Contacting a Personal Injury Attorney at the Time of an Accident is a Prudent Action

You’ve probably seen or heard advertisements saying that it’s important to contact a personal injury attorney at the time of an accident. You also might have thought that this was just another hard sell tactic.

Not necessarily. There are solid reasons to take this immediate action.

Say you’ve been in an accident of some kind–– vehicular crash or perhaps a fall–– and you have been injured severely. It’s clear in this scenario that you will need the services of an experienced personal injury attorney as there will likely be substantial medical expense and rehabilitation costs.

Then there are those situations in which the motivations to call an attorney are not so clear. Perhaps your injuries are less severe. Or, perhaps there are no immediate manifestations of injury. Should you really bother to contact an attorney?

Yes. Here’s why.

1. Delayed symptoms of a more serious injury – An injury resulting from the accident may not produce symptoms for a significant period of time. Contacting a personal injury attorney at the time of the accident is a wise move in the event of a delayed problem resulting from the original trauma. These manifestations can take the form of bodily pain, prolonged suffering from chronic pain, emotional stress and/or diminished ability to function at previous levels.
2. Getting the incident on record – While there will most likely be a police report of your injury, not all accidents get reported, particularly in the case of less severe slip-and-fall incidents. Contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible creates an audit trail of action which will facilitate any future claim(s) you may have.
3. No cost for the consultation – If you’re hesitant to call a personal injury attorney because you feel the injury doesn’t justify the expense of paying an attorney, stop worrying. In most personal injury cases, attorneys receive no fee unless they obtain compensation for your injuries. All costs of bringing the claim or filing suit are fronted by the attorney. If there is an award in your favor, the attorney will receive a share of the compensation.

Lastly, there are those who think that they will just make a claim themselves and save the attorney’s cut. This is fool’s gold. Unless you are an insurance professional, most people do not  have the experience and/or specific knowledge needed to successfully negotiate with insurance companies and review/assess medical evidence.

Contact our experienced partners Christopher Fleming or Heidi Anderson in our Philadelphia office at (215) 567-1530. For our New Jersey office, call (856) 273-6679 and ask to speak to Greg Sciolla to inquire about a New Jersey accident.