Questions When Considering a Personal Injury Settlement Offer

The majority of personal injury cases are resolved with settlements before they even head to trial. Settlements can benefit both parties for a number of reasons. Settlements save money because they avoid the expenses of a trial, which can be costly because of legal and other fees. Settlements also result in a quicker resolution of the case since litigation can often take years from the time a victim files to the time a jury issues their verdict.

However, there are cases where it is not always the best option for the victim to take the settlement offer the insurance company is offering. This is why it is crucial to have a Virginia personal injury attorney advocating for you.

When it comes to weighing whether the settlement offer is in the victim’s best interest, an attorney will examine the following factors.

How much is the insurance company offering?

The goal of insurance companies is to make profits and every time they pay out funds to a victim that cuts into their profits. Therefore, it is common for the initial settlement offer by an insurance company to be well below what the victim is entitled to. Questions that need to be asked are whether the amount offered will cover all of the victim’s medical expenses, both past and future, for their injuries. Does the amount also include the amount the victim lost in income from being unable to work while they recover?

How much are the victim’s pain and suffering worth?

Any settlement should also include compensation for the pain and suffering the victim sustained from their injuries. The problem with this “damage” is that pain and suffering are subjective, unlike medical expenses or lost wages which both have definitive dollar amounts. There are several different formulas used to determine pain and suffering and your attorney will determine which formula works best for your case.

How strong is the victim’s case?

Virginia law follows the comparative negligence law. This means that if it can be proven that the victim is even 5 percent at fault for the accident, they are entitled to no compensation for their losses. If there is any doubt that the other party is 100 percent liable for the accident, a settlement may be in the victim’s best interest.

Contact a Virginia Accident Attorney

If you have been injured in an accident caused by another party’s negligence, you may be entitled to financial compensation for your losses. Whether the injury happened in a vehicle accident, from a defective product, or some other type of incident, a Virginia accident attorney can assist you in collecting financial compensation for the losses you have suffered.

The Virginia personal injury attorneys from Shapiro, Washburn, & Sharp have been advocating for victims and their families for more than 35 years and will use all available resources to obtain the best result possible for the circumstances of your injury case. Call our office today for a free case evaluation.

 

 

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