You have a role to play in protecting or enhancing the value of your car accident claim. Follow these tips to ensure that nothing you do inadvertently undermines the amount you can seek as compensation for your losses:
Take Care of Yourself
Your health is your wealth, quite literally, in the case of a car accident claim. Getting immediate medical help is essential for your well-being and for establishing the significance of your injuries. Attending all follow-up medical appointments, doing physical therapy, taking medication, and avoiding activities according to your doctor's directions are equally as important.
Your care and rehabilitation records will often serve as crucial evidence in proving your claim for damages. Any gap or deficiency in those records resulting from your failure to take care of yourself can drastically undermine the value of your claim because insurance companies and defense lawyers will use it to blame you for losses.
Do Not Jump at Quick Settlement Offers
An insurance company representing an at-fault party may offer you a quick settlement of your claim. Beware of accepting it. What may seem like fast, easy money likely falls well below the amount you deserve to receive, and it may come with significant consequences.
Accepting any settlement offer from an insurer requires you to sign away your rights to pursue them and their policyholder for additional compensation, meaning a settlement is a one-shot deal. If you accept too little, you can't go back for more later, and you may end up without the financial support you need to pay for your care and rebuild from your trauma.