Having the professional legal guidance of an experienced Plantation, Florida personal injury lawyer on your side is key.
Suffering injuries and losses as a result of another person or entity’s negligence puts you in the challenging position of facing mounting expenses while needing to focus on your recovery. Obtaining just compensation that addresses the physical, financial, and emotional damages you experience will play an important role in your ability to reach your fullest recovery.
At Scarfone Auto Accident and Personal Injury Attorneys, we’re passionate about representing injured victims and their families. Put our experience managing a variety of cases in your corner.
Categories of Personal Injury Claims We Handle
Personal injury claims break down into several basic accident categories.
Traffic Accidents
Traffic crashes of every variety are often behind personal injury claims, including:
- Car accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Truck accidents
- Uber accidents, Lyft accidents, and other rideshare accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Bicycle accidents
Whether the other driver’s negligence leaves you injured in a T-bone, head-on, rear-end, hit and run, or DUI-related accident, a well-respected Plantation personal injury firm can help.
Additional Personal Injury Accident Categories
Although personal injury claims often focus on traffic accidents, this is by no means the end of the matter. Nearly any kind of negligence-based accident can spark a personal injury claim, but some of the most common categories include:
- Dog bites
- Premises liability claims, including slip and fall accidents
- Claims involving catastrophic injuries, including burn and spinal cord injuries
- Nursing home abuse claims
Additionally, medical malpractice and wrongful death claims are based on negligence and are very similar to personal injury claims.
Personal Injury Claims: The Elements
In order to bring a successful personal injury claim against the party who caused you to be injured, all the following elements or factors must be present:
- The other person or entity owed you what is known as a duty of care, which amounts to having a responsibility to your safety. A prime example of this is the responsibility all motorists bear for everyone with whom they share the road.
- The other person or entity failed to live up to their responsibility to you in some way.
- This failure was the direct or proximate cause of your injury-causing accident.
- You suffered verifiable legal damages – or losses that are recognized by the law – as a result.
For example, if a speeding driver plows through a red light and T-bones your car, their negligence is directly responsible for the serious losses you experience, which can include all the following:
- Property damage to your car
- Medical bills
- Lost earnings on the job
- Physical and emotional pain and suffering
While traffic accidents of every kind are prime examples of personal injury claims, this branch of the law includes a wide range of accident types.
Damages Sought
In your personal injury claim, you will seek fair compensation for the legal damages – or losses – you experience.
Property damage
When the accident in question is a traffic accident, a common form of damage is property damage to both your vehicle and its contents.
Medical expenses
The medical expenses associated with personal injury claims are often extensive and can include costs like the following:
- Emergency treatment and transportation
- Surgical care and hospital stays
- Treatment and care from doctors, therapists, and other medical professionals
- Prescription medications
- Pain management
- Medical treatments, tests, and procedures
- Follow-up care
- PT, OT, and rehab
- Home health care
The more serious your injuries, the more likely it is that you will require ongoing medical care that can be related to complications and secondary health concerns. Accepting a settlement before you have a solid understanding of your medical expenses can leave you facing uncovered losses that make achieving your most complete recovery that much more challenging.
Lost earnings on the job
If you’ve been injured by someone else’s negligence, a primary source of loss may be your inability to continue earning during your recovery. This financial loss can be even more pronounced if your earning potential or your career path is affected. To make matters more difficult, a hit to your career can also translate to an emotional loss – given the degree to which many of us associate our sense of self with the careers we nurture.
Pain and suffering
While it is more difficult to point to your physical and emotional pain and suffering, assess the damage done, and assign a cost, this form of damage is, nevertheless, all too real. In fact, your pain and suffering is likely to make your journey toward recovery that much more arduous and should not be discounted.
Clearly identifying each category of loss – in its entirety – and ensuring that each is well represented in your personal injury claim is critical to your ability to recover, and a dedicated Plantation personal injury attorney can help you with that.
The Insurance Company
The at-fault party’s insurance company will likely handle your personal injury claim, and what you need to know about this company is that it is driven by profits, which means it will use all available tools to help keep your settlement as low as it can get away with. Consider the following common practices:
- Offering an early settlement that does not come close to covering your complete physical, financial, and emotional losses but that you are desperate enough to consider
- Attempting to shift their policyholder’s fault in the matter toward you
- Denying your claim from the start in the hope that you will simply drop it
- Denying the extent of your damages
- Artificially prolonging the already lengthy claims process or artificially complicating the already complicated claims process
While you can expect the insurance company to put up roadblocks, your seasoned personal injury lawyer has the legal skill and insight to help guide your claim toward a favorable resolution.
In the end, the law will guide the compensation to which you are entitled, and you don’t have to accept whatever the insurance company decides to offer. While most personal injury claims are settled out of court, sometimes, filing a lawsuit is the best option.
The Role of Your Personal Injury Attorney
Your personal injury attorney will pour the full force of their impressive experience into a range of primary tasks that are designed to protect your rights and your rightful compensation.
Handling the insurance company
Insurance companies are skilled at twisting claimants’ statements into meanings that harm their own claims, and as such, your attorney will clearly communicate with the insurance rep handling your claim on your behalf – in addition to skillfully negotiating with them for just terms that address your full range of losses.
Compiling your strongest claim
Your personal injury lawyer will gather and compile the available evidence in a focused effort to build your strongest claim. This can include all the following:
- Photos and videos from the accident scene
- Eyewitness testimony
- Expert witness testimony
- Professional accident recreation models
- A thorough accounting of your damages, including testament to your physical and emotional pain and suffering
Preparing for trial
While your claim will likely settle, your personal injury attorney will be well prepared to proceed to court if the need arises. If the insurance company refuses to settle for a fair amount, your attorney will very likely advise you to file a lawsuit against them, which may inspire the insurance company to engage in more realistic negotiations.
Reach Out to an Experienced Plantation Personal Injury Lawyer Today
Contact a Plantation, Florida personal injury lawyer at Scarfone Auto Accident and Personal Injury Attorneys. We have an impressive array of experience successfully guiding challenging claims like yours toward beneficial resolutions that uphold our clients’ best interests, and our founder Rocco Scarfone is on your side.
Because your recovery can hinge on your personal injury claim, don’t wait to pick up the phone and call Scarfone – or contact us online for more information today.