When an accident happens, you don’t get any warning. You find yourself injured, and your life is suddenly disrupted. Many people are not aware of the damages in their claim and can find it daunting to even consider the expenses. Financial stress begins to build.
When an accident is caused by negligence, the law allows you to seek compensation for the damages. But you may not know where to begin. The stress and pain involved in an injury can consume all your time and energy.
If you find yourself or a loved one in this situation, the Boulder City personal injury attorneys of Pacific West Injury Law can help. We can manage the details of your claim and deal with the insurance adjusters. There are many challenges involved in fighting for the compensation you need, and we can help you to overcome those obstacles.
Boulder City Personal Injury Law FAQ
Accidents can have profound impacts on your physical and mental well-being and can throw a wrench into the workings of your daily life. The phone calls, insurance forms, legal documents, and paperwork can be overwhelming to anyone suffering an injury.
If you are confused about whether involving a lawyer can help you with your claim, we have compiled a list of our most frequently asked questions to help you plan your next steps.
What Personal Injury Claims Can You Help With?
What Should I Do if an Insurance Adjuster Contacts Me About the Accident?
When Is It Time to Get Help From a Boulder City Personal Injury Attorney?
What Are Some Common Injuries in Personal Injury Cases?
How Are Personal Injury Lawyers in Nevada Paid for Their Services?
What Personal Injury Claims Can You Help With?
Personal injury claims involve any number of injuries that can include being injured on someone else’s property, car accidents, or being hurt by a defective drug or product. The most common personal injury claims are:
- Car accidents
- Boating accidents
- Defective drugs
- Trucking accidents
- Rape and sexual assault
- Slip and falls
- Defamation
- Motorcycle accidents
- Workplace accidents and injuries
- Assault, battery, and violent attacks
- Bicycle accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Dog bites
- Pedestrian accidents
- Birth injury
- Truck accidents
- Nursing home neglect and abuse cases
- Defective products
- Premises liability
This list is not in any particular order and is by no means inclusive of every type of personal injury claim, but it can give you an idea of the kind of claims our Boulder City personal injury lawyers regularly handle.
What Should I Do if an Insurance Adjuster Contacts Me About the Accident?
Insurance adjusters may begin to call and inquire about your accident. They may ask more probing questions about the incident, where you work, or information about your family members. There’s no need to be unpleasant, but you are not obligated to answer.
You can provide your name and keep to the facts about where the accident happened. Don’t allow them to lure you in with small talk. Let them know that you’ll get back to them once your doctor has finished evaluating your injuries. Collect the name of the insurance company, the claim number, and the person’s contact information and write it down.
Refer your calls and relay the contact information to your personal injury attorney in Boulder City. The insurance company is not looking for any information that will benefit you. They are looking for information that can reduce their liability and their payout.
The Insurance Company Just Contacted Me and Offered a Settlement. Should I Accept a Settlement Offer?
In some situations, an insurance company may wish to avoid giving you time to calculate the complete value of your case or consider the full impact of your injuries. They may call to offer you a settlement or even show up at the hospital.
If you have been offered a settlement, you do not need to react or accept it immediately. It isn’t usually a wise strategy to accept the first offer. You can let them know you’ll need time to consider it.
A personal injury lawyer with our firm can calculate your damages and let you know whether their number is fair or if we may be able to help increase your settlement. We discuss the hardships you’ve suffered and assess more clearly how much compensation you should receive.
When Is It Time to Get Help From a Boulder City Personal Injury Attorney?
Many accident victims wonder if there is a correct time to hire a lawyer or if they require the services of an attorney at all. In some cases, the claim may be simple and require no legal assistance. In every injury claim, people may certainly choose to handle the issue on their own.
However, there are times when injury victims are not equipped with all the facts and find themselves in a difficult legal situation when their claim is denied or they are accused of contributing to their own injuries.
There are many obstacles and challenges you can run into when handling your own claim. Some key indicators that it is time to reach out to a Boulder City personal injury lawyer from Pacific West Injury Law for legal counsel include:
An Accident Resulted in Severe or Catastrophic Injuries
Generally, people make a claim with the insurance company, and the limits of the policy can limit the amount you collect. This may not cover all your expenses if you sustained a catastrophic injury, but you may have grounds to file a lawsuit, or we may identify other sources of liability.
If you or a loved one had an accident that resulted in amputation, disfigurement, burns, traumatic brain injuries, miscarriage, organ damage, or loss of senses, you can file a civil suit for your damages. You may also be eligible to receive punitive damages if the liable party was recklessly neglectful of the safety of others.
A Business or Government Entity Is Involved
If your injuries involved any sort of business or government agency, you will be facing multiple attorneys and insurance companies. Their primary focus is to limit liability and preserve the bottom line of their business.
Their interests will be well protected and represented by their legal counsel. Your interests should be represented and protected as well. A personal injury lawyer can provide you with the valuable legal counsel and representation required in this situation.
The Statute of Limitations Is Approaching
You have two years to file most personal injury claims, according to Nevada Revised Statutes § 11.190. There are exceptions to this rule, but for the majority of cases, the clock starts ticking on the day of the injury.
If you have been working with the insurance company with no success and they have stopped returning your calls, they may be trying to delay until the legal deadline has passed. If you do not have a settlement by that date, they know they will not face legal action and will not have to pay out.
An attorney may be able to get their attention and find a satisfactory resolution to your claim before the deadline passes.
Insurance Company Runaround
Insurance companies are for-profit entities and their business is to make profits. They would prefer to pay injury victims as minimally as possible, including avoiding paying your claim altogether.
Some signs that you may need to involve a personal injury lawyer include:
- Refusing to investigate claims
- Creating false accusations of your own negligence
- Dragging the case out in order to pass the statute of limitations
- Misrepresenting the policy terms
- Misleading you about your rights
- Requiring mountains of unnecessary forms and paperwork
Your lawyer will understand how to defend you against these tactics. They can help you to avoid being taken advantage of and get the insurance company to take appropriate actions and treat you fairly.
You Need to Maximize Your Compensation
The injuries you sustained may involve future costs you haven’t considered. When you have been injured, you may not be considering all the damages that the laws allow. It’s important to seek the full amount of compensation possible.
An attorney can calculate the full damage amount and explain the different types of damages you are legally entitled to pursue.
If you are questioning whether a settlement offer is really enough, it’s time to call a lawyer. Once you have accepted a settlement, you are barred from pursuing any further legal action or financial compensation. This can be financially devastating if you find that your expenses haven’t been met.
What Are Some Common Injuries in Personal Injury Cases?
A Boulder City personal injury attorney will have experience and knowledge of many types of injuries, the complications, and the costs associated with those injuries. This can help your lawyer to fight knowledgeably and aggressively for the compensation you will need to cover your expenses.
Some of the injuries in personal injury accident cases involve:
- Concussions
- Catastrophic injuries
- Back injuries
- Coup-contrecoup injuries
- Burn injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Brain contusions
- Herniated disc
- Diffuse axonal injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Penetrating brain injuries
- Broken or fractured bones
- Amputations and loss of limbs
- Soft tissue injuries
- Dog bites and complications
- Internal injuries/bleeding
- Whiplash/neck injuries
- Hip injuries
The severity of your injuries will be argued by the insurance company or defense counsel. An experienced personal injury lawyer will understand the full impact the injuries have had on your life and can provide legal arguments, evidence, and expert witness testimony to validate your claim.
How Are Personal Injury Lawyers in Nevada Paid for Their Services?
The personal injury lawyers with our firm accept clients on a contingency fee basis. This allows the injury victim to access the legal services they need while providing work to attorneys who won’t necessarily be seeing the same clients repeatedly.
This means that the lawyer only collects payment if they win your case or recover a settlement. A percentage of your recovery is then paid to the attorney. This percentage is generally between 33.3% – 45% and will be agreed upon in advance.
This benefits the injury victim because there is no risk and no further financial burden added. The client is also assured that the lawyer is motivated to maximize the amount you collect.
Will I Need to Go to Court?
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, only 5% of personal injury cases ever go to court. We know how stressful it can be for an injury victim to go to court, so we actively negotiate to get the financial results you need and avoid the costs of litigation.
We will, however, be prepared to pursue the matter in court if necessary, and you can be assured that we will prepare you for any situation while minimizing your stress.
Contact a Boulder City Personal Injury Law Firm to Learn More
The best way to avoid exploitation by the insurance companies and avoid dealing with allegations of liability is to secure the help of an attorney immediately after your accident.
A Boulder City personal injury lawyer with Pacific West Injury Law will have a firm understanding of the limits and the laws of personal injury cases in Nevada. Your lawyer can help you to pursue the damages you will need in order to pay for all the costs associated with serious injuries.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. We can discuss the details of your case and advise you of your legal rights and options.