You may be unsure whether you need to hire a car accident lawyer in Chicago. The insurance adjuster may have suggested that you can save money by handling your insurance claim on your own. You might not know what a car accident lawyer can do for you, so you might not believe you need an attorney.
A simple, short answer to this question is that a car accident lawyer helps you build a personal injury claim that secures compensation for your injuries and damages. However, that answer does not explain what the attorney will actually do to recover money for your car accident claim.
Keep reading to learn what a car accident lawyer can do for you after a wreck. You might be surprised to learn how hiring a car accident lawyer can benefit you.
What Can I Expect a Chicago Car Accident Attorney To Do for Me?
A car accident lawyer’s primary goal is to obtain maximum financial compensation for your economic and non-economic damages. There are a number of steps an attorney takes to accomplish this goal, including:
Help You Understand Your Legal Rights
Illinois personal injury, insurance, traffic, and other laws may impact your case. An attorney explains these laws and how they affect your car accident claim. The attorney explains your legal options and the strategy they recommend to obtain a favorable outcome in your case.
The insurance adjuster is not a reliable source of legal advice. No one who works for the insurance company is a reliable source of information. Their job is to protect the insurance company from liability by lowering the value of your claim or denying your claim.
Identify All Liable Parties
A car accident lawyer thoroughly investigates the cause of your car crash. Investigating the crash could be time-consuming and costly. Therefore, hiring a lawyer means you do not need to handle this step in the claims process.
It is crucial to investigate the cause of the accident and determine each factor that contributed to the cause of the crash. Those factors help identify the parties who may be liable for your damages. Identifying all parties increases the sources of compensation for your damages.
Gather Evidence Proving Legal Elements of the Car Accident Claim
Most states have “at-fault” systems for car accident claims. That means you can take legal action against the driver who caused your crash, whether through an insurance claim or a personal injury lawsuit.
A car accident lawyer understands negligence and other laws that provide the grounds for seeking compensation for a car accident. They also understand the legal elements and the evidence necessary to prove the case.
Calculate How Much Your Chicago Car Accident Claim Is Worth
You can recover economic and non-economic damages for a car accident claim. However, placing a value on damages can be challenging.
The insurance company will always undervalue damages. It will not tell you if you should ask for a higher amount to settle your case.
Your personal injury lawyer assesses the severity of your injuries and damages. They use the factors in your case to determine how much your case is worth. Then, they aggressively pursue that amount for your case.
Negotiate a Fair Settlement for Your Claim
An experienced car accident lawyer is a resourceful negotiator. They use their skills and experience to develop a negotiating strategy that works best given the facts of your case. An insurance adjuster may not be as willing to try to lowball an attorney with a successful track record of winning cases.
Represent You in Court
Most car accident cases settle before a lawsuit is filed. Further, many of the lawsuits that are filed are settled before they make it to trial. However, your case may not be settled.
An attorney represents you in court. If your attorney has been involved in the case from the beginning, they’ll be prepared to go to court to continue settlement negotiations. Being prepared allows the lawyer to file a lawsuit quickly and avoid missing the Illinois statute of limitations deadline.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Chicago Car Accident Attorney
The above is a partial list of everything an experienced team of Chicago car accident attorneys can do to protect your rights. The type of case, the parties involved, and other factors determine an attorney's steps to pursue a personal injury claim. The best way to learn how an attorney can help you with your specific case is to take advantage of a free consultation.
Adam Zayed is the founder and managing partner at Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Lawyers, a top-rated and award-winning personal injury law firm serving Illinois with offices in Chicago and Joliet. With decades of experience, his legal team has successfully recovered tens of millions of dollars for accident victims. Contact them today to schedule a free consultation.
