Injury lawyers handle accident cases regularly. Therefore, they would have more chances to know the possibilities that could affect your case.
So, if you want to protect your rights and get a settlement by the end, you should take the help of a lawyer. Eventually, you will stay stress-free while making an informed decision.
Check Also: Car Injury Lawyer
Ensure your compensation rights
When unsure about the compensation or whether you’ll get any compensation, you should hire a lawyer. They can investigate a case to find the compensation that you’ll get.
Hence, they will determine your property loss, damages, out-of-pocket expenses, lost wages, and other additional expenses. Also, you will get to know about your injury claims and lawsuit.
Whether you’ll get compensation will depend on a few categories, like:
- Whether you caused the accident
- Whether you receive treatment or income from insurance, ODSP, health benefits, or disability payments
- The seriousness of an injury
- Pre-accident income
- Medical costs
- Treatment cost
- Out of pocket expenses
- Your age
Help you get medical costs
Some costs depend on the circumstances and nature of an injury. So, you can save your medical cost when you hire a personal injury lawyer. Some provinces or insurance would cover the excessive medical bills in Canada.
Therefore, hiring a personal injury lawyer would get compensation for lost wages, treatment and healthcare costs, pain and suffering, and much more.
An experienced lawyer would categorize the injuries properly. For instance, think about catastrophic injuries. Such injury would pay more financial compensation compared to any minor accident.
Protect your accident benefits
It is necessary to pay damages from a vehicle accident through statutory accident benefits. This benefit helps you pay the injured ones for the medical bills and lost wages.
However, you will find that the benefits get cancelled in many cases. You can take the help of a lawyer to dispute this cancellation.
Also, you should know that such accident benefits aren’t specifically for the intended drivers. This means that anyone injured in an accident, their relatives, or dependents of the accident can receive such benefits.
Ensure a higher settlement
Insurance companies usually deny the amount that you should receive. This means they would outright or devalue your settlement claims after an accident.
Therefore, when you hire a lawyer for a minor car accident, they would investigate the case properly, figure out your injury value and losses, and find the exact settlement value.
Hence, it would be best to talk to a lawyer before agreeing to a settlement. After you’re done signing, it would be very difficult to change the settlement value.
Read Also: What Happens If You Crash a Leased Car
When To Hire A Lawyer After A Minor Car Accident
It is obvious that having a car accident lawyer at your side can be quite helpful when handling the difficult legal issues of car accident claims. Having said that, there are situations when you might find yourself not having a lawyer.
Knowing when you need to hire a car accident lawyer will therefore likely save you some time.
Here’s why you should hire a car accident lawyer:
When You Have Suffered Serious Injuries
Hiring a lawyer for small car accidents will be useful if you have suffered any serious injuries to your body or considerable damage to your car.
Personal injury lawyers specialize in guiding you in investigating the facts of the accident and analyzing the financial value of the losses caused.
They can also help you in getting appropriate compensation for mental upset, pain, and suffering caused by the accident.
The Issue of Fault
It’s possible that your opponent will accuse you of being at fault when, in fact, they were to blame for the minor accident.
To guarantee that you can reach a just settlement in this situation, it may be quite helpful to have a lawyer negotiate with the counsel of the other side.
Unhappy With Received Offer
Finally, you might not be happy with the compensation you received for your minor accident.
Never be hesitant to ask a car accident lawyer for legal advice in this matter. To protect your best interests, a dedicated lawyer is always important.
Such legal support might be the difference between complete compensation, mediocre and unsatisfactory compensation, or any other comparable result.
Check More: Long Term Disability Lawyer
Should You Hire a Lawyer for a Minor Car Accident Without Any Fault?
Yes, you should hire a lawyer for a minor car accident when you’re not at fault. They would help you to get a fair settlement. When you are injured, you can stay stress-free while they assess your files.
These assessments can include:
- Arranging medical reports
- Researching your case and injuries
- Figuring the lost wages and financial losses, i.e., lost income.
A lawyer can explain the differences whether your injuries are minor or major in most cases. Additionally, when you hire a lawyer, they can protect you from situations where you’re responsible to some extent- this is contributory negligence.
Therefore, they will investigate the accident, collect all the reports and statements, and ensure the accident liabilities properly. Eventually, you will get a proper amount for your damages without any contributory negligence.
Should You Hire a Lawyer When You’re At fault?
No, you don’t need to hire a lawyer for a minor car accident when you’re at fault. This is because you can’t sue the other driver for the accident. Therefore, your insurance company will be liable for hiring a lawyer for you.
Damages for Injuries from a Car Accident
There are 2 different types of damage that you might suffer after a car accident. The list below explains them:
Economic Damage
You will get a financial loss when you’re in economic damage. So, you can calculate this by the loss of an aggrieved person or the injury amount they may face after an accident. Some of the common economic losses are medical bills, losing earning capacity, or lost wages.
Non-Economic Damage
Non-economic damages cover subjective losses. Some common non-economic damages are pain and suffering, emotional distress, or losing enjoyment in life.
Final Verdict
By now, you got your answer: “should I hire a lawyer for a minor car accident?” Obviously, you should.
So, speak to your injury lawyer after you have an accident to protect yourself. Talking to a lawyer before contacting the other driver’s insurance company would be best. But make sure to talk to your insurance company soon after discussing the situation with your injury lawyer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I get a lawyer for a car accident that wasn't my fault?
Yes, you should get a lawyer for a car accident that wasn't my fault. Taking such a step will help you claim the liabilities that you deserve. Also, you would get to negotiate better with your opponent.
Do I need a lawyer for a car accident settlement?
It's not necessary to hire a lawyer for a car accident settlement, but this isn't the best idea either. You might have extensive knowledge about the case, but they would help you get what you deserve. Additionally, they will process the work properly so that you get the money as soon as possible.
How to negotiate a car accident settlement?
You can easily negotiate a car accident settlement by following a few easy steps. First, you should initiate the claim after you get into an accident. Then, count the accurate results to calculate the proper settlement. Then, send this detailed record to your insurance company. They would offer you a value which you can negotiate to increase. Explain everything in your favour, and finally, sign the contract after both parties reach a solution.
How to negotiate a settlement without a lawyer?
It is tough to negotiate a settlement without a lawyer. First, you have to gather information about your loss. Then you should calculate the pain and suffering value based on that loss. Next, collect all the evidence related to liability. Finally, send this detailed record to the offender's insurance company.
