Personal injury victims understandably have many questions after being hurt in an accident.  Below are some questions and answers to assist these victims. 

The length of time for a personal injury case differs as it often depends on the length of time it takes for the medical treatment of the injured party. Some personal injury cases may only last a few months or weeks because the plaintiff’s injuries only required emergency room treatment on the day of the accident for the injuries they sustained. Other accident victims may have to follow up with their primary care doctor.

Often, a primary doctor will recommend conservative treatment, which can include medications or physical therapy. Depending on the type of injury and the area of the body that is injured, physical therapy can take months or even years. If conservative treatments aren’t healing the body, injections, or surgical intervention may be required.

Another factor in the time frame of a personal injury case is the settlement process. It can take months of negotiating with the insurance adjuster. If a case doesn’t settle within 2 years from the date of the accident, a lawsuit may be filed.

Once filed, it can take 1 to 3 years to get a trial date. Further, if you receive a favorable decision at trial, the defendant has the right to appeal the decision. This could take another year or 2. Undoubtedly, each of these steps has a lot of variables regarding how long your particular case could take to settle.

How Long Does an Insurance Company Have to Settle a Claim in Georgia?

An insurance company in Georgia has 30 days to accept or deny your claim. Nevertheless, you can contest a decision that you disagree with. While negotiating with insurance companies, keep in mind that you have a limited amount of time to file a claim, and insurance companies may try to delay negotiations so that you miss the filing deadline.

An insurance company in Georgia has 30 days to accept or deny your claim. Nevertheless, you can contest a decision that you disagree with. While negotiating with insurance companies, keep in mind that you have a limited amount of time to file a claim, and insurance companies may try to delay negotiations so that you miss the filing deadline.

You can maximize your settlement by gathering strong evidence to support your case. This can be accomplished by understanding which damages apply and obtaining evidence to support each category. In addition, your court filings must be compliant with Georgia law. 

What to do immediately after an accident can affect not only your health, but your legal case as well.

We recommend that you do the following in the seconds, minutes, and hours following the car accident:

Step 1. Determine if you or your passengers need medical attention.

Step 2. Call 911 to request assistance from the police and first responders.

Step 3. If possible, take photographs of your vehicle, the other driver’s vehicle, and the accident scene.  Photographs help document dangerous driving conditions, roadway obstacles, the condition and damage to the vehicles, and other factors that may have contributed to the crash.

Step 4. If possible, move your vehicle out of traffic.  Turn on your hazard lights while doing so.

Step 5. When the police arrive, follow the directions given to you by officers.  The officers will write a police report describing what happened and recounting who said what.  Your personal injury attorney will be able to retrieve the police report from the police station.

Step 6. Collect information from the other driver.  You’ll need the driver’s name, address, telephone number, license plate number, and insurance policy number.  The police report should also provide this information.

Step 7. Gather contact information from witnesses.

In the days and months following the collision, your behavior can either help or hurt your case.

We advise our clients to do the following:

Step 8. If you were injured in the collision but didn’t go to the emergency room after the accident, make an appointment with your doctor immediately.  Injuries that look and feel minor usually worsen within a day or two following the crash, causing increased pain and discomfort.  Make sure you tell the doctor that your injury is the result of a motor vehicle accident.

Step 9. Follow through with any treatments prescribed by your doctor.  For example, if the doctor refers you to a physical therapist, you should follow those instructions.

Step 10. Take photographs of any visible injuries.

Step 11. Avoid writing about the accident on social media.  This includes information about your doctor and the injuries you sustained.  Defense lawyers frequently dig through social media profiles and other online information in an attempt to find information that would be used against the personal injury victim.

Your experienced Augusta Personal Injury Lawyer at Garrett Murphy Law is open to assist you with your case.  Please feel free to contact us at (706) 364-0070.

Getting around in Georgia is fairly straightforward, and you won’t have to deal with some of the traffic of other states. Outside of cities like Augusta, Atlanta, Savannah, and Macon, much of the state of rural, making it perfect for your road trip throughout Georgia. Here are some rules and regulations you should be aware of before hitting the road.

GENERAL & SAFETY

• It is prohibited to use your cell phone while driving. This ban applies to text messages, instant messages, email and Internet data.
• Yield to all highway maintenance vehicles and workers in a construction zone;
• When a school bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children, the driver of the bus will activate flashing yellow lights. When these flashing yellow lights are activated, all drivers approaching the school bus should slow down and be prepared to stop. Once the flashing lights have turned red and the stop signs have extended from the side of the bus, it is unlawful for any vehicle to pass the stopped school bus while it is loading or unloading passengers.
• If an emergency or police vehicle is approaching, slow down and move to the right shoulder of the road. If you are on a multilane road, move to the right-hand lane if possible.

TURNS & OVERTAKING

• Unless a sign posted at that intersection prohibits doing so, it is permissible to make a right turn on red at an intersection controlled by a traffic control light.
• Unless a sign posted at that intersection prohibits doing so, it is permissible to make a left turn on red from the left lane of a one-way street onto a one-way street on which the traffic moves toward the driver’s left.

RIGHT OF WAY

• When traveling on a roadway that intersects with another roadway, if you are faced with a stop sign, but other traffic is not, you may proceed only after stopping and yielding the right-of-way to any other vehicle or pedestrian either in the intersection, or so close to the intersection as to make it dangerous to travel through the intersection.
• At intersections where there are no stop signs, yield signs or other traffic signals, if two vehicles come to the intersection at the same time, the driver of the vehicle on the left must yield to the driver of the vehicle on the right.
• At a four-way intersection where all drivers are faced with stop signs, all drivers must yield to pedestrians; otherwise the vehicles should proceed through the intersection in a first to arrive, first to proceed order. If two vehicles reach the intersection at approximately the same time, yield to any vehicles on your right.
• If another driver tries to take your turn, even if you have the right-of-way, let the other driver proceed in order to prevent a crash.
• When making a left turn at an intersection, or into an alley or driveway, yield the right-of-way to all traffic coming from the opposite direction.

SPEED LIMITS

Some areas, such as school zones or construction zones, may be posted for lower maximum speed limits, so please be aware of signs. When there are two or more lanes for traffic moving in the same direction, slower vehicles should use the right lane except when passing or making a left turn. On certain highways and interstate roads, minimum speed limits are posted.

Damages in a personal injury case include both economic and non-economic damages. Your economic damages are the financial losses you sustain because of the injury, such as medical bills, lost wages, and the cost of personal care.

Non-economic damages include the physical, emotional, and mental suffering caused by the accident and your injury. They also include the actual physical harm to your body caused by the accident, such as scarring, disfigurement, and disabilities.  These damages can also factor in what the victim will suffer in the future as well. Generally, catastrophic injuries that result in permanent impairments increase the value of non-economic damages.

Compensation recovered for pain and suffering damages is on a case-by-case basis. Each person “suffers” differently after an injury, even when two people sustain the same injuries. Georgia personal injury laws do not require parties to use a specific equation to calculate pain and suffering damages. Therefore, your pain and suffering damages are worth as much as an insurance company is willing to pay or a jury is willing to award.

Factors That Affect the Value of Non-Economic Damages

Because you cannot provide a jury or insurance company a “bill” for your pain and suffering, your attorney uses the facts and circumstances in your case to maximize the value of your non-economic damages.

Several factors can increase the amount of compensation you might receive for pain and suffering damages. Some of those factors include:

• The duration of your recovery
• Whether you sustained permanent impairments, disfigurement, or disability
• The impact your injuries had on your daily activities
• Whether you can return to work and activities you enjoyed
• The severity and type of your injuries
• The pain associated with the types of injuries you sustained
• The interference with the enjoyment of life 
• The fear, anxiety, stress, and depression caused by your injuries
• The expected timeframe you will continue to suffer from your injuries

An experienced personal injury lawyer understands how to use the facts in your case to build a strong argument for maximum compensation of non-economic damages. Because both the attorney and the insurance company are aware of the average amount juries in your area award for pain and suffering damages, your lawyer can generally negotiate a settlement of pain and suffering damages that is fair based on the facts of your case. 

Two Common Methods of Calculating Pain and Suffering Damages

In some cases, the parties agree on a specific method for calculating pain and suffering damages. Two common methods used for valuing non-economic damages in injury cases are the multiplier method and the per diem method.

The Multiplier Method

The multiplier method is one of the most common methods of valuing pain and suffering damages. It uses your medical bills as a basis for pain and suffering damages.

A multiplier is chosen based on various factors, like the factors listed above. Generally, the more severe your injuries and the longer it takes you to recover, the higher the multiplier. Multipliers are usually a number between 1.5 and five.

The total of your medical bills multiplied by the multiplier equals the value of your pain and suffering damages. For example, if the multiplier is three and your medical bills total $50,000, your pain and suffering damages would equal $150,000 ($50,000 x 3).

The insurance company argues for the lowest possible multiplier, while your attorney builds a case to justify the highest possible multiplier. It is not a perfect system, but it can work in some cases.

The Per Diem Method

The per diem method is similar in some ways to the multiplier method. However, the basis for your pain and suffering damages is the number of days between the date of your injury and the date your physician releases you.

An amount is chosen for the per diem. The amount is based on factors like those listed above. Therefore, your per diem is higher if you sustained severe or traumatic injuries that resulted in surgery, therapy, and significant disruption to your daily life.

The value of your pain and suffering damages is calculated by multiplying the per diem by the number of days it took you to recover. 

For example, your doctor released you 250 days after a motorcycle accident. Your per diem is $200. The value of your pain and suffering damages would be $50,000 ($200 x 250).

Choosing a Method to Value Pain and Suffering Damages

The insurance company chooses whatever method of valuing non-economic damages that results in the lowest amount for you. Your personal injury lawyer works to increase that amount to the maximum amount that a jury would potentially award in the case. Having an attorney with trial experience can be very helpful when negotiating a settlement for pain and suffering damages.