You will learn about the role insurance plays in terms of settling a personal injury claim and how it can affect the final outcome. You can then discuss this information with your personal injury lawyer.
Insurance coverage can make the difference
Indeed, having insurance can make a huge difference in determining the final settlement amount. Your personal injury lawyer will tell you that.
Is there insurance coverage in your personal injury?
Your personal injury lawyer will emphasize the importance of you finding out if the defendant has insurance. Your settlement will likely be much higher in this instance. The following are scenarios where insurance makes all of the difference:
● If you were involved in a car accident, does the at-fault party have auto insurance (all drivers are required to carry it in America!)
● If you slipped and fell on a wet floor in a store, make sure that the store owner has property insurance. All store owners are required to carry this
● If you were bitten by a dog, make sure that the owner has enough homeowners’ insurance to cover your settlement amount.
Some instances where this is impossible to do is in a hit and run accident. Since the at-fault party took off, there is no way for either you or your personal injury lawyer in Moreno Valley to obtain any insurance coverage information for him or her. The same is true if the at-fault party is completely uninsured.
How does the coverage amount affect a personal injury claim?
Since this is especially pertinent to car accidents, it’s time to examine three such hypothetical scenarios in detail. The defendant is 100% at fault in each scenario:
● Minor – if the accident was minor and you suffered from minor bodily injuries (like soft tissue damage) and property damage, the insurer will give you a low settlement because the extent of the damages and injuries was very minimal and will be hard to prove.
● Your case will settle quickly and you’ll get a very small settlement even if you sustained substantial property damage and/or bodily injuries in the car accident if the defendant has very low coverage limits. This is because even a small settlement will quickly exhaust policy coverage.
● You may have substantial bodily injuries and/or property damage and the adjuster has lots of funds from which to pay. However, the adjuster only wants to pay a limited amount. In this instance, your case could drag on in court for a while.
What happens if you need to turn to your own insurance
If the defendant has little or no insurance, you could well be turning to your own insurance company for the settlement money. You may be filing under comprehensive motor insurance coverage or under/uninsured coverage in this instance. Now that you know how insurance coverages work in relation to settlements, you can work on getting a good settlement with your personal injury lawyer.