Fatal Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Car Accident Lawsuit
If you’ve been injured in an auto accident, then it’s important that you contact an experienced personal injury attorney right away. The insurance companies may contact you and make a tempting settlement offer, but they are not looking out for your best interests. Here are some fatal mistakes that can ruin your car accident lawsuit.
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Avoid Mistakes in Your Car Accident Case
9 Fatal Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Car Accident Lawsuit
1. Lying:
You should never lie when it comes to your personal injury lawsuit. The reason is that insurance companies are well-trained at zeroing in on lies, and that can ruin your whole case. There is no reason to lie. The truth is that you’ve been injured in an auto accident, and you deserve compensation.
2. Do not talk about your case:
The other driver’s insurance company, defense lawyers, and sometimes jurors may try to contact you. Do NOT talk about your case with ANYONE, including the at-fault driver, their insurance company, or anyone associated with either of them. If an adjuster wants to ask about your car accident claim, have them call your experienced personal injury attorney.
3. Facebook, Twitter & more:
Insurance adjusters and defense attorneys will investigate your Facebook, Instagram, X, Bluesky, and other social media accounts, blogs, and web pages even when set as “private,” and look for ways that can help them avoid accepting full responsibility for the harm they’ve caused.
The purpose of their internet research is to attempt to show that you are not as injured as you claim and use that to minimize your compensation. Be very careful about posting photos, being tagged in other people’s pictures, or mentioning your activities.
4. Signing your rights away:
Do NOT sign anything until you check with your car accident lawyer. Even simple mini-tort releases sometimes have fine print waiving future injury claims or allowing an at-fault insurance company to access your medical records and violate your privacy. Check with your lawyer first. Call Wilshire Law Firm if you have any questions.
5. Doctor appointments:
Listen to your doctors and follow through on their advice. There’s never a reason or excuse to miss a doctor’s appointment. Not going to the doctor may be interpreted as a sign that you are not hurt or that you don’t take your car accident lawsuit seriously.
It’s very important for you to show that you are working hard to get better, and keeping appointments is an important part of that. Also, when you are at the doctor’s office, be mindful of what you say. For example, never say, “My attorney said…”.
6. Disposing of important evidence:
Save all pill bottles, casts, braces, prescriptions, receipts for medical expenses, paid and unpaid medical bills, and any other items from your doctor. This is evidence of your personal injuries, and it must be preserved.
7. Pictures:
Anytime you have surgery or a visible injury, take pictures or contact your car accident lawyer. They will send a photographer to document your injuries. Videos are also great tools to show a jury or an insurance company adjuster just how difficult things have been in the time following your personal injury or after your surgery or other medical treatments.
Additionally, take pictures of the accident scene and car damage, if possible. Crash repair estimates are often misleading and don’t reflect the full amount of vehicle damage.
8. Insurance medical examinations (IMEs):
You will be sent to an insurance medical examination (IME) at some point. Sadly, the doctors who perform them are not independent; they are really an insurance company physician who makes a lot of money finding “nothing wrong” with auto accident victims. You must call your car lawyer immediately when your insurance adjuster tells you to attend a medical exam.
9. Poor communication:
The best advice remains the simplest: call your car accident lawyer if you have a question and certainly before doing something that can have an important impact on your case.
Filing a claim for damages after a car accident may be easy, but obtaining the compensation you deserve without a personal injury lawyer can be incredibly difficult, if not impossible. Sadly, many car accident victims assume that insurance companies are looking out for their best interests. They accept a lowball offer, not realizing their claim is worth a great deal more.
If you try to negotiate alone, prepare for a never-ending claims process full of delays, red tape, and other pitfalls. An experienced personal injury lawyer will negotiate with the insurer to cut through all of that and secure fair compensation.
Win With Wilshire Law Firm
At Wilshire Law Firm, our powerhouse team of car accident lawyers is ready to help you recover the compensation you deserve. We have helped thousands of accident victims throughout California, and we are ready to help you, too. Call us today at (213) 335-2402 for a free consultation or use our online form.
