How to Negotiate a Personal Injury Settlement if you have been injured? Especially if it is not your fault, getting compensation is definitely your right. It is always better if you’ll try to settle the matter first prior to trial or lawsuit filing.
Saving time and effort is the primary goal of why a voluntary settlement agreement must be considered before anything else. However, knowing the right amount of settlement can be a big dilemma. Some factors must be kept in mind to ensure that you’ll get a fair evaluation.
How is the personal injury settlement evaluated?
The person who is certified to evaluate how much money you should get from the settlement is a doctor. He or she will look at your condition very carefully and the length of time needed for your full recovery.
After that, an attorney will start the settlement and the result will depend upon how cooperative both parties are.
The Process
To give you an idea about how the process will work, we will have a quick rundown on them below:
Have An Overview of The Special Damages
The first thing that you can do is to start some calculations. This must be done particularly to special damages or also known as economic losses.
From the term itself, you’ll need to know how much damage you’ve had and the compensation you should get. The following can be considered as special damages:
- The salary lost within the timeframe of you being injured
- Damages occurred on your property
- Expenses for burial
- Medical expenses
- If severely injured, the ability to earn money for a lifetime
The past and future economic losses are also evaluated which is known as economic analysis. This will ensure that you can get your economic losses back without overlooking anything. The coverage of the settlement must be fair for both parties.
Moreover, it revolves around determining the life expectancy and retirement age. It is the job of the expert to use those factors to formulate a decision.
Aside from the aforementioned factors, there might be documents that are needed to further evaluate your cases such as W-2 documents and ITRs.
Determine The Non-Economic Losses
These damages are considered non-monetary. When it comes to non-economic losses, the emotional impact is more important.
Some notable instances of non-economic losses are the following:
- Pain in your body
- Emotional distress and trauma
- Tarnished reputation
Claim Appraisal Adjustment
Adjusting the value is essential. There are also factors to consider in this adjustment. The following questions must be put in mind:
- How many individuals are qualified to receive a settlement?
- Who has the greater liability in the accident?
- Where will the trial take place?
- What are your general characteristics?
However, damage mitigation might be considered if it is applicable. For instance, you have to think things over that seeking treatment is not possible because treatment is very costly and a difficult procedure to take. However, the settlement may be lessened if mitigation fails.
Handing Out Settlement Offers
Now, this is the time wherein sending a settlement demand letter directly to the defendant or their insurance company. Most of the time, there will be some negotiations until a common ground is reached. But if there is no agreement reached, a trial will be the last option.
Having said so, you’ll need a personal injury lawyer to handle this type of case with utmost attention to detail. As a result, there will be higher chances of getting the settlement that you truly deserve.
We at Rawlins Law can help you with that settlement case. Our consultations are free meaning you do not need to pay in order to know the process needed in handling your case.
Call us today at 858-529-5872
Don't delay in calling an attorney to ensure you are protected. Know your rights and protect yourself.
