How Do You Know When to Contact a Personal Injury Law Firm?

According to data put out by the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center, falls and motor vehicle crashes are consistently the top two most common reasons adults over the age of 18 visit the emergency room. And, when these injuries occur due to accidents that weren’t your fault, you may be able to bring a personal injury claim against the at-fault party. 

However, there are several questions you should be able to answer beforehand. Some of these questions include: 

• Is Kentucky a fault/no-fault state? 

• Do I need an attorney for a personal injury claim? 

• How can a personal injury attorney help me with my case? 

If you’re in the Elizabethtown, Kentucky, area including the cities of Radcliffe, Shepherdsville, Bardstown, Brandenburg, Leitchfield, Hodgenville, and Louisville, contact us at the Caleb Bland Law, PLLC to schedule a consultation with a personal injury attorney. 

Common Personal Injuries 

Most personal injury cases stem from car accidents where you or a passenger in your car was injured due to another driver’s negligence. However, you may also be able to file a lawsuit for other injuries due to medical malpractice, premises liability cases (such as slipping and falling on someone else’s property), product liability, dog bites, or workplace accidents.  

Knowing When to Contact a Personal Injury Law Firm  

After you’ve sustained an injury after an accident, it can often be hard to think straight about your choices, and you may wonder when is the best time to contact a personal injury attorney. While there’s no simple answer to this, it’s generally better to take this step sooner rather than later.  

It’s important to understand certain facts about personal injury law.  

The first thing to understand is how the state requires people to handle accidents. Kentucky is considered a no-fault state, which means that after an accident (such as a car crash), both drivers must first file a claim through their own insurance before they can pursue a claim with the at-fault driver. This is true regardless of who was responsible for the accident happening. This can increase the amount of time the entire claims process takes because you have to wait for your own insurance to pay out before you can ask for additional damages that weren’t covered by your policy.  

If you’re feeling at all overwhelmed by this process or suspect that your insurance won’t provide adequate coverage, you should contact an attorney who can help you fight for the care you need. You should also contact a lawyer immediately if your injuries are serious, meaning you’ll require extensive medical care and/or time away from work.  

Most driver’s personal injury protection (PIP) will only cover up to $10,000 in medical expenses and if your injuries are serious, this won’t even begin to cover all your costs. By working with an experienced attorney they can let you know what your options are and what to expect from the entire process. They can also act as your personal representative when dealing with insurance adjusters and can advocate on your behalf for a fair settlement amount.  

Insurance companies are often willing to do anything they can to close your claim as quickly as possible and get you to agree to a low final offer, and if you don’t have a lawyer advising you, you could be left with an insufficient settlement. Lastly, proving negligence in a personal injury case is not easy and requires gathering and organizing a great deal of evidence that clearly shows where liability lies, and your attorney can direct this process. 

To sum things up, you should contact an injury if you are experiencing any of the following: 

• You have serious injuries.  

• You suspect your insurance won’t provide adequate coverage.  

• You don’t know how to move forward with the process.  

• You want to understand your options.  

• You need an advocate between insurance adjusters.  

• You need someone to help you prove negligence and to show where the liability lies. 

Things to Ask a Personal Injury Attorney  

Once you’ve decided that hiring a lawyer is in your best interest, the next question you should be able to answer is this question: “What should I ask a personal injury attorney?”  

First of all, you’ll only want to hire an attorney who you trust and who genuinely listens to you. If you ever feel you’re being rushed along or not taken seriously, that’s an indication that you should shop around for better legal representation. When interviewing possible attorneys, be sure to ask about the following: 

• Their fee structure, including how and when they’ll get paid; 

• Their experience handling cases like yours; 

• Who you’ll be working with on a day-to-day basis (ie. will you get shifted off to an assistant or will you speak with a licensed attorney); 

• What you can expect to receive if you win. 

Note that no attorney should ever promise you’ll be awarded a certain amount; rather, they should be able to explain what’s happened with people in a situation similar to you and what you can expect on average if you win.  

Take the First Steps Towards Your Recovery 

If you’ve recently been injured and are unsure of whether you have a strong personal injury case, call us at the Caleb Bland Law, PLLC in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. We’re also proud to represent clients in Hardin County, Meade County, Grayson County, Breckinridge County, Nelson County, LaRue County, Hart County, Bullitt County, and Jefferson County.