Should You Accept an Insurance Settlement After an Accident in New Jersey?
Video Transcript
It’s really important to speak to a lawyer before accepting any settlements in a personal injury matter. I have, sadly, seen too many incidences where somebody speaks to an insurance adjuster soon after an accident. They decide to take what they perceive as quick money, and then it turns out that they have serious injuries that develop, called latent injuries or what have you.
By ‘what have you’, I mean that today, I suffer from back pain and from whiplash. The next day it continues to get worse; I go for treatment and I try to use conservative measures – pain management, chiropractic, physical therapy – and the next thing I know, nothing’s working and I have to get a fusion surgery. Well, at that point, if you’ve signed a release agreeing to accept a small amount of money from the insurance company right off the bat, you cannot come back to the insurance company and ask for more, simply because your injuries just got tremendously worse.
That’s why it is really important to speak to a lawyer to make sure that they fully evaluate your case and determine whether you’re getting a fair shake. Most of the time, what you’ll learn is that speaking to a lawyer can increase the amount of compensation that you receive tremendously.
