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How Long Will My Car Accident Case Take to Settle in New York City?
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When you’re involved in a car accident in NYC, you may be entitled to compensation if someone else was at least partly responsible. You might wonder: “how long will my car accident case take to settle in New York City?”
At the Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers, we know that you’re probably facing mounting medical bills and loss of income–all while enduring the pain of an injury. The idea of waiting months for a settlement might seem overwhelming.
Our NYC car accident lawyers have over 25 years of experience helping clients like you. We’ve broken down the personal injury process so that you know what to expect. If you’re interested in more specific legal advice, call our law offices at (212) 564-2800 to schedule a free consultation.
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Most NYC car accident cases settle before trial. That doesn’t mean the process will be fast or easy. However, having our experienced NYC car accident lawyers by your side can help.
Almost every car accident case will involve dealing with an insurance company. The insurance company handles cases like yours every day. An attorney can help you avoid mistakes and get money in your pocket.
When you hire The Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers, our attorneys will:
A simple mistake in the claims process can lengthen the settlement timeline. Also, it’s not always a good idea to take the first offer on the table–even if it might be tempting to settle quickly.
Our New York City personal injury attorneys work hard from day one. That way, by the time we reach the negotiating table, we’ll have a case that’s strong enough to bring to court if needed.
New York is a no-fault car insurance state. Every driver in the state is required to carry personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. PIP coverage compensates accident victims for medical bills, property damage, and other losses after a car accident.
Under New York law, you first file a claim for damages under your own auto insurance policy. If your injuries are serious, you can then hold other responsible parties accountable.
Despite this, it’s not always easy to get fair compensation from the insurer. In other words, they won’t simply hand over a check. A number of different factors will influence how long it takes your car accident case to settle in NYC.
As a practical matter, insurance companies tend to fight harder in high-dollar value cases. Insurance companies have virtually unlimited resources to challenge your claim. When more money is at stake, they’ll devote greater resources toward minimizing the value of your claim.
Where out-of-pocket costs, also called economic damages, are higher, it can take longer to put a fair value on non-economic damages.
It’s always important to seek medical attention right away after a car accident in NYC or Long Island.
Prompt medical care is important to:
However, many accident victims aren’t released on the day of the accident–or even a few days after the accident.
Car accident cases tend to take longer to settle when victims require more extensive medical care. Accident victims should wait to reach maximum medical improvement (MMI) before accepting a settlement–and, as a general rule, that may take longer serious injury cases.
Car accident victims can suffer a wide range of injuries, including:
More serious injuries, like traumatic brain injuries, can be unpredictable. Remember, your settlement will also cover your future medical expenses. Before we make a demand with the insurance company, our lawyers will consult with your doctors and medical experts, each of whom can testify about your future treatment needs.
Your car accident claim will probably settle more quickly if liability is clearly established. These cases also proceed more quickly when a single party is responsible.
Where liability is murky or multiple parties share the blame, insurance companies start to point fingers to minimize their own financial responsibility.
It’s important to understand the personal injury process as a whole. Understanding how the system works can give you a better sense of how long it will take your car accident case to settle.
The personal injury process in NYC begins when you reach out to a car accident lawyer for help. During your free consultation, we’ll sit down with you and listen to what happened. Then we’ll form a plan to help you move forward.
Before we can make a demand for compensation, our attorneys will work to determine what your car accident case is worth. Depending on the severity of your injuries and complexity of the case, that might mean hiring experts and specialists.
We’ll also gather and analyze evidence, including:
Cases where causation is more clear-cut tend to settle much more quickly because the evidence clearly establishes liability.
Once we have the evidence to establish liability and you’ve reached MMI, we’ll begin the negotiation process with the insurance company.
That process can be unpredictable. Sometimes the insurance company will offer a settlement that isn’t even close to being fair. Those cases tend to take longer to settle–because your attorney will have to fight harder to convince the insurer to play fair.
Sometimes it’s necessary to file a personal injury lawsuit to get fair compensation in your pocket. The simple act of filing a suit might convince the insurance company to offer a fair settlement.
In other cases, it will simply begin the formal personal injury process. If that’s the case, you’ll be assigned a court date, and we will begin the formal discovery process, which can last several months.
Possibly. New York follows a pure comparative negligence law. That means each party to an accident can be held liable for their share of the blame.
During negotiations (or in court), each party will be assigned a percentage of fault. That process doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Your attorney will negotiate to minimize your share of the blame. Generally, the settlement process might take longer if shared fault is an issue in your case.
Before we can even begin the settlement process, we have to find out who was responsible for the crash. That means we have to determine the factors that contributed to the cause of your accident.
Remember, multiple factors can cause an accident–and multiple parties can be held responsible. Sometimes the cause of the accident is clear. If the police toxicology report finds that the at-fault driver was drunk, that will obviously be a factor in the settlement negotiation process.
Other causes are more difficult to pinpoint. Some of the most common causes of auto accidents in NYC include:
Accidents happen quickly. You might think that your crash was caused by another driver speeding. That same driver might claim you were distracted and caused the crash. When multiple factors play a role, the settlement process might take longer.
New York state law also puts a firm deadline on the settlement process. Under the personal injury statute of limitations, you have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit. Once three years expire, you lose your right to sue for damages.
This time limit effectively caps the settlement negotiation process, as well. That’s because insurance companies are highly unlikely to settle if they know they can’t be held liable in court.
At The Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers we know you only have one chance to get the full compensation you deserve after a car accident. We also know that it’s common to wonder just how long will my car accident case take to settle in New York City? Call our NYC car accident lawyers today to learn more about establishing an attorney-client relationship.
New York City Office
450 7th Ave Suite 1605
New York, NY 10123
(212) 564 2800
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26 Court St., Suite 2511
Brooklyn, NY 11242
(718) 802-1600
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