Most people think personal injury lawsuits are all about courtroom drama. The reality is far less glamorous. The overwhelming majority of cases are never even heard in front of a judge or jury…

Instead, they settle.

And the representation you have during those settlement negotiations can make all the difference in the outcome of a case. It can mean the difference between a fair settlement and leaving thousands of dollars on the table.

In this article, we will cover:

• Why Settlement Negotiations Are So Important
• What an Injury Attorney Actually Does During Negotiations
• The Key Strategies Attorneys Use to Win Better Settlements
• When It Makes Sense to Hire an Injury Attorney

Why Settlement Negotiations Matter

Here’s a little-known fact about personal injury lawsuits:

About 95% of personal injury cases settle prior to trial. So, in most instances, the outcome of a case is determined during the negotiation phase.

Bear in mind that insurance companies are not your friend. They are for-profit businesses whose goal is to pay you as little as possible. Insurance adjusters work full-time negotiating claims. Their entire job is to protect the company’s bottom line by minimizing payouts. If you are going up against such an opponent with no legal representation, it’s not much of an even fight.

It’s precisely for this reason that having a skilled personal injury attorney on your side is so crucial. An experienced injury attorney in Richmond VA, or a personal injury attorney anywhere, can make a huge difference during settlement negotiations. They level the playing field when it comes time to talk numbers.

What an Injury Attorney Does During Negotiations

Okay, but what exactly does a personal injury attorney do when negotiating a settlement? It’s much more than just sending letters and making phone calls. An effective injury attorney will take care of the “heavy lifting” behind the scenes. Here’s what we mean:

• Investigating the accident: This includes obtaining police reports, witness statements, photographs, videos, and any other evidence.
• Calculating true damages: Adding up medical bills, lost wages, future expenses, etc.
• Documenting the injuries: Ensuring that nothing gets overlooked or left out of the claim
• Building a demand package: Presenting the facts of the case in the most compelling way possible
• Countering lowball offers: Negotiating with the insurance company when they try to low-ball a claim

Let’s not underestimate how much work can go into the investigation phase alone. It creates the framework for everything that follows. This means visiting the scene, photographing damage, obtaining medical records, and collecting evidence. It takes a trained professional to properly handle all of the above.

Here’s another key point to consider…

The legwork performed above directly affects the amount of compensation that is offered. Insurance adjusters know the difference when they are negotiating with someone who has done their homework vs. someone who hasn’t.

Key Strategies Attorneys Use to Win Better Settlements

If you’ve been wondering how injury attorneys actually win better settlements, there are a few key strategies used that most people aren’t aware of.

Understanding the Value of the Case

The first step before any negotiation takes place is for an attorney to determine the value of the case. This is not a hunch or a gut feeling. Rather, it involves:

• Reviewing all medical records
• Calculating medical costs (both current and future)
• Evaluating lost income and loss of earning capacity
• Assessing pain and suffering damages
• Researching outcomes of similar cases

Knowing how much the case is actually worth is everything. Set the value too low and money will be left on the table. Ask for too much without justification and an insurance company won’t take a claim seriously.

Timing is Everything

Entering into settlement negotiations too soon is a rookie mistake. Smart injury attorneys wait until an injured person has reached maximum medical improvement before starting negotiations. In other words, wait until treatment is complete or the long-term prognosis is known.

Settling too early can be a disaster if there are injuries that don’t become fully apparent until later on. For example, back injuries that start out mild but turn into something more serious down the road. If full treatment and recovery time is known, a claimant is in a much stronger position during negotiations.

Creating Leverage

Insurance companies are only motivated by pressure. In order to create leverage, an injury attorney can:

• File suit if needed to show they are serious
• Create hard deadlines for responses
• Demonstrate a willingness to go to trial
• Present airtight documentation

In some instances, just the act of filing a lawsuit will result in a better settlement offer coming in. Insurance companies don’t want to go to trial. Trials are time-consuming and expensive. They prefer to settle.

Handling Counteroffers

Insurance companies are notoriously slow at offering their first number. And that number is almost never the best number.

An experienced attorney knows this fact and is ready for it. The injured party and their attorney will usually respond to such low-ball offers with a detailed counter-response. This counter involves going through the insurance company’s offer and methodically pointing out its flaws. Over time, this back-and-forth moves closer and closer to an agreeable number.

This can take weeks or even months. But it’s important to be patient when negotiating. Don’t accept the first offer that comes in from an insurance company. If it isn’t a fair number, fight back and make your point known.

When You Should Consider Hiring an Injury Attorney

While every minor car accident isn’t worth lawyering up, there are certain times when an injury attorney’s help becomes invaluable.

• Injuries require ongoing medical care
• Accident causes permanent disability or disfigurement
• Fault is in dispute
• Multiple parties are involved
• Insurance company is dragging its feet or denying the claim
• Settlement offer is unfairly low

As you can see from the above, numbers tell the tale. Research shows that 91% of people with attorneys receive settlement payouts as opposed to 51% without an attorney.

And it gets better…

Insurance companies are known to delay and prolong litigation when an attorney is involved. So, a lot of the time, having legal representation means being paid sooner. Then after legal fees are paid, those who hire an attorney end up with a lot more compensation than those who did not. The value an injury attorney provides during settlement negotiations more than covers their fees in the majority of cases.

The Bottom Line on Legal Representation During Negotiations

Insurance companies have all the advantages during settlement negotiations. They have adjusters who are experienced at the job. They have legal teams at their disposal. They have more money than the average claimant and can afford to wait them out.

An injury attorney evens the odds.

They know the tactics that insurance companies use. They know what a case is actually worth. They have the skills necessary to advocate on a client’s behalf and fight for the fair compensation that is deserved.

Seems pretty important, when someone’s financial future hangs in the balance.

Summary

The role of an injury attorney in settlement negotiations is far more than what most people realize. They investigate accidents. They document injuries. They calculate damages. And they counter lowball offers…

They take care of the entire process so that injured people can focus on healing and recovery.

Here’s a quick recap of what we covered:

• Most injury cases settle prior to trial
• Attorneys investigate and build strong demand packages
• Timing and leverage lead to better settlements
• Having legal representation increases chances of receiving fair compensation

Settlement negotiations are where injury cases are truly won or lost. The experienced help of an injury attorney during this critical phase can mean the difference between an inadequate settlement and a compensation payout that someone actually deserves.

The data speaks for itself. Injury victims who work with personal injury attorneys during settlement negotiations almost always achieve better outcomes than those who don’t.