If you or someone you love has been hurt or killed in a car accident, you may be facing substantial costs for the injuries incurred or you may be facing substantial financial loss due to your loved ones death. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates the total annual costs from car accidents is around $277 billion, including costs for medical expenditures as well as loss of productivity and other losses. Victims and their families who bear the burden of these costs need to be compensated for their damages.
An Atlanta car accident lawyer can represent victims or surviving family members after a fatal crash. The goal is to get you the maximum compensation for damages so you can be fully and fairly compensated for all losses.
In many situations, victims are able to get a fair amount of compensation for damages by settling their claims outside of court. In other situations, however, a civil lawsuit will need to proceed to a trial for the victim to receive fair compensation and be “made whole for all crash losses.
Should You Settle an Atlanta Car Accident Claim?
Deciding whether to settle a case can be complicated. There are advantages to settling. First and foremost, you don’t have the stress of going to court or the uncertainty of an outcome. You won’t have to worry about the jury somehow deciding you shouldn’t get compensation and you won’t have to testify or present witnesses or sit in a court room for days on end.
You can often get the compensation from crash losses sooner if you settle, and you have the certainty of knowing exactly what amount of money you will get. You also do not have to worry about the defendant appealing, which is a real possibility if you take your case to court and prevail. This will drag out the claim even further, causing a substantial delay in getting paid for losses.
While these are clear upsides to settling, there can be downsides too. For example, you may face pressure to settle for a lower amount than what you could potentially get if your case went to court. You don’t want to risk leaving money on the table and getting less in compensation than the amount which is appropriate given the nature of the injuries sustained. You also cannot change your mind and get your day in court once you have formally agreed to settle and signed a liability release.
Because there are both pros and cons, you need to carefully consider whether settling your car accident claim is appropriate under the circumstances. Your lawyer can help you to assess things like the strength of the evidence against you, as well as the fairness of the settlement and the insurance policy limits in order to determine if accepting a settlement offer makes the most sense in your case.
The Atlanta car accident lawyers at Van Sant Law, LLC can represent victims after a collision. Call today at (800) 234-9556 or contact us online to schedule your free consultation.