When you’ve been injured in a vehicle accident, resolving your case can be a lengthy process, and getting a good settlement takes time. You have to determine the extent of your injuries, whether there are any ongoing health problems caused by those injuries, and any medical treatments that may be necessary in the future.
There are three primary factors that may increase the length of time it takes for your case to settle:
- The case involves substantial damages. The larger the potential settlement, the more thoroughly an insurance company is likely to wish to investigate. The insurer is unlikely to settle until it has established that your injuries truly are severe, and that its lawyers cannot raise a good defense against your case. Furthermore, insurance companies sometimes choose to delay settlement in hopes of convincing a plaintiff to give up and accept a much lower payment.
- You have yet to reach maximum medical improvement. It is generally necessary for you to reach maximum medical improvement, which means that you have recovered from your injuries as much as possible, and you have been discharged from your physician’s care. Therefore, the length of time it takes to settle your personal injury case depends in part on the amount of time required to treat your injuries. As long as you are still being treated for your injuries, you can’t be sure whether you will fully recover or not. No one can predict how long you’ll be in treatment for your injuries, and there is always the possibility that additional medical complications will surface that weren’t immediately apparent. If you fully recover, your case will likely be worth less than it would be if you never did.
- Liability or damages are difficult to prove. In cases where liability is difficult to establish, the insurance company isn’t likely to make a reasonable settlement offer until liability experts can show that the defendant was at fault. Even if the defendant’s liability can be easily established, the burden is still on you to prove that the defendant’s negligence led to your injuries. It takes time to gather together all of your medical records and bills, and medical providers are often slow to respond to requests for information.
You only have one opportunity to get a fair resolution to your case, so it’s important that you have an experienced attorney by your side. Contact the Law Office of Ben Crittenden to schedule a free, no-obligation case evaluation.
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