Without proper legal representation, that is. We possess decades of experience dealing with worker’s compensation cases, as well as unjust personal injury suffered from traffic accidents. Darwin F. Johnson especially! He’s spent several years working in the Georgia court system and knows exactly what ends insurance companies will go to in order to avoid having to pay higher compensation for a policyholder’s claim. In this particular segment, we’d like to illustrate some of the factors that insurance companies will bring up in order to defer or reduce the amount of money you receive on your claim. These factors are much easier to clear up with strategic and experienced legal defense.
How involved did the hospital have to get?
When you were injured, how much was the hospital involved in the initial process? Did 911 have to be called, and an ambulance dispatched? As many of us know, trips in an ambulance can be quite expensive. If you think ambulances are expensive, medical helicopters are even more!
Did you need immediate surgery, or do you need surgery but time and funding has gotten in the way? This is a huge factor in discerning compensation levels. Hospitals do a lot of research on their patients and collect a lot of data. It’s important to get appropriate legal representation to ensure that the information is being used to your advantage instead of vice-versa.
What is your past medical history?
Past medical history is often reviewed by insurance companies and they will find just about anything to use against you. Did you have an injury, medical condition or special needs before the accident occurred? This could work for or against you, depending on how well represented you are. If you wear any kind of correctional lenses, whether it’s contacts, glasses or bi-focals, they will ask about when your last eye appointment was and when you last had your prescription made. If you have hearing aids, a similar conversation will take place, except louder, and about your ears.
How serious was your injury?
How long did you have to stay in the hospital? Was there permanent damage? Will the injury leave permanent scarring or disfigurement? Also, will this injury prevent you from doing the job until it’s healed, or for the indefinite future? Regardless of the fact that the injury happened due to the negligence of an individual tasked with your well-being, insurance companies will still try to reduce a claim settlement based on the severity of the injury. When an insurance company is calculating a settlement, they take into account past medical bills, current ones and costs that may occur in the future—with less severe injuries this number may come out to significantly less.
Did you lose wages because of this injury? Did it put your job in jeopardy? We understand that Georgia is a right to work state and you can lose your job at the drop of a hat. If this injury caused difficulties with you and your employer, it’s important you let your legal professional know this.
Exactly who injured you?
Please believe that if you’re filing an unjust injury suit or a worker’s compensation case, that the person you’re filing a case against will most definitely secure legal representation. After all, it’s usually business and property owners that have lawyers just in case these kinds of situations happen. Is the person/organization likeable? Are they a public icon? Or, are they an individual in bad standing with the area having jurisdiction? These can have distinct effects on your claim and case, so it’s important to consider as you plan your case strategy.
There are many other factors to consider
These are just a few of the factors that are considered by insurance companies when you are filing a claim with them. They have dozens upon dozens of ways of deferring the value of your personal injury or worker’s compensation case. We know this because we’ve handled so many of these cases and we plan to handle more in the future. If you’ve been unjustly injured or think you may be getting swindled on a settlement, please contact us as soon as possible for a complimentary consultation today at (470) 285-8246. There’s no substitute for truly effective legal representation when it comes to dealing with insurance companies- they are fully trained to get the most value out of their policies, so make sure you have a powerful attorney like Darwin F. Johnson on your side.
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