I Was Injured in an Accident. Should I Get a Lafayette Car Accident Lawyer?

November 13, 2024

Lafayette car accidents can be physically and financially devastating, but you might be compensated if somebody else is at fault for yours, and the amount that you obtain could increase significantly when you partner with an attorney.  Join us as we discuss the benefits of skilled legal assistance if you are wondering “I was injured in an accident.  Should I get a Lafayette car accident lawyer?” 

Handling Your Own Case Could Put You at a Major Disadvantage 

You are certainly allowed to handle your own Lafayette car accident case, but doing so could put you at a major disadvantage. 

To be viable, a personal injury claim must demonstrate both negligence, which is the failure to exercise sufficient care to avoid inflicting harm, and damages, the losses incurred from that lack of care.  Basically, if you sustain bodily damages because of a defendant’s negligence, you could go after that defendant for economic damages.  

Yet simply identifying every negligent defendant could be challenging.  Obviously, the driver who hit you could be liable, as could the owner of his or her vehicle (if separate from the driver).  However, others could be culpable too, such as a company making commercial use of that vehicle, a mechanic who improperly serviced either vehicle, or the manufacturer of a defective vehicle or component, to name just a handful.  In some instances, multiple parties could share varying degrees of civil liability simultaneously, and you could be barred from securing full compensation if you don’t pursue them all within the time allotted by law. 

And assuming you do manage to track down each of the defendants, you could soon run into trouble when dealing with their insurance companies, who are likely your primary sources of fiscal recovery.  A veteran insurance adjuster may exploit your relative inexperience to dispute your claim or resolve it for less than it is worth, especially if you don’t know what your claim really is worth. 

You may have been injured before, but chances are that you have never assessed your injuries in dollars and cents before, so it can be hard to determine whether an offer for them is fair.  Moreover, some symptoms might not emerge right away, and agreeing to an offer that only reflects your current injuries could leave you unreimbursed for later complications, not to mention the non-monetary damages that could potentially cut deeper and last longer. 

How a Lafayette Car Accident Attorney Can Help 

Clearly, the advantage could belong to the defendants and their insurers if you decide to go it alone, but that advantage might be yours with the help of a Lafayette car accident attorney. 

A capable lawyer will be better prepared to fend off the tricks and tactics that are frequently deployed against novice claimants.  An attorney will also be better prepared to calculate the value of your case and will endeavor to equal or exceed that figure during any negotiations and proceedings, which is a key reason why injured people receive 3.5 times more with lawyers than they do without them. 

Once retained, your attorney will launch a comprehensive investigation to unearth the causes of the accident and the defendants for it, then establish valid claims against them by sending formal notification in writing and alerting their insurance carriers.  If the situation warrants it, a lawsuit could be filed as well in a court with the authority to issue a binding judgment. 

Next, your Lafayette car accident lawyer will amass the materials to build your claim, such as: 

• Police reports 

• Citations and dispositions 

• Collision photos 

• Dashcam, streetlight, and surveillance footage 

• Black box data 

• Witness statements 

• Phone records 

• Driving histories 

• Maintenance logs 

• Accident reconstruction and forensic analysis 

When confronted with strong evidence of your damages and the insured’s negligence, a sensible adjuster may be convinced to tender a generous settlement rather than risk a worse verdict at trial.  Indeed, Lafayette car accident claims usually reach a conclusion without the need for trial, though a seasoned attorney will become indispensable if your case goes before a judge or jury.   

While plaintiffs who represent themselves in the courtroom lose about 96 percent of their cases, they are statistically favored to win with professional representation, and they may even be awarded the funds necessary to get back to normal. 

Turn to Hensley’s Dedicated Lafayette Car Accident Lawyers 

Hensley Legal Group has been standing up for the badly injured since the firm was founded over a quarter century ago.  If you are still reeling from the effects of a serious crash in the Lafayette area, we hope you turn to Hensley’s dedicated Lafayette car accident lawyers to explore the remedies that may be available to you. 

You can schedule a free consultation with an accomplished Lafayette car accident attorney by calling us at (317) 472-3333, chatting with us online, or filling out our contact form now.