Personal Injury FAQ

Question 1

If my accident has just now occurred, what should I do to protect a potential injury claim?

Accepted Answer

Right after an accident you should document what happened and be careful what you say about it. Taking the proper steps and avoiding mistakes after an accident can have a significant impact on the success of a subsequent claim for compensation.  If you can, get photos of the accident scene, such as cars in a collision or a wet spot that led to a slip-and-fall accident. Photograph property damage, your injuries and any conditions that may have contributed to the accident. If there are witnesses, get their names and contact information or record statements.  As you deal with your accident and injury, anything that documents what happened to you may serve as evidence later. Save reports and/or receipts for everything. Report the accident promptly to police and your insurance company (especially a car accident). See a doctor, even if you don’t feel like you are badly hurt. Follow the doctor’s advice. If a doctor places you out of work, get a written note and keep a copy.  As you recover, consider a written, audio or video journal of your gains and setbacks.  Meanwhile, be careful what you say when talking to police, insurers and others about the accident. Do not admit fault and do not downplay the harm the accident has caused you. Answer questions truthfully, but do not provide information beyond what is asked. Do not sign anything from any insurance company without the advice of a lawyer.  Finally, protect your rights by contacting an experienced car accident lawyer. A Hardison & Cochran attorney can explain your rights and legal options at no cost to you. Once engaged as your attorneys, we will represent you in all dealings with insurers and others connected to the aftermath of your accident.

Question 2

I’ve recovered from my injury and feel like my losses were well within typical insurance coverage. How can you help me with what should be a simple claim?

Accepted Answer

We can work with the insurance company to ensure it has a proper request for the compensation you are due and in most cases secure a prompt and full settlement. But it’s important to consider whether the timing is right to settle your claim.  We urge our clients to be sure they are pain free before they attempt to settle an injury case. Doctors will routinely release patients presuming they are 100 percent recovered, but our experience with thousands of injury victims tells us that is not always the case. We suggest you wait 30 days after your doctor’s release to make sure you have no recurrence of pain or other medical problems.  Once you are comfortable that you are fully recovered, we can begin putting together your settlement package and send it to the insurance company with a request for a settlement. The insurance adjustor will review it and ask his or her supervisor for settlement authority.  At this point, the adjustor and your attorney can discuss the issues and what is a reasonable amount to be paid to you for your injury. Itusually takes four to six weeks of negotiations before we can determine whether a case can be settled without filing a lawsuit. When we get a final offer from the insurance company, we will present it to you with our recommendations.  If you accept a settlement, the insurance company will issue a check for the total amount and send it to our firm. We’ll prepare a settlement statement that shows deductions for our legal fee, costs, and payments owed to medical providers. It will also show what you will receive as the net proceeds of the claim. This usually takes one to two weeks to conclude.

Question 3

How long do I have after my accident to pursue compensation for a personal injury?

Accepted Answer

In most cases in North Carolina, you have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit. But you must consider the time it takes to develop a proper legal claim. You should not waste any time getting started.  North Carolina law describing statutes of limitations on pursuing compensation for injury says the three-year period limit on most cases of personal injury or property damage starts when the injury “becomes apparent or ought reasonably to have become apparent,” whichever comes first. Regardless, a claim must be filed within 10 years of the last act of the defendant that is pertinent to the claim.  The deadline for filing a personal injury claim in a case about a faulty consumer product, such as a defective medical device, is 12 years from the initial purchase or use of the product.  The statute of limitations for a wrongful death claim is two years.  Developing a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit is a complex and time-consuming process. It requires reviewing a variety of information, including medical records and other technical data, and obtaining statements from multiple people involved in the case. In some cases, consultants from specialized fields may be called upon to examine records or to reconstruct your accident and report their findings.  You should avoid any unnecessary delay in beginning work on your legal claim. If you contact Hardison & Cochran today, we can be in touch within 24 hours to schedule our initial meeting with you.

Question 4

How much money can I expect to recover in my personal injury case?

Accepted Answer

We cannot put a figure on what you might obtain for a personal injury claim, but payment would include direct reimbursement for bills you have paid related to the accident, plus compensation for your pain and suffering. In cases of ongoing medical needs or disability, a proper lawsuit demands compensation for projected future costs.  As a person injured through negligence or recklessness, you are entitled to claim compensation for:  Medical treatment, including emergency care,diagnostic testing, hospitalization costs, and follow-up examinations Other medical costs, such as for prescription medications, assistive devices, rehabilitation therapy Property damage, such as damage to a car that must be repaired or replaced after an accident Out-of-pocket expenses related to your injury, such as travel costs or for household assistance Lost wages if a doctor advises you to stay out of work Pain and suffering. Payments for pain and suffering depend on the seriousness of your injury and length of recovery. They are usually calculated by multiplying the total cost of your medical expenses by a specific amount.  But in cases of severe injury, determining proper compensation is more than adding up receipts. We work with medical consultants to determine the recovery prospects for clients who are seriously injured, and project future costs for ongoing treatment, expected declines in the client’s health and other expenses that they are likely to face. For clients who are permanently disabled, we work with experts to develop a life care plan that details ongoing and projected expenses related to their injury.

Question 5

Must I go to court if I have a personal injury claim?

Accepted Answer

Not necessarily. Most cases can be settled before trial, which is something we seek to do if we can obtain a settlement that is appropriate and fair to our client.  Payments made in personal injury claims are made through the defendant’s insurance policy in almost all cases. This is money the insurance company owes to the injury victim, but would rather avoid paying.  A personal injury lawyer’s job is to convince the insurance company that the weight of evidence in the case indicates that they should pay the claim or it will cost them even more to go to court. We settle about eight out of 10 cases based on strong evidence and our track record of successful litigation.  If we can obtain a proper settlement offer, we will present it to you. Accepting it is your decision, but a settlement ends the case, ensures you are paid quickly and allows you to get on with your life.  If we cannot obtain an acceptable settlement, we will be prepared to fight for you in court and we will make sure you are prepared for court as well.

Question 6

If I have a personal injury claim, how would I prove my case?

Accepted Answer

To prevail in a personal injury lawsuit, you must show that another party acted with negligence or recklessness and that their actions or failure to act led to you being harmed. Your claim would “demand” compensation for your losses, which would be spelled out in the lawsuit.  A significant hurdle to winning a personal injury lawsuit in North Carolina is the state’s adherence to a policy of “pure contributory negligence.” This holds that if you, as the injured party, contributed to the accident in any way, then you are not eligible for compensation.  The attorneys for a defendant in a personal injury claim might argue, for example, that you were speeding in an accident in which their client ran into you while their client was texting. The lawyer might persuade a jury that your speeding contributed to the timing and force of the collision.  As your attorney, a Hardison & Cochran personal injury lawyer would have thoroughly investigated your accident and developed a solid case for your right to compensation. We would be ready to counter any potential claims that you were at fault.  Having an experienced attorney who will work diligently to compile evidence of the harm done to you and then aggressively pursue all of the compensation you deserve is key to winning a personal injury case.

Question 7

Do I really need a lawyer to handle my personal injury claim?

Accepted Answer

A lawyer is not necessary every time someone is hurt in an accident and has a personal injury claim. But, we encourage every accident victim to at least consult a personal injury lawyer to make sure you understand your legal options and the services an attorney can provide.  What’s most valuable about a lawyer is that your lawyer is the one knowledgeable person involved in the aftermath of an accident who is looking out for your interests. The police serve the law, doctors work for corporations, and insurance companies serve their firm’s bottom line.  If you have suffered a serious injury, a personal injury lawyer can be of great help during a trying time in your life. We contact your medical care providers and the insurance company or companies involved to advise them that we have been retained to represent you. We take care of the work required to compile and submit an insurance claim, and to press the insurance company to do what is right. We deal with insurance companies on a daily basis, and we know the tricks aninsurance company will try to avoid paying what they owe.  If the insurer rejects your claim, an attorney who has worked on your case from the start is ready to go to court for you. You won’t have to wait for a newly hired lawyer to get up to speed or try to compile evidence after the fact.  Remember that a personal injury attorney works for you on a contingency-fee basis. What they get out of a personal injury claim is directly tied to the results they achieve for you. You don’t pay a fee until a settlement or court award for you has been approved.  Hardison & Cochran offers a free, no obligation meeting to discuss your case and advise you of your legal options. If you already have a settlement offer, we can give you our frank professional opinion about it.

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