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Car Accident
HABLAMOS ESPAÑOL
(877) 880-4090If you lived through a motorcycle accident, you may count yourself lucky. However, while there is no doubt that you are fortunate to be alive, you may have come out the other side of your crash badly injured and with significant psychological distress. Moreover, you may live with extensive medical expenses and have no way to pay them, as your injuries left you either unable to work or unable to work to your full potential. Given the losses with which you now contend, you may have decided to pursue a motorcycle accident claim.
Motorcycle accident claims typically resolve in one of two ways:
The first type of resolution occurs when a case goes to trial. The second type of resolution typically occurs during the insurance claims process, but it can occur after litigation begins. Whether your claim settles or only resolves once a judge or jury hands down a verdict depends on several factors, including the value of your claim, the strength of your evidence and the skill of the person representing your case.
The main difference between a verdict and a settlement boils down to who has the final say in the outcome of a case. When parties settle, they come to a mutual and voluntary agreement and without any involvement from the courts. The agreement is legally binding. Settlements can occur at any stage of the claims process, including both before an injured party files a lawsuit and afterward.
A verdict is a judgment or decision that a judge or jury makes on behalf of the parties of a personal injury lawsuit. The judge or jury reaches a verdict only after hearing and reviewing all the evidence of the case. Like a settlement, a verdict is legally binding. However, unlike a settlement, either party can appeal a verdict. Also unlike a settlement, a verdict can only be handed down at the very end of the lawsuit.
Per the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the overwhelming majority — 96%, to be exact — of all accident claims end up settling. While accident claims include everything from animal attacks to medical malpractice, auto accident claims make up the majority of U.S. tort claims. For reference, automobile accidents account for nearly 60% of all tort claims, while medical malpractice — the second-most common type of claim — account for just 15%. Why, though, do most accident cases settle, and should you push for a settlement over going to trial?
Both insurance companies and claimants benefit from settlements, which is why nearly 100% of accident claims settle out of court. If you are not sure whether to go the settlement route or push your case to trial, consider the advantages of settling:
When you settle, you can do away with most of the costs associated with trial and, therefore, keep a larger portion of your award.
While you may assume that you have a clear-cut case, there is no telling how the jury will react to your evidence. What might seem like a reliable witness testimony immediately after an accident may prove far less credible once you get the same witness on the stand. Moreover, jurors may not respond as sympathetically to your story as you might like, which could result in a drastically reduced award.
The bottom line is, trials result in unpredictable outcomes. To avoid unpredictability, both plaintiffs and defendants choose to settle more than 95% of the time.
When you take your case to trial, you can still claim a variety of both economic and non-economic damages. However, you must provide substantial evidence that you are deserving of each type of damage you claim, which could prove difficult. Even with proof, you cannot force a jury to award you compensation for certain losses. However, you must ultimately accept whatever verdict it hands down.
Two, collecting settlements is typically far easier than collecting lawsuit awards. Once you accept a settlement, the insurance company usually puts the check in the mail within 8 weeks. When a jury issues an award, on the other hand, the defendant has the option to appeal, which could add additional years to the process. Moreover, if the award exceeds the defendant’s coverage, and if the defendant cannot afford to pay the difference, you may be out of luck.
Though there are several advantages to settling your motorcycle accident claim, there are three main pitfalls to doing so. The first is that the insurance company may pressure you to settle before you are aware of the full extent of your injuries. If you settle too soon in the process, you may unwittingly settle for far less than your case is worth.
The second is that, when you settle, you agree to not pursue further compensation, even if new issues arise. When you go the lawsuit route, a jury is unlikely to issue a verdict until it is aware of the full extent of your damages.
The third and final pitfall of settling is that doing so requires strong negotiation skills. You can easily negate this pitfall, however, by retaining a skilled motorcycle accident attorney to represent you.
Settlements are the most common way to resolve motorcycle accident claims. That said, just because litigation is rarely necessary does not mean you should forego legal guidance. A strong motorcycle accident lawyer can begin to prepare a trial-ready case from day one. When your case is trial ready, the opposition will be less likely to argue with you during negotiations. However, if litigation is necessary, you can have peace of mind that you and your legal team are ready. For help building the kind of case that gets real results, schedule a free consultation with Fielding Law today.