Setting up an injury claim is a complicated process, especially if you are not sure what you are doing. Even simple things, like whether you should work with an insurer or not, actually has a lot of nuance and will ultimately depend on what you personally need out of them. In a lot of cases, people would do better to work with an insurer or with a lawyer for an injury claim. In order to figure out which one you would work best with, we are going to look at the pros and cons of working with each on an injury claim.
The Pros and Cons of Lawyers Versus Insurance Companies
One of the biggest benefits of hiring a lawyer who specializes in injury claims is that merely by having a lawyer in your corner, you are several times more likely to win a claim. It does not mean that you are guaranteed to win, but you’re certainly much more likely regardless. The reason why a lawyer improves your standing in the court, or even in the midst of the discussions between you and the people you are accusing of being responsible for the injury is because lawyers know how to talk to people the right way. Basically, being uninvolved in the situation beyond representing those who are, the lawyers on each side know what and what not to say, so as to prevent things from getting hostile while also not being too docile to assert themselves confidently enough.
On the other hand, one of the biggest downsides of having a lawyer is that if you have cause to believe that the situation is not going to need to escalate at all. After all, if you can get what you want right away without any fuss, why not just work with your insurance agent on this matter? There is, of course, the possibility that you can make a good arrangement with them. You may have to do some negotiation, though, and you may find the insurance agency making rather pushy offers that you are not entirely satisfied to accept. That is not to say, of course, that the insurance agency is actively engaging in malice or greed, but ultimately, they are looking to earn a profit, which you should be mindful of.
If you hit an impasse with the insurance agency, or if you are simply unsure whether the offer is adequate for the injury you experienced, it is likely worthwhile to seek out a lawyer to have on your side. You may be inclined to keep on trucking on your own, feeling particularly worried that because you may not be able to afford an attorney, let alone a quality attorney, that it will ultimately be better off for you to go on this on your own. You may rationalize this by thinking that so long as you are able to pull it off. Unfortunately, for as confident as you may feel that you can pull this off, the odds are definitely not in your favor. There are just way too many factors going up against you; for example, insurance agencies have their own tricks to convince you that, indeed, you are not going to be getting what you want, and you should just accept the offer. A lawyer is well equipped to handle any and all of these tactics, as they have certainly seen them all before. After all, when an insurance agency tells you that you shouldn’t do something that would ultimately hurt them and benefit you, you cannot exactly trust that.
That said, it is not as though you need to get a lawyer for every situation of this type. It can certainly be helpful, for sure, but an insurance agency is not inherently going to respond to your claim antagonistically. Just be sure that you be prepared to contact an attorney if you are unsure about your interactions with the insurance agencies you’re working with. The best part of working with a personal injury lawyer is that you will ultimately not have to pay any money down until you receive a settlement, at which point you will be expected to afford 30 percent of that settlement to cover the legal fees. If you are not able to afford the risk of money down, this kind of personal injury law firm may be a good fit for you if such a firm is ultimately needed. Certain law firms even offer free consultations so that you may get a good idea of the overall quality of that law firm. Ultimately, you want to make sure that you work with a person or persons who have an in-depth understanding of Alabama law. The more well-educated your representative(s) are, the more likely you are going to have someone who can get you through this process and, ultimately, get the result that is most amenable to you.