At Griffin Law Firm, P.C., most of our personal injury claims are settled before a lawsuit is filed. However, a recent trend is that insurance companies are making low offers on cases until a lawsuit is filed. After the lawsuit is filed, a new adjuster is assigned who often makes a much higher offer.
Why would the insurance company use this strategy? Because the insurance companies want to weed out the law firms that always settle without litigation, so they know which law firms will take low offers without filing. The Griffin Law Firm has an excellent reputation and files the lawsuit whenever the insurance company’s offers are unreasonable. In litigation most of our cases are settled, but if the offers remain low, we are always ready to go to trial to secure fair compensation for the injured men and women we proudly represent. Below, our Warner Robins personal injury lawyer looks at the most common reasons a case ends up before a jury. Contact us if you want to schedule a free consultation.
Why Do Personal Injury Cases Go to Trial?
Settling personal injury claims is not always possible. Sometimes, both sides are far apart on critical issues, so the only option is to submit the case to a jury and let them decide. This isn’t the ideal solution. Trial is time-consuming, which means injured victims must wait longer to receive compensation. But a personal injury trial is the sensible choice when a defendant or their insurance company is acting unreasonably.
Let us look at some of the most important reasons why a case cannot settle, and a personal injury trial becomes the best option.
1. Disagreements about Fault
Georgia is a fault state for car accidents. You cannot force someone to pay you compensation unless they are at fault for the crash.
In some accidents, each side points the finger at the other and blames the other for causing the accident. Disagreements about fault matter and can cause negotiations to reach a standstill.
Fault matters because Georgia has a modified comparative negligence rule. If you are 50% or more at fault, you cannot receive any compensation. That rule is found at Georgia Code § 51-12-33.
There are many situations where fault is disputed:
- Cars collide close to the center line, so there is disagreement about which motorist crossed over.
- Witnesses disagree about which driver caused the crash, and there is no video that provides a definitive answer.
- There are no witnesses other than the two drivers, and they cannot agree on what happened.
- A hit-and-run accident victim brings a claim on their uninsured motorist insurance, but the UM insurer believes the claimant caused the crash.
In each of these situations, there are real disputes about what happened and who is responsible for the accident. When the two sides cannot agree on the allocation of fault, then the next logical step is to request a personal injury trial. The jury that hears the case will decide what percentage of fault each side bears.
2. Questions About Your Damages
Personal injury cases are brought to receive financial compensation following an accident. Compensation covers a variety of damages, including:
- Car repairs. Your car was probably smashed up in a wreck. Repairs can cost $10,000 or more.
- Medical treatment. The cost of medical care is sky high, and even moderate injuries might require extensive medical treatment.
- Lost income and benefits. Injuries are usually so serious that an accident victim must take some time off work to recover.
- Pain and suffering. Traumatic accidents leave our clients in considerable bodily pain. Many also feel depressed, irritable, or as if they do not enjoy life. Our attorneys negotiate higher pain and suffering recoveries by using before and after witnesses and permanent impairment ratings if a rating is assigned.
Some categories of damages are relatively straightforward. You can prove the cost of medical treatment by saving your medical bills, insurance statements, and receipts. The occasional disagreement arises over whether certain medical procedures are necessary.
But most disagreement arises over the value of pain and suffering and similar general damages.
These damages do not have an obvious market value. When you need your car fixed, you take it to a mechanic who gives you an estimate. But nothing like that exists for pain and suffering, mental distress, or depression.
Many defendants claim our clients are either exaggerating their pain or that it simply isn’t worth very much. In our experience, insurance companies undervalue pain and suffering. They might only offer $5,000 when someone is struggling with whiplash, a broken arm, and sleeplessness. Let us analyze how much to request and whether any proposed settlement is fair.
3. Tactical Advantage
An insurance company might force a case to trial for tactical reasons. These huge companies want to pay as little in compensation as possible. They often delay investigations to put pressure on injured victims to settle.
Another tactic is to force accident victims to litigate claims. Insurers are counting on some people trying to handle their own case without the benefit of a lawyer. That would be a huge mistake. After all, litigation is complex, with detailed rules and deadlines that all parties must follow. You will be at a tactical disadvantage if you try to handle your own claim.
Hire an experienced personal injury lawyer. That will signal to the insurance company that you mean business and want a fair settlement.
4. You Pursue Punitive Damages
In addition to compensatory damages for economic and non-economic losses, our clients sometimes pursue punitive damages. Under Georgia Code § 51-12-5.1, you can seek punitive damages if you have clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with:
- Oppression
- Wantonness
- Willful misconduct
- Malice
- Fraud
- Want of care that suggests conscious indifference
Punitive damages are focused on punishing the defendant for conduct that is more egregious than mere negligence, but insurance companies are not eager to pay them. The most common cases with punitive damage exposure involve negligent drivers that are DUI or guilty of hit and run. Punitive damage exposure increases the value of the injury claim, but our injury attorneys may need to present evidence at a personal injury trial to recover the correct amount of punitive damages for our clients.
Speak with Our Warner Robins, GA Personal Injury Lawyer Today
A common question our office receives is, “Do personal injury cases go to trial?” The answer is “yes.” Some accident victims cannot receive fair compensation without heading into court and presenting evidence to a judge and jury. As mentioned, this is not an ideal result, since you might wait up to two years before your case is even heard. That is a long wait for someone with expensive medical bills.
Contact Griffin Law Firm, P.C. today for help with any accident in Warner Robins and the surrounding areas. We have obtained many six- and seven-figure court awards for our clients, and we can estimate how much your claim might be worth.