When to Hire a Lawyer in a Car Accident
Potential clients often ask us whether they should hire a lawyer for their car accident case. They have concerns such as:
- They feel as though they were hurt, but not too badly.
- Their car was damaged, but not too badly.
- They have insurance, but they don’t want to use it because of fear their premiums will go up.
- They are scared to go into a courtroom and go to trial because of some type of stage fear and missing time at work.
- Lawyers seem expensive.
How can someone decide whether to hire a lawyer with all of these factors hanging over their head in the thought process?
Obviously we are lawyers, so our answer is going to be that you should always hire a lawyer if you were in a car accident, no matter how minor. However, this answer will be geared more towards minor car accidents where an injury did occur.
How Much Does a Lawyer Cost?
Let’s start with the “expense” of hiring a lawyer. In fact, it costs you nothing to hire a lawyer in New York to take on your car accident case. We work on all of our accident cases on a contingency basis. That means that our clients don’t ever pay us a dime. We only get paid if and when we recover for our clients. If we do not recover for our clients, we never get paid. The money that we spend on prosecuting the case is only reimbursed to us if we recover for our clients.
My Injuries Are Minor
Regarding injuries, if you are injured in a car accident case, initially you probably have no idea as to the extent of your injury. Sometimes, the most minor fender benders can cause catastrophic injuries where the symptoms do not show for days or weeks after the accident. By hiring a lawyer, we’ll make sure that you are properly checked-out for all of your injuries to ensure that your medical needs will be met.
Repairs to my Vehicle
Your car should be repaired and you should be made whole. If the accident wasn’t your fault, why should you incur the expense of repairing it? When car accidents happen, someone has to foot the bill for the repairs to your vehicle. By hiring a qualified lawyer, your bills will get paid on your case and your car will be repaired. If you go at it alone, you will foot the bill for the car accident, or at least the deductible, and you may have to take your car to your insurance company’s mechanic.
Increase in Car Insurance Premiums
If you are not at fault in the car accident, your premiums will not go up. I often hear people complain that they are scared to have a case regarding a car accident because they are worried their premiums will go up. Not only is this position a complete myth, it’s illegal and in bad faith for an insurance company to raise your rates if you are not at fault in a car accident.
Taking a Case to Trial
Lastly, going to trial. At the New York car accident law firm of Daniella Levi & Associates, we have lawyers that often go to trial. However, most minor car accident cases settle because the lawyers on the defense side understand that we will go to trial on our clients’ cases no matter how big or small. Accordingly, in a small car accident case, the chance of going to trial is less than 5%–not much of a risk. Even if your case does go to trial, our seasoned team of trial lawyers will prepare you for court and dissipate all of your fears.
In conclusion, hiring a lawyer in your car accident case is a must. Contact us now for a free consultation to discuss your matter and get started with your recovery.
