Tragic accidents occur every year, and although a majority of them are beyond human control – such as torrential rains which may impair visibility or animals dashing across the road – a few occur as a result of human error.
The following are the factors that increase the risks of car accidents:
• Speeding
• Aggressive driving
• Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
• Tailgating, etc.
When it comes to determining a claim’s value, the entire process is somewhat complicated. You start wondering whether the insurance adjuster’s valuing is unbiased, especially since he has a stake to ensure that your case doesn’t settle for an outrageous amount. A car accident attorney will bring all his/her years of experience to bear when working for you to handle insurance adjusters.
Legal culpability
One of the most crucial aspects of your case has to do with determining who was liable for your injury, i.e. who was at fault. Your car accident attorney can examine the law about your accident. If it is discovered that you are culpable – no matter how small the degree – for the crash, it can significantly reduce your probable case value and will be indicated in the insurance adjuster’s opening offer to settle, that is if he makes one.
Your car accident attorney is familiar with such occurrences and is expected to put into effect a counter-argument to prevail over the insurance adjuster’s trepidation as well as potential defense protests.
Mitigating factors
Your car accident attorney will also evaluate potential negatives in connection with the potential defendant in your case. These mitigating factors may strengthen the chink in your armor, thereby making the defendant more than willing to settle the whole matter out of court.
These extenuating factors may include the following:
• Unresolved criminal charges
• Negative publicity
• Previous court awards against the defendant
• Pending or unresolved investigations by the EPA or OSHA against the defendant’s business, etc.
Your car accident attorney will draw your attention to the fact that the defendant can be motivated to settle instead of drawing unwanted or undesirable attention to them via a court proceeding, thanks to the factors highlighted above.
Factors That Involve Your Car Accident Attorney
You should bear in mind that the insurance adjuster will perform his/her research or fact-finding on your lawyer as well. In fact, you should expect this from the adjuster.
The insurance adjuster will take an in-depth look at your lawyer’s win/loss track record as well as how many accident cases like yours that the attorney has handled. A savvy adjuster may make a few assumptions here and there about the willingness of your attorney to settle out of court.
This is why you need to ensure that your car accident attorney has a lot of experience in these matters.
Independent consultants
Your car accident attorney should also know that insurance adjusters make use of outside valuation sources to set a price on your claim.
Outside valuation sources may include:
• Other lawyers
• An evaluation of past claims similar to yours
• Valuation software
Your lawyer should be knowledgeable enough to tackle each of these issues.