Some accidents are nobody’s fault but your own. You stub your toe, you slip on your own wet bathroom floor, and there’s no one to send the bill to.
But what happens when the accident takes place outside your home, and someone else caused it?
It still wasn’t intentional. That doesn’t mean you should shoulder the cost of harm done by a driver’s reckless choices or a store owner’s disregard for customer safety. You’re entitled to reach out to a Cherry Hill personal injury lawyer to discuss your options for recovering what you’ve lost.
Here’s the support you’ll get once you do.
Initial Case Investigation and Evidence Collection
You’ll start with an initial meeting about what happened and why you believe you weren’t at fault. If your attorney agrees the case has merit, you’ll sign an agreement to move forward, and the investigation begins. Here’s what that looks like:
Securing official reports: Your attorney can obtain police reports, traffic collision reports, or facility incident logs that establish the baseline facts of how the accident occurred.
Preserving time-sensitive evidence: Surveillance footage, dashcam files, and a vehicle’s event data recorder (also called black box data) may be at risk of being overwritten or deleted. Your attorney can send preservation letters to the businesses connected to the at-fault party to stop that from happening.
Documenting the scene: Photos and videos may have been taken at the scene from several sources. Those need to be collected and analyzed.
Interviewing witnesses: If anyone saw the accident, your attorney can track them down and record their statements while memories are still fresh.
Gathering medical documentation: You’ll need to show the insurance company how the accident caused your injuries. Your attorney can help you assemble your initial medical records, ambulance bills, and emergency room notes to establish that link.
Consulting experts: Some cases call for an expert witness. Your attorney can retain accident reconstructionists or specialized medical experts to support your claim.
Sending the Demand Package and Starting Negotiations
Once your attorney has gathered the relevant information, they’ll prepare a demand letter that includes:
- Medical records and bills
- Proof of lost income
- Damages, including pain and suffering
- Supporting evidence
The demand package puts the insurance carrier on notice. They have to respond, which begins the negotiation. The adjuster typically takes several weeks to investigate the claim, evaluate the evidence, and review policy limits.
After that review, insurers almost always reject the initial demand or come back with a significantly lower counteroffer, even when the other party is clearly at fault. In their eyes, there’s always room to negotiate.
From there, attorneys for both sides trade counteroffers, working the numbers toward a figure everyone can live with. If your attorney reaches an offer you accept, you sign off and expect payment. If you hit an impasse, the next step may be filing a civil complaint.
Filing a Lawsuit and the Discovery Phase
The hope is to resolve your claim without a lawsuit, since litigation slows the process and can add stress. A personal injury attorney would only recommend filing if they’re confident in the case.
Your attorney will file your complaint in the appropriate New Jersey court, with the specific court determined by the damages you’re seeking. The insurance company is served and files its response, and the court sets a schedule that eventually leads to a trial date.
Before trial comes discovery: the phase where both sides formally exchange evidence, answer written questions, and take depositions. It’s where each party learns what the other actually has.
If the case goes to trial, your attorney represents you in court, presenting evidence to a jury, countering the insurance company’s defense, and telling a clear, persuasive story in support of your claim.
The door to settlement stays open the entire time. Many insurers would rather settle than risk a larger loss in front of a sympathetic jury.
Finalizing the Settlement and Disbursing Funds
The goal is a settlement that covers your current and future medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. When you reach one, you’ll sign a release that bars you from seeking anything more, which is exactly why you need to be certain the number covers all your losses.
After you sign, the funds go to your attorney, who disburses them: paying outstanding debts like hospital or repair bills first, then deducting the fee you both agreed to. The remaining balance goes to you.
Through every step of this process, you benefit from the support and guidance of an experienced personal injury attorney. The attorneys at Folkman Law have helped many Cherry Hill residents through the entire claim process, start to finish. Your claim will raise plenty of questions, and we can provide the answers you need to decide what happens next.
If you’ve been hurt in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, call to schedule your first conversation with Folkman Law today.
