Motorcycle Accident Attorneys: Get The Settlement You Deserve
It's a beautiful, sunny day. You're cruising along on your motorcycle. The wind is on your face, the road feels smooth beneath the bike, and you're having the time of your life – until you notice the vehicle behind you is getting a little too close. Before you have time to move out of the way, you've been hit. You wake up in the hospital with multiple injuries and thousands of dollars in debt. What do you do? You can't afford to miss work or even pay the current medical debt. You still have months of recovery time and no way to get through it all without financial help. What you need is a good lawyer. They will represent you in court and try to get a settlement for you so you can pay off your debt and be financially stable with any future expenses related to the accident.
Finding a Lawyer
The first step of finding a lawyer is to check the telephone book for current listings of attorneys in your area. Sometimes the attorney firms will even place an advertisement in the book to tell people what kind of services they specialize in. You want to find one that specializes in accidents. This type of lawyer will usually accept the case without any fees upfront. They take the fees out of the settlement. If you lose the case, it won't cost you anything. The con to this is that they take a considerable chunk of the settlement – like 40%. But when you can't afford to hire a lawyer, it may be worth it in the long run.
Call around and speak with multiple attorneys until you find one you want to represent you in court. Ask the lawyer questions about their experience, fees, and other concerns you have before you agree to work with them.
Prepare for Court
After you find the right motorcycle accident attorney, you will need to prepare for court. This means gathering up any documentation related to the accident and your injuries. The lawyer may ask you to bring in:
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Proof of wage loss: When you can't work, you don't get paid. The medical fees and other bills don't stop just because you do. Record how many weeks you've missed work and the estimate of wages you've missed because of that.
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Bills: Bring in all bills related to the accident. This includes medical bills, therapy bills, repairs to the motorcycle, etc. The lawyer will add this on to the settlement agreement.
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Insurance: Bring your insurance policy with you to show the lawyer in case they ask for it.
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Proof of payment: If you have managed to pay towards any of the debt after the accident, bring in proof of payment. The lawyer will fight to get you reimbursed for it.
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Accident statements: Speak with the police that handled your accident and ask them for all information regarding it. In some cases, the lawyer may do this for you after taking the case.
Conclusion
Remember, all cases are different. The amount of time it takes to settle the cases will be different, too. Your lawyer will work to get a quick settlement, but the opposing party will be fighting it so it may drag out. Or they may just settle quickly to get it over. Some may settle out of court to keep it out of the public's attention. Just try to be patient and work with your lawyer as much as you can.
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