Personal Injury Claim Process: What to Expect

If you get hurt, or a loved one gets injured and dies from the negligence of another, personal injury law allows you to seek compensation from the person. 

Should you wish to pursue a personal injury claim, one of the main questions you will likely have is what to expect from the process. 

Each personal injury case takes its own course based on its unique circumstances and facts. However, each claim will loosely follow a standard process. Let’s look at what this entails.

1. Hiring an Attorney

You want to pursue a personal injury claim through an attorney. Legal jargon, court processes, and trials are not friendly to non-legal professionals. Legal fees might be a primary concern, but a reputable law firm will take your case for free and bill you once they win a settlement. 

During your initial consultation, your attorney will review your case’s specifics with you and discuss any concerns you might have. 

Some of the things you will tackle will include:

• How the accident occurred, and who was involved
• Who may be liable for causing the accident (who owed you and negated their duty of care)
• Injuries suffered from the incident
• The type of treatment you received or are receiving for the injuries
• Any future repercussions of your injuries

At the end of this consultation, your advocate should be able to give you an assessment of your claim and advise on how to proceed. 

2. Investigation

To win a personal injury claim, you must meet certain criteria. Towards this end, your advocate will investigate your matter to determine the viability of your case, and to get information that supports your claim.

Often, the investigation process will include:

• Reviewing any evidence you have, including pictures, police reports, and so on

• Visiting the scene of the accident to take pictures
• Finding out and getting any CCTV footage that might have captured the incident
• Identifying all parties that could be at fault
• Getting all medical reports, records, and bills accruing from the accident
• Find and interview witnesses

3. Treatment

As your advocate conducts the investigations and works on building a solid case, keep up your treatment. Your focus should be on recovering and regaining your health. 

As you do this, keep a journal of your medical treatment, recovery process, out-of-pocket expenses, and days out of work. 

This will help your legal representative to compute damages. Keeping up with treatment also prevents you from getting progressively worse. 

4. Sending a Demand

Once your attorney has done their investigations, they can initiate the claim process by sending a demand letter. A demand letter is a write-up to the defendant’s insurer where your advocate states your case and why you should get damages. 

A demand letter will include information such as:

• A police or incident report
• A summary of sustained injuries
• Photos of injuries or property damage
• Medical bills and reports
• Receipts of out-of-pocket medical bills
• Documentation of loss of income, wages, and bonuses
• Damages for non-economic losses like pain and suffering
• For wrongful death suits, funeral expenses, medical bills, and non-economic damages can be included

Once the demand letter is completed, your advocate may review it with you before forwarding the claim. Often, demand letters are sent to the accused’s insurer.

The insurer will review the claim and:

• Refute the allegations wholly or in part
• Admit to the allegations and make an offer

If they refute the allegations fully, you will likely proceed with litigation, which means going to court. If they admit to the claims, they can make an offer. 

Still, it doesn’t always end at the insurer’s offer.  

The insurer can make an offer that is too low, given the injuries or damage suffered. In this case, your attorney will try and negotiate a better settlement. If the insurer does not budge, then you will proceed with litigation. 

Keep in mind that the insurer can still approach you at any point before judgment with a settlement. Should they bring an acceptable offer to the table, you can accept it and withdraw the suit. 

If the insurer gives an acceptable offer, your attorney will prepare a settlement memo for your review. This clearly outlines how the settlement will be disbursed. Additionally, your advocate will go over the terms of your compensation package as well. 

5. Filing a Complaint

If the defendant’s team refutes your allegations entirely or gives you a lowball offer, the next step is litigation. This begins with filing a claim. 

Filing a claim is a formal notice to the court and the defendant that you are filing a lawsuit and seeking compensation for damages. Formal complaints are often filed against insurers, but in some circumstances, these can be against institutions, businesses, individuals, and government agencies.

A formal complaint outlines:

• All parties involved in a suit
• The defendant’s legal claims
• Facts and evidence to support the defendant’s claims
• The court’s jurisdiction over the case
• Demand for judgments, stating how much the defendant is seeking in compensation
• A timeline for when the accused should respond

Your advocate will have the complaints served because they will include summons, and you will await a response from the accused party. 

6. Discovery

After filing and receiving a response, both parties go into discovery. This means both parties will exchange the information they have on the case. These will include witness statements and financial and medical statements. All this information can help quantify what is owed.

Additionally, advocates on both sides can get into interrogatories, depositions, requests for admission, requests for production, and so on. Either side can also file motions to dismiss, delay, or enter judgment. Depending on the specifics and complexities of a case, discovery can take months or years.

7. Litigation

If there is no settlement at this point, the case goes to court as planned. A judge or jury will hear from both sides, accident scene witnesses and expert witnesses, before making a judgment.

It could go in two ways: the defendant might be found guilty and ordered to pay damages, or the plaintiff’s claims might be dismissed.

Once judgment is entered, both sides have limited time to accept the decision or appeal. 

If the defendant agrees to the judgment or the period to appeal expires, the personal injury claim process is over.