A traumatic brain injury is one of the most severe effects of any accident, and you may have lifelong injuries that will change your daily existence. Along with your injuries comes the cost of a TBI, which can be considerable. If someone else was to blame for your accident, you can receive compensation for your injuries.

However, insurance companies are standing between you and the necessary settlement check, and you may have to go through them to get fair compensation for your TBI. Hiring an experienced brain injury lawyer in may be the only way to overcome the barriers the insurance company will put in your way.

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Causes of Brain Injuries

Brain injuries can occur as a result of various incidents, leading to potentially life-altering consequences. Understanding the causes of brain injuries can help injury victims and their families identify potential legal recourse and seek compensation for their damages. Here are some common causes of brain injuries:

  • Vehicle Accidents: Car accidents, motorcycle collisions, and pedestrian accidents are a leading cause of brain injuries. The sudden impact and force involved in these accidents can cause the head to violently jerk or strike against objects, leading to traumatic brain injuries.
  • Slips and Falls: Slips and falls can happen anywhere, from workplaces and public spaces to private residences. A fall that results in a blow to the head can cause brain injuries. These incidents are particularly common among older adults, but they can occur to anyone of any age.
  • Sports Injuries: Sports-related accidents often result in brain injuries, especially in contact sports such as football, hockey, and boxing. Repetitive blows to the head or a single traumatic event can cause concussions or more severe brain injuries.
  • Assaults: Intentional acts of violence, such as physical assaults, can lead to severe head trauma and brain injuries. Victims of assault may suffer long-term physical, cognitive, and emotional effects as a result.
  • Medical Malpractice: Surgical errors, medication mistakes, and other acts of negligence in the medical field can result in brain injuries. These injuries can occur during childbirth, surgical procedures, or due to misdiagnosis or improper treatment.

If you or a loved one has experienced a brain injury due to any of these causes, consult an experienced personal injury lawyer. An attorney can assess the specifics of your situation, determine liability, and pursue the compensation you deserve. Remember, seeking legal assistance can provide you with the support and resources needed to rebuild your life after a brain injury.

TBIs Have a High Cost

TBIs Have a High Cost

The Family Caregiver Alliance and the Brain Injury Association of America have estimated some of the costs associated with a TBI. If one has suffered a serious TBI, the lifetime medical costs can reach into the millions. Of course, your damages are far more than just your medical costs, and one of the significant components of your personal injury damages is pain and suffering. When you have suffered a TBI, pain and suffering may be up to five times the amount of your medical expenses (and maybe even more if you can share your story with a jury).

Before discussing money, you must persuade the insurance company that its policyholder was to blame for your accident and produce sufficient evidence to help meet your burden of proof. The insurance company may even try not to pay you at all, denying your claim because it does not believe that you have adequately proven fault in your case.

You Must Secure Adequate Compensation for Your TBI

Then, you must secure adequate compensation for your TBI, which is often the most complicated part of your case. When insurance companies have to pay more, they become more challenging. They will take extra time with your case and make you work the hardest while coping with physical injuries.

Accepting a TBI settlement is not a case of “close enough is good enough.” You only have one chance to settle a personal injury case, and once you accept a settlement, you sign away your legal rights to seek any additional money in the future. You might lose out on significant financial compensation; a lawyer can help prevent this by battling for you at every turn.

Any Claim or Lawsuit Is Going to Be a Fight

You may wonder why every lawyer speaks about personal injury claims as a fight with the insurance company. Unfortunately, this is the reality of the personal injury claims process. Insurance companies want to make money – as much of it as they possibly can. When they pay claims out, it costs them money and reduces their profits.

Insurance companies will do whatever they can to keep the money they need to pay you as low as possible and may try to avoid liability by denying a claim and fighting you in court. Their favorite tactic is nickel-and-diming you in settlement negotiations. They will wear you down, taking advantage of your financial stress when you have suffered a severe injury. Insurance companies want you to accept what they have put on the table and be grateful for it.

The Insurance Company Does Not Get to Dictate Settlement Terms

Thankfully, insurance companies are not dictators, nor do they have any power over you. Their purpose is to represent the responsible party legally obligated to pay you damages for your injuries. They should negotiate with you instead of dictating to you, and they do not get the final word.

Unfortunately, you must deal with insurance companies in any personal injury case. People and businesses are generally smart enough to know they must manage their risk and understand that all it takes is one large lawsuit to wipe them out financially. Some companies, such as trucking companies, must purchase insurance as a condition of their operation.

You Are Always Dealing with Insurance Companies

Dealing with Insurance Companies for TBI Compensation

Insurance companies must defend their client in a personal injury case. They are the ones who will negotiate the claim, and they will provide an attorney if the case goes to court. In other words, you cannot escape the insurance company, even if you take your case directly to court without filing a claim first.

There are ways that you can put yourself on an even footing with insurance companies because they do not have to have the upper hand over you. Sure, they have an army of adjusters and sophisticated programs that let them know the exact value of your claim. You do not start the claims process with this information, and you may have never even heard of pain and suffering, let alone know how it works in a personal injury claim.

Hire an Experienced Attorney to Be Your Fighter and Advocate

The foremost way to level the playing field with the insurance company is to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer to represent you during the legal process. You can quickly learn what to expect throughout the legal process and not be in the dark.

The most important way your personal injury lawyer helps you fight the insurance company is by giving you knowledge about your claim. It is only possible to get a fair settlement when you know what your claim is worth in the first place. The insurance company undoubtedly has this information, whether you are filing a minor claim or one for a significant injury like a TBI.

Your lawyer will work with experts to learn the value of your case before they file anything on your behalf. These experts include:

  • Medical experts to understand what your future care needs are
  • Life care planning experts to know how much it may cost to get you the help you need
  • Vocational experts to learn what work you may be capable of doing and what your career path may have been
  • Economic experts to know how inflation may affect the value of your case

You Will Need to Negotiate for Every Dollar

Your lawyer will need to fight the insurance company, regardless of whether you have filed a claim or a lawsuit. If you have filed a claim directly with the insurance company, you must go through many negotiations before you even come close to a settlement agreement. These negotiations may be adversarial because the insurance company will work to deter any hope you have of getting the total value of your claim.

In negotiations with insurance companies, the best way to fight them is by saying no when they try to lowball your settlement. You are not obligated to do anything or accept what they offer, and if the settlement offer is inadequate, you can reject it. Your legal rights are to be paid for damages when someone else’s actions caused your injuries.

When you reject a settlement offer, you have the right to counter with your demand. Your lawyer may even send a demand letter, a more formalized process when you tell the insurance company what they owe you. The demand letter will inform the insurance company that you will sue if it does not pay what you seek.

Insurance Companies May Treat You Differently with a Lawyer

When insurance companies see that you have a lawyer ready to fight, they may begin to come around in settlement negotiations. The prospect of litigation frightens them because the jury may order them to pay even more and because they need to pay their legal expenses. A jury is one thing that insurance companies cannot control because they cannot exert as much influence as they think on human emotion.

You may have to file a lawsuit in court because the insurance company refuses to be reasonable, or you may have elected to go to court in the first place. Then, you can expect a continued battle to get the money you deserve.

Insurance defense firms often only handle these types of claims, and these lawyers have experience fighting for insurance companies that are continuously hiring them for cases and pay. When you end up in court, you can expect a protracted fight.

How You Can Fight the Insurance Company in Court

There are several ways that you will fight the insurance company in court:

  • Your lawyer will aggressively pursue evidence during the case’s discovery phase, requesting physical documents that are in the other party’s hands and conducting depositions of their witnesses.
  • Your lawyer will vigorously oppose any motions the insurance company’s lawyers will file to dismiss your case.
  • Your lawyer will hire credible expert witnesses to give their own opinion of your injuries and what you may be going through.

An experienced personal injury lawyer will determine your case’s most effective legal strategy; sometimes, a different approach may work better for you. In court with insurance companies, you may have to go toe-to-toe with them until a jury verdict. However, many personal injury claims settle without a trial, even when you have filed a lawsuit. Everything depends on the facts and circumstances of your case.

Insurance Companies Often Back Away from a Fight

The more insurance companies see you fight, the more likely they may be to settle the case on favorable terms to you. Insurance companies are similar to any schoolyard bully – they try to back away when they realize they are in a confrontation. You may get better settlement offers, and the insurance company is acting more reasonably. Thus, fighting may get you a settlement that fully pays for your injuries.

The alternative is that insurance companies will run roughshod over you. They do not care that you are dealing with a lifelong injury and need every dollar that you get, and they think nothing of trying to settle your claim for far less than it is worth because their profits are what matters most to them. Amid that framework, you need a fighter championing your legal rights. That is precisely why you must hire a personal injury lawyer who will do battle with the insurance company for you. Unfortunately, there is no other way to be in a position to get the best possible settlement check.

Getting Legal Help Costs You Nothing Upfront

Jacque Hawk, Brain Injury Attorney
Augusta Brain Injury Lawyer, Jacque Hawk

Hiring a personal injury lawyer costs you nothing out of your pocket. The system works where you only need to pay your lawyer if you win your case. Then, your lawyer will receive payment from the proceeds of your case and will not get anything for their time if you do not get a settlement or jury award. Chances are that your lawyer will do a considerable amount of work on your case without any guarantee of payment. Thus, there is no risk to you in hiring a personal injury attorney in Augusta.