| r and a wagon-wheel must be well greased. German | | | | were unable to work because of the accident and for |
| proverb | | | | what time period. If you don't have this then you should |
| If you absolutely cannot get a lawyer but you honestly | | | | probably just forget about it except for the fact that it |
| believe you have a personal injury case then you have | | | | won't hurt your case to throw it in. |
| only one choice: you've got to go it alone. | | | | And you need documentation from your work. This |
| Now, I don't recommend you do your case without a | | | | should include how much you earned per hour before |
| lawyer if you can get one. | | | | the accident (actual proof: a pay stub or letter from |
| First of all, studies show that an injured person with a | | | | human resources). And it should include the number of |
| lawyer gets more money even after paying the | | | | hours you were working per week just before the |
| lawyer than one without. | | | | accident. Once again the letter from human resources |
| Second, there are are pitfalls, which means you could | | | | would be a great place to include this information. |
| fall in a pit which you could not get out of. An excellent | | | | Step Seven: Gather pictures. Pictures that will help the |
| example of that is the uninsured or underinsured | | | | outcome of your case include: 1) damage to your car if |
| motorist case and there is an article on that elsewhere | | | | it is particulary bad (on the other hand a photo showing |
| in this blog. | | | | little or no damage is the opposite of helpful); |
| Third, you have no idea what your case is worth. | | | | 2) pictures of your injuries (this would include right after |
| But you've been turned down countless times and no | | | | the accident and then, if the injury is not completely |
| lawyer wants your case but you believe in it so you | | | | healed, some taken at the time you are putting |
| are doing it anyway. | | | | together the brochure); pictures of scars are |
| Step One: Do yourself a favor and don't settle too | | | | particularly useful; |
| early. You have to wait till all your injuries are identified, | | | | 3) If you have a nice picture of yourself you may want |
| diagnosed and treated. You'll reach a point where all | | | | to include it as it won't hurt your case and it could |
| your doctors agree you are at "maximum medical | | | | "humanize" you for a claims adjuster who has |
| improvement." Don't settle before that point and there | | | | hundreds of files. |
| may be reasons to wait even further. | | | | And here are two bonus points: |
| Step Two: Gather all the medical records from all the | | | | Step Eight: Summarize very simply and clearly in a |
| doctors you've seen and the clinics and hospitals | | | | cover letter the information you have gathered. You |
| you've been to. | | | | want a "total" for medical bills and you want to quote |
| Step Three: Do the same thing with the medical bills. | | | | the doctors as to their findings or "impressions" |
| You need every bill. | | | | regarding your injuries. |
| Step Four: Get a copy of the accident report. | | | | Step Nine: At the end of the Summary letter you will |
| Step Five: Get some idea of what your case is worth. | | | | need to ask for compensation. It's better to ask too |
| See my blog post entitled: What’s Your Case | | | | high than too low as you can always come down but |
| Worth? Utah Injury Attorney Gives Guidelines | | | | it is hard to raise a "demand" number when you realize |
| Step Six: Summarize your lost income. Now you can't | | | | you have set it too low. |
| just write a one page summary of your lost income or | | | | Now take the Summary letter and attach accident |
| lost wages and expect to get paid. My clients have | | | | report, photos, lost wage summary, medical records |
| almost always had problems understanding what it | | | | and medical bills and make a copy for yourself. |
| takes to actually get paid on a lost wage claim. | | | | Mail the original to the claims adjuster. |
| You need something from your doctor saying you | | | | |