After a serious accident, questions and concerns may start to consume your thoughts. You’re thinking overtime, yet you’re not getting any of the answers you need. Many people tend to wonder why this tragedy happened to them or what it will mean for their future.

Remember that your thoughts are tied to your emotions, and because you’re likely experiencing a range of emotions, you may have some ideas that aren’t helpful to your situation. However, perhaps one significant question in your mind is if your case is worthy of a personal injury attorney. The following information will help you make that decision.

Questions to Ask Yourself Before Contacting a Personal Injury Lawyer

All things aside, suffering injuries or any other health-related condition is scary. Most people aren’t accustomed to spending time in a hospital or being unable to enjoy the activities they love most. A stressful event, whether a car accident or slip and fall, can trigger a chain of financial, physical, and emotional stresses. The adverse effects of stress on your wellbeing can make coping with your injury even more challenging.

The question of hiring a personal injury attorney is typically a matter of assessing multiple variables that pertain to your circumstances. Here are five critical questions to ask yourself before choosing to contact a personal injury lawyer in Pennsylvania:

What is the extent and nature of your injuries?
Are you unsure of who’s at fault?
How many parties were involved in the accident?
Have you filed an insurance claim?
Is it too late to sue?

Below is an explanation of why each of these questions is important to consider.

What Is the Extent and Nature of Your Injuries?

Generally, if your injuries are severe and require long-term medical care, then it would be a wise decision to speak to a personal injury lawyer. However, even when accident victims’ injuries are classified as minor, the average medical cost for a trip to the emergency room is thousands of dollars. This is because hospitals and emergency rooms don’t calculate the cost of injuries by type. Instead, they factor in the kind of treatments or tests you receive.

Regardless of your initial medical examination and costs, injuries don’t heal after one hospital trip. Minor injuries may take up to weeks or months to heal, and catastrophic injuries may last for years or, in some cases, be permanent. In light of this, it comes down to placing a value on the specific extent and nature of your injuries. Calculating an accurate value for your injuries requires the ingenuity of a Montgomery County personal injury attorney.

Are You Unsure of Who’s At Fault?

Accidents happen in the blink of an eye. One minute you’re fine, and the next minute your entire life feels like it’s been shifted out of place. You may not remember what you were doing at the time of the accident, nor what the other party or parties were doing. To have a viable personal injury claim, you must be able to demonstrate how someone’s negligence led to your injury-related losses. Therefore, if you simply have no recollection of the accident, then it’s imperative that you reach out to a personal injury attorney.

If you suspect that the other party or parties involved were negligent, or even if you played a part in the accident, you still may be awarded damages under Pennsylvania pure comparative negligence laws. Hiring a competent personal injury attorney will help you pinpoint the exact cause of your accident and the percentage of fault each party shares.

How Many Parties Were Involved in the Accident?

Traditional lawsuits, with a singular plaintiff and defendant, take ample time and preparation before both parties appear in court. While all cases are complex, lawsuits involving multiple parties are notoriously intricate. When there are more than two parties involved, each additional party may share fault for the accident. Evaluating liability and dealing with insurance companies warrants the apprehension of an exceptional personal injury attorney who can use innovative tools and resources to ensure the right parties are held accountable.

Have You Filed an Insurance Claim?

One of the first steps accident victims take after an accident is filing an insurance claim, and that’s a necessary action to take. Often, though, accident victims are in a vulnerable state and confide in insurance companies because they believe they want to help. But what most people don’t realize is that insurance companies are mainly concerned about their profits. This means that they do what’s in their best interests, not yours.

When dealing with insurance-related issues, insurance companies will send out an adjuster to evaluate the accident scene. In their investigations, they will try to talk to you to determine your side of the story. It’s easy to make a mistake that could cost you your settlement, whether it’s accidentally admitting fault or changing your account. Remember that you don’t have to say anything to them. Let a skilled personal injury attorney who knows how to handle the misleading tactics of insurance companies manage your case.

Is It Too Late to Sue?

In Pennsylvania, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit against another party is two years from the date your injuries were recorded. Keep in mind that the statute of limitations that applies to your specific accident may be shorter or longer than two years. If you don’t take action within the established time frame, you risk losing eligibility to pursue a claim. Since there’s no harm in consulting an attorney about your case, it’s a good idea to at least speak with one in order to learn more about your rights or potential routes to pursue.

Unparalleled Personal Injury Representation in Montgomery County, PA

After analyzing these questions, you may realize that you clearly need legal assistance. Get personal injury representation from the esteemed Montgomery County personal injury attorneys at Rubin, Glickman, Steinberg & Gifford, P.C. With office locations in Bucks County and Montgomery County, we extend our services to 20 locations in the Southeastern Pennsylvania area. As a full-service law firm with over 65 years of experience, our legal team is more than capable of supporting accident victims who entrust their cases to us.

The attorneys at Rubin, Glickman, Steinberg & Gifford are dedicated to ensuring that accident victims receive the personal attention and respect they deserve in these critical times. Our firm bears a long-standing track record of successfully and aggressively representing our clients, calling upon our various skills, experiences, and resources. We don’t just view our clients as case numbers; rather, we commit extensive time and effort in understanding their situation to help them achieve maximum compensation for their losses. Call (215) 822-7575 or complete a confidential contact form to schedule a consultation today.