The law surrounding personal injuries and health insurance can be challenging to understand. This is especially true when you’re trying to learn its ins and outs while you’re preoccupied by an injury. Terms like “personal injury claim” and “personal injury lawsuit” are used interchangeably, despite being different processes, and this can cause a lot of confusion when you don’t understand the industry.
So, after you suffer from a personal injury, which steps do you pursue, and how do you know the terminology to use? Let’s find out.
What Is a Personal Injury Claim?
A personal injury claim simply refers to the claim you make with an insurance company when you’ve been involved in an accident that’s left you with an injury. This claim can be made against your own insurance or against the insurance of a third party, depending who was at fault. There are many types of insurance that provide protection from injury-causing accidents.
An insurance claim should always be made as soon as possible after the injury occurred. It’s also a good idea to collect evidence of your injuries and the cause of them right away to use as proof. You’ll likely also want to wait to talk with your personal injury lawyer before communicating with another party’s insurance company, though, as your attorney will be able to assist you with knowing how to describe your case for the best chance of approval.
A personal injury claim is in fact a claim, so just because you file one doesn’t mean you’ll be awarded compensation. If the insurer doesn’t believe that the incident surrounding the injury is covered by your policy or that you didn’t actually receive the injury how you say you did, they may refuse to pay you, in which case you’ll need to file a personal injury lawsuit.
What Is a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
A personal injury lawsuit can generally be filed against any party that was liable for your injury. But in this case, it would be filed against the insurance agency that denied your claim.
This process can take several months, but it may be your only option, and it is often necessary to go through a lawsuit to ensure you receive the financial aid you need to treat your injury.
The process of a personal injury lawsuit will start with the filing, followed by your legal team investigating and gathering evidence to support your case. Once this is over, either a settlement or a trial phase will begin, taking the issue to court for a judge to solve. Even after the case has been decided, the losing side can potentially file an appeal, and this can lead to a fresh trial.
Finding the Right Support for a Personal Injury Lawsuit
Having the right legal support can make an enormous difference as you go through a process like this. People often struggle to handle court by themselves, and gathering evidence can be just about impossible if you don’t know where to look. A good personal injury lawyer will be able to guide you through this process, doing the legwork so that you can focus on recovery.
To find trustworthy legal counsel, you should fully research each company or attorney to ensure they have experience with personal injury lawsuits and that they will give your case the attention it deserves.
