Santa Rosa Personal Injury Attorney

After an accident, you may be approached by an adjuster for the at-fault party’s insurance company. The adjuster may tell you that they accept liability and that they want to get a check to you quickly. While it may be tempting to sign the paperwork and get paid, doing so can backfire.

In many cases, the full extent of your losses is not immediately known. You may think that your injuries are minor, only to find months later that you still have not fully recovered. If you accept the first settlement offer from the insurance company, you may end up having expenses related to the accident that are never compensated.

Even if your accident was relatively minor, it is often a good idea to consult with a personal injury lawyer. The attorney can review the facts of your case and any paperwork sent by the insurance company, and give you their opinion on how to proceed. If you decide to retain a law firm, they can work to help you get the maximum compensation that you are entitled to under California law.

Most personal injury law firms handle cases on a contingency fee basis. This type of arrangement means that you won’t be required to pay any money upfront. Instead, you will pay a percentage of your total recovery, which may range from 33% to 40%.

Each contingency fee agreement is different, so you should review the document carefully and ask questions if you don’t understand something. Typically, the agreement will state that you will pay a lower percentage of your recovery if the case settles, and a higher percentage if the case goes to trial. This is due to the fact that taking a case to trial can be time-consuming and expensive, so your Santa Rosa injury lawyer will be entitled to a larger fee.

As with most legal questions, the answer is “It depends.” Each personal injury case is unique, and the amount that you recover for your claim will vary based on the facts of your case.  Factors that influence the value of your case include:

• How serious your injury is
• The coverage limits of the at-fault party’s insurance policy;
• If you were partially at fault for the accident;
• Whether your injury will result in permanent disability;
• Your income;
• The amount of work that you missed due to your injury;
•  Whether your injury involved emotional trauma or pain and suffering

Your Santa Rosa personal injury attorney should be able to give you a ballpark figure of the value of your case, using their experience and knowledge of similar cases. However, keep in mind that this figure is just an estimate – and that as the case proceeds, you may end up recovering more or less money.