Personal injury claims and cases are amongst the most common insurance-related and legal resources taken, respectively. There is no doubt that a personal injury can cause a lot of disruption in your life, no matter how mild it is. Whether it’s psychological distress after an incident at work or a physical injury after a full-on car crash, you are entitled to compensation for the pain and suffering you’ve endured. Since personal injury is sort of an umbrella term to a myriad of psychological and physical injuries, defining the form of injury in a claim or case is crucial. When people suffer personal injuries, it’s not uncommon for them to have no clue what to do next, especially if the injury is severe enough to temporarily impair their decision-making abilities. To help you through the proceedings of such an unfortunate incident, we’ve created a brief guide that should point you in the right direction.

Claim Valuation

When you’re submitting a claim to the insurance company, you must realize the true extent of damage that has befallen on you. It’s very common for people who have recently suffered a personal injury to not know the full extent of the damages. As the Chicago personal injury attorneys mention on this URL, experienced lawyers know how to assess emotional and physical damage through the complete collection and analysis of medical reports and personal accounts of the accident. If you’re choosing a personal injury lawyer, ensure that they are experienced in challenging insurance companies to get you the compensation you deserve.

Defining “Pain and Suffering” in a Personal Injury

It’s important to understand the broad range of suffering that can be included in a personal injury claim or case; the suffering can be mental, physical, or both. Physical suffering is the result of pain resulting from physical injuries that the plaintiff has endured during an accident. It can range from mild injuries like bruises to severe ones like fractures or disabilities. It’s not only about the discomfort but also the effect on the plaintiff’s ability to pursue his leisure and professional activities due to someone’s negligence.

Mental suffering can be the product of physical injuries but it’s not necessarily exclusive to it. Even if the bodily injuries do not have a severe effect on the plaintiff’s life, the by-product of the injuries can have a long-term detrimental effect on the plaintiff’s psyche. Mental injuries include emotional distress, anxiety, anger, panic attacks, humiliation, fear, shock, and even PTSD. Depending on the state, mental suffering sometimes has to be coupled with physical suffering to be included in the compensation claim.

Collect Evidence

This step is often overlooked because a lot of the victims of personal injury may not have a mental map of the claim process laid out in their heads. This is why it’s important to prepare for what to do before you’re actually injured in any scenario. Collecting evidence is going to be the main drive behind your claim because the other party or insurance company is going to do all that’s in their power to discredit your story or water it down, which means lowering down the settlement. Insurance companies aren’t exactly evil but they’ll try to avoid dishing out money as much as possible, and sometimes through questionable tactics.

You want to take as many pictures as possible from various angles to show the true extent of the damage. If it’s a car accident, try taking photos of the damage on your car, the other driver’s car, skid marks, and any other evidence that can back up your story in your claim. Try to collect the names of witnesses who happened to see the accident and ask the police officer who arrives at the scene for a copy of their report.

Medical Treatment

Aside from how important it is to address any injuries you have as quickly as possible to avoid complications, medical treatment actually ensures that your claim is backed by solid evidence. The medical treatment is viewed as an accurate depiction of the extent of the damage you suffered, especially when the medical report is done by a professional and reputable doctor. Depending on the insurance company, sometimes they can send ambulances or direct you to nearby hospitals that are approved by them. Anyway, you should call the insurance company to report the accident so they’d have it early in their records.

Suffering from a personal injury should never be taken lightly. Avoid brushing off injuries because in most cases, the actual extent can only be determined by a doctor. Assess the true compensation you deserve based on the by-products of the injury, whether it has affected your professional performance or caused you emotional distress, in addition to any out-of-pocket expenses you’ve paid in the process. A professional personal injury attorney should be able to guide you through these steps and handle the negotiations with the insurance company on your behalf.

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