If someone else injured you and caused you expensive medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering, you should not have to pay for those damages on your own. Our lawyers can file a lawsuit, insurance claims, and whatever other claims are necessary to get you the damages you deserve.
Victims should never have to pay for what the defendant did to them. Our lawyers stand up for you against insurance companies and in court to get your damages paid. That means getting you all compensation needed for the expenses you already faced, as well as the effects on your future.
For your free case review, call Schoenfeld Law Firm’s personal injury attorneys at (337) 674-2099 today.
How Should I Deal with Insurance After My Accident?
Insurance is often there to pay for accidents. The at-fault party – the defendant – may have insurance to cover accidents at their house, in their business, that they cause while driving, etc. Getting compensation from them often means going through their insurance, but insurance companies typically do not want to pay.
Insurance companies will use anything you say to them against you if they can. That is why it is best to get a personal injury lawyer on your side and have them handle the communications with insurance. We can send demand letters and talk to the company to tell them what evidence we have and why we think we can win the case.
Insurance companies may offer low-dollar settlement offers that are based on their financial assessments, not the actual damages in your case. We can reject them and negotiate for a better deal. If they will not pay, we can take them to court.
Do I Have to File a Lawsuit in My Injury Case?
Although many cases turn into lawsuits and go to trial, this is not the most common way to get your case paid. Most cases are ultimately paid as settlements, whether through an insurance claim or after filing a lawsuit.
Just because you file your case as a lawsuit does not mean you are locked into eventually going to trial. We can still push for a fair settlement and use the tools that filing a lawsuit gives us to strengthen your case.
For example, once we are in the discovery stage of trial, we can demand records and documents, depose witnesses, and gather strong evidence to build your case and achieve a fair settlement.
What Damages Can I Get in an Injury Case in Lafayette?
Personal injury claims usually deal with two main areas of damages to pay you back for the harms you experienced:
Economic Damages
Economic damages cover the actual monetary charges you faced because of the accident, as well as the lost earnings you faced. These commonly include…
- Medical expenses
- Physical therapy and rehabilitation bills
- Mental health care bills
- Lost income
- Reductions in future earning potential
- Replacement services around the house
- Reasonable adaptations in the home to deal with a disability
- Childcare during hospital stays
- And more.
These costs are often reflected in bills, receipts, and other financial statements. Many involve future values that we can reasonably prove through doctors’ testimony about what care you will need in the future and financial experts’ testimony about your ability to work with your new disabilities.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages, often called pain and suffering, can be paid to reimburse you for the harm that has no monetary value. It can be difficult to put a price on things like mental anguish and emotional distress, but that is part of our job as injury lawyers.
When calculating damages, there are two major methods used. First, we can assign a per-day value to your pain and suffering and multiply it by the number of days you faced pain and suffering. Alternatively, we can choose a multiplier to represent the severity of your injury and multiply the other damages by that number to get total damages.
You can also seek compensation for your family’s harms, such as the effect of your injury on your spouse or the fact that you cannot help with household chores because of your injury.
What Should I Do After an Accident?
In the immediate aftermath of an accident, you should call 911 for an ambulance or go to the hospital. You should also, if you are able, collect evidence at the scene, such as…
- The names and contact info of everyone involved
- The names and contact info of all witnesses
- The location and nature of the accident
- Any details about lighting, weather, or other conditions that might be relevant.
You should also get pictures of the accident scene if you can, especially for injuries caused by dangerous property or for car accidents.
However, if you are too injured and have to focus on your medical care, focus on that first.
From there, you should call a lawyer. Do not worry about seeking medical records or police reports on your own; we can collect these things for you. Instead, focus on your recovery, follow through with any medical care you need, and let us start building your case.
Things to Avoid After an Accident
There are also some important things not to do after your accident:
- Do not sign anything or accept money from insurance or defendants, as this could function as a settlement and end your case.
- Do not post about your accident on social media or talk to people about your accident, as any statements floating out there could be used against you.
- Do not overexert yourself, perform physical tasks beyond your doctor’s limitations, or risk making your injuries worse.
When to Call a Lawyer
You should call an attorney as soon as you can after an accident. You can spend a few days focusing on your recovery, but there may be evidence – such as security camera footage – that could be lost if we do not act quickly to preserve it.
What is the Filing Deadline for My Injury Case?
Louisiana Law gives most victims up to 2 years to file injury claims. However, you should contact a lawyer and start building your case much sooner, as any delays will ultimately delay damages.
Call Our Lafayette Personal Injury Lawyers for Help
Call our personal injury lawyers at Schoenfeld Law Firm at (337) 674-2099 for a free review of your potential case.
