What Are the Major Steps for Filing a Personal Injury Claim after a Road Accident in Phoenix?

Phoenix roads are vulnerable to daily accidents for various reasons, including bad weather, careless drivers, and “unroadworthy” vehicles. These occurrences have had severe implications, primarily injury inflicting, property damage, and fatalities. Unfortunately, many individuals involved in these accidents don’t understand the steps to go through the legal procedures of filing a claim. The narrative below entails the necessary information to help you know about the personal injury claim filing procedure when you’re in a road accident.

Consultation

After an accident, the first thing to do is to meet with your lawyer to discuss your claim and concerns. Luckily, you can easily hire one of the many car accident lawyers in Phoenix, AZ, to assist with the initial consultation phase. This step is necessary because it helps the attorney to gather the necessary information regarding the incident.

These legal experts use your information to assess and understand various subjects about the accident. The most common discussion topics include the injuries incurred, the driver who may be liable, the involved parties, and what it’ll cost to treat the injured. This step ends with the lawyer assessing your claim and advising you on how to proceed.

Investigation

After consultation, your attorney indulges in a detailed investigation to establish your case’s facts and circumstances. The investigation process can be straightforward or complex, depending on the accident’s severity. For instance, multi-vehicle accidents need more scrutiny than single-vehicle accidents. AZDOT reports show over 700 fatal multi-vehicle crashes in Arizona in 2021.

These numbers are alarming, but it’s a lawyer’s responsibility to investigate such incidents. Looking into an accident can involve acquiring police reports, medical files, photographing the scene, and interviewing possible witnesses.

Recovery

Allowing an attorney to investigate the accident allows ample time to recover from your injuries. Phoenix legal professionals advise their clients to follow the doctor’s prescription to increase the chances of a full recovery. Moreover, you must understand the necessity of acquiring and storing your medical reports because they come in handy when negotiating your compensation.

Negotiation

The negotiation phase includes discussions between you and the other parties involved in the accident. The main aim is to identify the victims and ensure they receive the payment they deserve for bodily injuries, lost income, and property damages. Most Phoenix personal injury attorneys possess adequate experience in this line of duty.

This exposure is critical in adapting and honing negotiation skills among these legal experts. These honed negotiation skills help the lawyers’ clients to establish their cases and receive adequate compensation. This step includes reviewing a settlement offer and explaining the best plaintiff’s options. Nevertheless, it’s not a lawyer’s duty to decide whether the victims accept the settlement offer, dispute it, or file a lawsuit.

Settlement

After the discussions and negotiations, the victims are on their way to receiving payment for their injuries and damages. However, this step only applies if the negotiations are successful and the defendant’s insurance provider has agreed to the plaintiff’s settlement terms. Personal injury lawyers then draft a settlement agreement containing the compensation terms. Additionally, the victims receive a Settlement Memo from their attorneys.

This memo lets you review the settlement proceeds and enlighten you on the payment disbursement. Most personal injury cases regarding car accidents in Phoenix end after successful negotiations between the claimant and the defendant’s insurance company. Nevertheless, there comes a time when the defendant files a lawsuit to dispute the injury value that the victim indicates as their rightful compensation.

The personal injury claim filing procedure is simple as long as you understand the right steps. The above-explained steps show how this process flows to help you grasp it better. The best part is that personal injury attorneys handle most of the work throughout the case filing process.