GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — What if your insurance company is less than sympathetic? How do you escape from the ordeal unscathed?
We asked the experts at Michigan Auto Law for some advice and attorney Brandon Hewitt offered up some dos and don’ts.
Do:
- Call an attorney if you were in a car accident and you were injured – even if it seems very minor and insignificant. Serious injuries are not always immediately apparent. As Steve stated in the “Most Dangerous Roundabouts” blog: “Yes, people are more likely to be seriously injured or killed at the scene of a car accident during a high impact crash but the scientific and medical literature is very clear that people can be killed or seriously injured in a lower impact or even no vehicle damage car crash.”
- Call an attorney from the crash scene if you are scared or confused and don’t know what you must do to protect your rights.
- Call an attorney after a car accident if you are experiencing pain or other symptoms and medical conditions.
- Call an attorney if your injuries from a car accident are preventing you from being able to return to work.
- Call an attorney if you have questions or you need help getting your accident-related medical expenses paid through No-Fault.
- Call an attorney if your auto insurance company is not cooperating and refusing to pay No-Fault benefits (delaying their payment of benefits).
- Call an attorney to learn what your rights are and what your legal options may be. If our attorneys conclude that you do not need a lawyer right now, we will tell you. It’s not in your interest or ours to start a lawsuit when there is no need to.
- Order your free copy of Michigan Auto Law’s “How to Choose the Right Lawyer." Be sure to consider the 10 most important factors for picking the right lawyer: Results, Client Care, Focus, Services, Leadership, Knowledge, Commitment, Involvement, Resources and Compensation.
Don’t:
- Hire, retain or meet with a lawyer whom you don’t know and whom you have not contacted, but who calls you on the phone (personally or through a representative) or comes to your home, claiming to know about your accident and suggesting that you go to this person for help. That is unlawful attorney solicitation. Get the attorney’s name and report him/her to the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission.
- Don’t be pressured into making statements to an insurance adjuster (for your insurer or for the at-fault driver’s insurer) if you want to speak to a lawyer first.
- DO NOT AGREE TO OR SIGN ANY SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT WITH THE AT-FAULT DRIVER, WITH HIS/HER AUTO INSURER OR WITH YOUR OWN NO-FAULT INSURER UNTIL YOU HAVE FIRST CONSULTED WITH AND OBTAINED LEGAL ADVICE FROM A LAWYER WHO REPRESENTS YOUR BEST INTERESTS.
For more information about Michigan Auto Law, visit www.michiganautolaw.com.
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