How Often Do Personal Injury Cases Settle?

If you have a personal injury claim, settling your claim will allow you to recover financial compensation for your losses and begin the process of trying to move on with your life. However, if you settle for too little too soon, this could prove to be a very costly mistake. As a result, when dealing with the insurance companies, you need to ensure that you are making informed decisions, and this makes it critical to have an experienced Florida personal injury lawyer on your side.

Most Successful Personal Injury Claims Settle, But There’s a Catch

If you search online, you will find several websites saying somewhere in the range of 90 to 95 percent of personal injury cases settle. However, this is not entirely true. While about 90 to 95 percent of successful personal injury cases settle, many accident victims receive claim denials and give up on their claims without receiving any compensation for their accident-related losses.

When looking at the statistics, there is another important factor to consider as well: Just because an accident victim accepts a settlement, this does not mean that the settlement reflects just compensation for the victim’s financial and non-financial losses.

In fact, many accident victims settle for far less than they deserve. The unfortunate reality is that accident victims who try to handle their claims on their own stand very little chance of recovering full compensation. While there are several reasons why, some of the primary reasons include:

• It is up to claimants to prove the present and future costs of their injuries. This includes not only their present and future out-of-pocket costs, but also their present and future lost earnings.
• It is also up to claimants to prove what constitutes “just” compensation for their non-financial losses. This includes, but is not limited to, their pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• The insurance companies put their interests first, and they will offer low settlements when they know that claimants do not have a clear understanding of the total losses they are entitled to recover.

Combined, these factors mean that accident victims who don’t hire a Florida personal injury lawyer are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to both proving the value of their claim and making an informed decision about settlement. Unfortunately, this means that many accident victims accept settlements when they shouldn’t—and it means that many accident victims end up facing financial and other consequences that they could (and should) have avoided.

So, while most successful personal injury claims settle, this does not necessarily mean that most accident victims receive the financial compensation they deserve.

Making Sure You Don’t Settle for Less Than You Deserve

If you have a personal injury claim, how can you make sure you don’t settle for less than you deserve? Here are five important facts to keep in mind:

1. The Insurance Companies Are Not On Your Side

The first fact that you need to keep in mind—and a fact that you should always keep in mind—is that the insurance companies are not on your side. While your goal is simply to recover the financial compensation you are entitled to receive under Florida law, their goal is to pay you as little as possible.

As a result, if you let the insurance companies dictate the terms of your settlement, you will almost certainly receive less than you deserve. The more you are entitled to recover, the more likely it is that any unsolicited offer you receive from the insurance companies will represent just a fraction of the total compensation you deserve.

2. Your Recoverable Losses Could Be Much Greater Than You Realize

If you suffered any significant or permanent injuries in your accident, your recoverable losses could be much greater than you realize. In a typical case, an accident victim who has suffered a significant or permanent injury will be entitled to just compensation for their present and future:

• Medical bills
• Other out-of-pocket costs
• Lost income and benefits
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional trauma
• Permanent scarring or disfigurement
• Loss of companionship, consortium and enjoyment of life

Even these are just examples. The insurance companies know that most accident victims are not aware of the full list of losses they are entitled to recover—and the insurance companies use this to take advantage of accident victims in far too many cases.

3. It Is Up to You to Prove the Financial and Non-Financial Costs of Your Accident

When you have a personal injury claim, it is up to you to prove the financial and non-financial costs of your accident. Think about it this way: If you don’t provide the insurance companies with evidence of all of the various ways the accident has impacted (and will continue to impact) your life, the insurance companies will have no way of knowing what constitutes just compensation in your case.

4. You Can Hire a Lawyer to Help You at No Out-of-Pocket Cost

For all of the reasons discussed above, if you have a personal injury claim, it is important to work with an experienced personal injury lawyer who can help you seek a fair settlement. Hiring a lawyer costs nothing out-of-pocket in this scenario, and an experienced lawyer will only take your case if he or she believes that he or she will be able to help you take home more than you could take home on your own.

5. You May Need to Be Prepared to Take Your Claim to Court

Finally, while receiving a fair settlement is the best-case scenario, not all successful personal injury claims settle without a trial. If you decide to file a claim, it will be important for you to be prepared to take your claim to court if necessary. In many cases, showing the insurance companies that you are prepared to go to court if necessary can also help spur good-faith settlement negotiations.

Are You Eligible to Seek a Settlement for Your Accident? Find Out from a Florida Personal Injury Lawyer for Free

If you need to know more about filing a personal injury claim after an accident in Florida, we encourage you to contact us promptly. To find out if you are eligible to seek a settlement from an experienced Florida personal injury lawyer, call 800-780-8607 or request a free consultation online today.