What Does an Indiana Car Accident Lawyer Do?

June 5, 2024

Car accidents are a regular occurrence in Indiana, where 3,307 drivers, passengers, and pedestrians were hurt in 2022 alone.  While you could be compensated if you are the innocent victim of a crash, success is not automatic, which is why many injured Hoosiers seek out legal assistance.  But exactly what does an Indiana car accident lawyer do?  Join us as we explore what you can expect if you retain a skilled attorney for your Indiana car accident. 

Damages Will Be Assessed 

The value of your Indiana car accident case will largely come down to damages – essentially, how the car accident negatively impacted your well-being.  Only by fully conveying your damages from a collision can you hope to be fully remunerated for them, and an Indiana car accident lawyer will be better equipped to assess those damages than you are. 

Specifically, your attorney will have the knowledge required to identify every kind of damage you may have incurred because of your car accident, whether short-term, long-term, monetary, or non-monetary, including: 

• Past, present, and future medical expenses 
• Lost wages 
• Reduced earning capacity 
• Pain and suffering 
• Psychological trauma 
• Diminished quality of living 
• Mobility restrictions 
• Loss of consortium 
• Punitive and wrongful death damages (if applicable) 

Moreover, your lawyer will have the technical proficiency to calculate what your damages are worth, which is a crucial part of getting back what your car accident took from you. 

Defendants Will Be Pursued 

In addition to identifying your damages, your Indiana car accident attorney will also identify and pursue the parties responsible for those damages, known as the defendants. 

Depending upon the circumstances, the defendants could include the driver of the car that hit you, the car’s owner (if separate from the driver), a company for whose purposes the car was being used, a manufacturer of a defective part that caused either that car or your own vehicle to malfunction, a mechanic who contributed to that malfunction, and a government body or construction crew if hazardous road conditions led to your car accident, among others. 

Each defendant represents another potential avenue of financial recovery, and top compensation can only be secured if your lawyer initiates formal claims or lawsuits against all of the individuals and entities who share blame for your car accident. 

Your Case Will Be Built 

At this point, your attorney will work tirelessly to amass the evidence to build an airtight car accident case.  This would include evidence of your damages, such as medical records and bills and employment documentation, and evidence of the defendants’ liability, such as: 

• Police reports 
• Citations and dispositions 
• Crash scene photos 
• Dash cam, traffic light, and surveillance footage 
• Black box data 
• Eyewitness accounts 
• Phone records 
• Driving histories 
• Vehicular inspection logs
• Forensic analysis and accident reconstruction 

The stronger your car accident case is, the stronger your position will be when your case is brought to a resolution. 

Your Indiana Car Accident Lawyer Will Negotiate a Settlement 

The vast majority of car accident cases are resolved during negotiations with the insurance companies for the defendants, and this is when your attorney can make a real difference.  If you handle your own case, your relative inexperience could put you at a disadvantage in talks with a veteran insurance adjuster, who may deploy intimidation tactics to get you to accept an inadequate offer or simply deny your claim outright.   

In contrast, your Indiana car accident lawyer will have the experience necessary to meet the adjuster on a level playing field, fending off the standard insurance industry tactics and even overcoming unfair denials that might otherwise stop you in your tracks.   

The advantage provided by a capable personal injury lawyer is not just a theory – it is a statistical fact.  One study by the Insurance Research Council found that plaintiffs with lawyers obtain personal injury settlements or verdicts that are 3.5 times higher than the ones obtained by plaintiffs without lawyers, while another study discovered that 85 percent of the money paid by insurance companies goes to claimants with professional representation. 

And an attorney will become even more indispensable if your Indiana car accident case should go to trial.  While plaintiffs who represent themselves in court only win about 4 percent of the time, plaintiffs who hire attorneys win more often than not, which could enable them to acquire the funds to become whole again. 

Fighting for the Everyday People of Indiana 

If you have been injured in an Indiana car accident through no fault of your own, get in touch with the dedicated car accident lawyers at Hensley Legal Group, who have been fighting for the everyday people of Indiana for more than 25 years. 

You can call or text us at (317) 472-3333, chat with us online, or fill out our contact form to schedule a free consultation with an accomplished Indiana car accident attorney today.