An automobile accident is one of life’s biggest shocks, especially if you suffer a personal injury as a result. Anxiety and pain can make it difficult to focus on what you need to do in the aftermath. But it’s exactly at this time, when you might feel overwhelmed, that you need to make clear decisions. And you need to be able to make them quickly, within days of the automobile accident, days during which you might be receiving medical treatment for personal injury. Those first few days are crucial for making the best decisions for your overall recovery. Not only recovering from the automobile accident itself, but recovery of payments needed to cover expenses for medical bills and lost wages, and recovery for more intangible damages, such as your pain and suffering, and potential long-term future loss.
At this critical, intensely stressful time, you will be approached by insurance company adjusters. They may pressure you to sign medical releases that you don’t fully understand. They will ask for recorded statements. They may instill fear that if you don’t cooperate with them, you will not receive needed payment for damages to your car in the automobile accident, or for necessary medical treatments needed due to personal injury. Don’t succumb to those pressures or listen to those fears. It’s vital that you talk to an attorney first before signing anything or making any recorded statement.
For all these reasons, you should look for an attorney with solid, wide-ranging knowledge of accident law. Someone who can make those calm, clear decisions for you, at this traumatic moment in your life. Contacting experienced personal injury attorneys that offer a free initial consultation is a good place to start.
You want to find an attorney who will act rapidly on your behalf, who will accomplish the following tasks for you in the first days after the automobile accident: take photos of your vehicle, talk to any witnesses and record their statements, obtain accident reports, resolve property damage claims and any potential rental car issues, facilitate payment of your medical bills through your automobile insurance and be your representative with the insurance companies to deal with all their questions and paperwork.
After those first difficult days, you want an attorney experienced in accident law who will also assist with all your medical care, working to obtain the maximum legal recovery for your injuries. It’s key that you are not pressured to agree to any settlement until you’ve secured that maximum medical benefit.
So in the immediate aftermath of your automobile accident, despite the pain and stress you may be suffering, take a moment to focus on finding someone to help you find your way out of that difficult storm of emotions. You need an attorney with the accident law expertise to stave off the pressures from insurance company adjusters, someone who can ease your anxiety by answering all your questions about short-term medical payments and any potential long-term concerns. Contact several personal injury attorneys who offer a free initial consultation, and of course, ask trusted friends and family for recommendations of firms with accident law experience.
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Mark Godbey of Mark Godbey & Associates a full service general practice law firm specializing in bankruptcy, debt consolidation, divorce and other kinds of family law, auto accidents, personal injury claims, probate and estate planning, criminal defense and traffic cases, and small business representation. Â Mr. Godbey has been focusing his practice in the area of Personal Injury Law for over 22 years. Â Mark Godbey is a lifetime member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, a group of attorneys recognized for having achieved verdicts or settlements for an amount of at least One Million Dollars.