You Should Contact a Personal Injury Attorney As Soon As Possible After an Accident.
I actually have not had many clients or prospective clients ask how soon after an accident they should contact a personal injury attorney. Nevertheless, I wanted to give you my recommendation, in the unfortunate event you or a loved one might be involved in a serious accident. For several reasons, I believe you should consider contacting a Florida personal injury attorney as soon as possible.
Accident Victims are Not Required to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer.
First, let me say that, at least in Florida, you are not required to retain an attorney. You are free to negotiate your injury claim with the at fault party and his or her insurer. Further, in the event you are unable to settle your claim, you are free to file a lawsuit and represent yourself pro se, without an attorney. Of course you could also attempt to fly an aircraft without a pilot or cross a jungle without a guide; however, I don't recommend you try any of the foregoing items by yourself.
A Personal Injury Lawyer Will Promptly Assure That Witnesses and Evidence is Preserved.
In my opinion, you or a family member should contact a Florida attorney quickly after an accident. First and foremost, this is important so that your attorney can identify, collect, and preserve physical evidence before it is lost, altered, or destroyed. If not done correctly, and I see this often in the case of accident victims who wait to contact an attorney, witnesses will be lost or forget essential information, damaged cars will be repaired, roads will be reconstructed, dangerous instrumentalities will be repaired, and no photographs of the accident scene, vehicles, and your injuries will be taken. If that happens, the evidence of your accident claim could be weak. You do not want your case to come down to your word versus the word of the driver who caused the accident or the landowner who maintained a dangerous condition on the property. You want to identify witnesses and record their statements. You want high quality photographs of the accident scene, defective condition, and your injuries. There is a reason for the saying that photographs are worth a thousand words, and you may be in no condition to handle these matters while you are injured and focused on receiving medical treatment.
Insurance Companies Do Not Wait to Hire an Investigator or Defense Lawyer.
You may not be surprised to know that immediately after a serious accident, insurers regularly begin investigating the accident. In many cases the insurance company will retain a local investigator or third-party administrator and, in some serious instances, insurance accompanies will actually appoint a Florida defense attorney immediately to begin an investigation. Often, the investigator or defense attorney will be at the accident scene soon after the accident, taking photographs, identifying surveillance cameras in the area, and interviewing witnesses. Further, under Florida's €work product doctrine,€ any investigation undertaken by an insurance investigator or defense attorney enjoys a strong privilege from disclosure. That is, the negligent driver and his attorneys may obtain pertinent physical evidence about your claim that you are unable to obtain and, thus, present in your personal injury lawsuit. Don't find yourself in that situation, consider contacting an injury attorney quickly after an accident.
Accident Victims are Not Required to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer.
First, let me say that, at least in Florida, you are not required to retain an attorney. You are free to negotiate your injury claim with the at fault party and his or her insurer. Further, in the event you are unable to settle your claim, you are free to file a lawsuit and represent yourself pro se, without an attorney. Of course you could also attempt to fly an aircraft without a pilot or cross a jungle without a guide; however, I don't recommend you try any of the foregoing items by yourself.
A Personal Injury Lawyer Will Promptly Assure That Witnesses and Evidence is Preserved.
In my opinion, you or a family member should contact a Florida attorney quickly after an accident. First and foremost, this is important so that your attorney can identify, collect, and preserve physical evidence before it is lost, altered, or destroyed. If not done correctly, and I see this often in the case of accident victims who wait to contact an attorney, witnesses will be lost or forget essential information, damaged cars will be repaired, roads will be reconstructed, dangerous instrumentalities will be repaired, and no photographs of the accident scene, vehicles, and your injuries will be taken. If that happens, the evidence of your accident claim could be weak. You do not want your case to come down to your word versus the word of the driver who caused the accident or the landowner who maintained a dangerous condition on the property. You want to identify witnesses and record their statements. You want high quality photographs of the accident scene, defective condition, and your injuries. There is a reason for the saying that photographs are worth a thousand words, and you may be in no condition to handle these matters while you are injured and focused on receiving medical treatment.
Insurance Companies Do Not Wait to Hire an Investigator or Defense Lawyer.
You may not be surprised to know that immediately after a serious accident, insurers regularly begin investigating the accident. In many cases the insurance company will retain a local investigator or third-party administrator and, in some serious instances, insurance accompanies will actually appoint a Florida defense attorney immediately to begin an investigation. Often, the investigator or defense attorney will be at the accident scene soon after the accident, taking photographs, identifying surveillance cameras in the area, and interviewing witnesses. Further, under Florida's €work product doctrine,€ any investigation undertaken by an insurance investigator or defense attorney enjoys a strong privilege from disclosure. That is, the negligent driver and his attorneys may obtain pertinent physical evidence about your claim that you are unable to obtain and, thus, present in your personal injury lawsuit. Don't find yourself in that situation, consider contacting an injury attorney quickly after an accident.