If you are hurt in an accident, the best time to hire a lawyer in most cases is right away. One of the benefits of hiring an attorney is that the attorney will handle communications with the insurance companies regarding how the accident happened and your injuries. An attorney can also help you find medical providers who will not only provide you with great medical care but also be able to effectively advocate for you; you can be sure the insurance companies will have doctors to advocate for them! Finally, hiring an attorney early on means the attorney can monitor your progress with you as you recover from your injuries and advise you along the way.
After you initially report an accident to an insurance company, you will likely be contacted by the insurance company to provide a more detailed statement about how the accident occurred and your injuries. Even at this early stage, the insurance company (and potentially their attorneys) will begin preserving and comparing every statement you make to look for even the most minor inconsistency. If they find one, you can be sure the insurance company will use that to try and create the appearance that you are being dishonest. If you do talk to them, try to be as accurate as possible. If you aren’t sure or don’t know the answer to a question, it’s OK to say so. If you intend to hire an attorney soon, tell the adjuster that this is the case and that you would prefer to wait to speak to them until you have consulted with an attorney. Here at Kimmel Carter, once you hire an attorney, they will take over the vast majority of the communication with the insurance company so you don’t have to worry about it. This has the added benefit of minimizing the opportunity for any inconsistent statements.
On the other hand, you might want to wait to hire an attorney if you aren’t sure if you’ve been hurt. If you are not hurt badly enough to seek medical treatment or are only going to get checked out once, you may be better off settling things with the insurance company yourself.
If you have been injured in an auto or work accident, the experienced attorneys at Kimmel Carter are here to help. Call (302) 565-6100 for a free legal consultation.
