If you or a loved one have been injured or harmed due to someone else’s negligence, you may be able to make a claim to recover money for your personal injuries.
The attorneys at Keller Melchiorre & Walsh have the resources, experience, and compassion you need to have your claim properly handled. You only get one shot at recovering compensation—hire the best attorney possible!
We handle claims concerning auto accident, property liability, nursing home abuse, workers’ compensation, medical malpractice, and all types of personal injuries.
We have dedicated teams that are specialists in their particular area of personal injury law. This allows us to be sure that a client’s case is going to be handled correctly and expertly from the very start by a team that routinely handles that type of claim.
As you can guess, an auto accident claim is pretty different from a medical negligence claim. That’s why we focus on having proper teams to handle each type.
Continue reading to learn more about the personal injury claims process, how much your case could potentially be worth, common injuries and accidents, and a lot more.
DO I HAVE A CLAIM FOR PERSONAL INJURY?
If you have sustained an injury or have been harmed as a result of the negligence or actions of another, you may have a claim.
Whether or not you can recover compensation depends on a few factors. In order to recover monetary compensation, you must prove three things.
1. The responsible party was negligent. For example, if a driver ran a stop sign, the driver would be considered negligent under Florida law.
2. The negligence caused your injuries. This means that when the person ran the stop sign, they crashed into your car and caused you to have an injury. This may sound obvious, but it is meant to prevent someone from claiming an injury they already had.
3. Finally, you need to show that the injury caused actual damages. This means that the injury you sustained from the person running the stop sign actually hurt you in some way. For example, it caused you to have medical bills, to miss work, and to suffer from severe pain. Compare this to a person bumping into you at 2 mph and you are perfectly fine.
In our stop sign example, the injury would be considered to have resulted in compensatory damages (meaning the damages are eligible to be compensated with money).
This is all to say that you have to have been injured and caused harm because of someone’s negligence. This applies to all personal injury situations, not just car accidents.
If you were injured due to negligence, the attorneys at KMW will help you to determine if you have a claim in a compassionate and helpful way. Call us today at (561) 295-5825.
Common Types of Personal Injuries
Common types of personal injury claims that often result in a valid personal injury claim are:
Common Types of Injuries from Accidents and Incidents
Some common types of injuries that we see result from personal injury incidents include:
- Amputation
- Brain injury
- Broken bone
- Crush injury
- Concussion
- Facial trauma
- Knee injury: ACL, MCL, Meniscus
- Laceration
- Shoulder injury: Rotator cuff
- Spinal cord injury
- Spinal fracture
- Whiplash
The attorneys and staff at Keller, Melchiorre & Walsh, PLLC have experience handling all types of personal injury claims. We have handled personal injury claims involving the most catastrophic injuries.
I WAS INJURED AS A RESULT OF THE NEGLIGENCE OR ACTIONS OF OTHERS. WHAT NOW?
Report the accident or incident.
It is important to report the accident or incident immediately, to memorialize important information, such as the date, time, location, conditions (weather, lighting, wet or dry surface, etc.), and any witnesses (first and last names, address, and phone number).
Seek medical treatment immediately.
It is important to seek medical treatment immediately to document your injuries. Any delay in treatment may be used by the insurance company against you. They will either argue that you were not injured or were injured from something other than the accident or incident you are claiming.
Contact an experienced personal injury attorney.
It is important to contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible so that the attorney can gather facts to support your claim. Evidence to support your claim can be lost or even destroyed if not preserved timely. For example, surveillance video is typically only kept for a certain period of time before it is recorded over. If the surveillance video is recorded over, then this vital piece of evidence is gone forever. Once you’ve contacted an experienced personal injury attorney, provide them with all of the information you already have collected.
Keep detailed notes.
Personal injury claims can oftentimes take months or even years. It is important to keep detailed notes to help you remember important information that supports your claim. This can include pictures, such as injuries, damage to your car, etc. It is human nature that over the course of time our memory fades and we forget things. Insurance companies often try to exploit this, but a detailed log and constant communication with your attorney will avoid this pitfall.
WHO WILL PAY MY MEDICAL BILLS?
HOW MUCH IS MY CLAIM FOR PERSONAL INJURY WORTH?
That depends. When evaluating the value of your claim, insurance companies look at different factors. They look at your economic damages, such as the amount of your past medical expenses, the reasonable value of your future medical expenses, past lost wages, and loss of earning capacity. They look at your non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering damages. In certain cases where this is reckless or intentional conduct that causes an injury, there are punitive damages. Punitive damages are meant to punish the at-fault party.
Insurance companies also look to see if you have hired an attorney and they will evaluate the attorney and the firm you hire. For example, they will consider whether the firm or attorney you hired commonly files lawsuits and whether the firm or attorney have tried a case to a jury. This makes choosing the right personal injury attorney all the more important, as this can lead to a greater recovery for you. Make sure to ask any attorney you are considering whether they have ever filed a lawsuit or whether they have ever had a jury trial.
WHAT CAN I RECOVER FOR MY INJURIES?
SHOULD I HIRE A PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY?
YES! An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to guide you through the entire process from making a claim to settling your claim allowing you to focus on what matters—getting better. Your attorney will investigate your claim, obtain the police or incident report, take witness statements, gather your medical records and bills, communicate with the other party or insurance company, and give you the legal advice to help you make the absolute best decisions.
HOW MUCH DOES A PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY COST?
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO RESOLVE MY PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM?
That depends. The length of time depends on many factors including, but not limited to, the type and extent of your medical care and treatment, the available insurance coverage, and whether your claim can be resolved without filing a lawsuit. Commonly personal injury cases can take between nine to twelve months. However, if you have to file a lawsuit, it can take much longer. WHAT ARE THE STEPS OF A PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM?
File a claim for personal injury.
Simply, this means putting the at-fault party on notice. If you hire an attorney, your attorney will send a letter of representation to the at-fault party, putting them on notice of your claim and requesting their insurance information.Pre-suit Demand.
Once you have completed your medical care and treatment, you present a demand to the at-fault party outlining liability, your injuries, the medical care and treatment you have received to date, the amount of your medical bills, the medical care you will require in the future, and lost wages.File a Lawsuit.
If you are unable to settle your claim pre-suit, then you file a Complaint suing the at-fault party. The lawsuit is typically filed in the county where the accident or incident happened or where the at-fault party resides.Discovery.
After a lawsuit is filed, the parties participate in discovery. During the discovery phase, you will be asked to complete a written discovery, sit for a deposition, and present for a compulsory medical examination.Negotiation and Mediation.
Once the discovery process is complete, the parties will try to reach a settlement. If the insurance company agrees that they are responsible for the injured party’s damages, then they will participate in a back-and-forth negotiation. This is where they usually try to get the settlement down to as little money as possible. This is also why having an experienced injury attorney is so important. If the two parties cannot reach an agreement, then they can do what is called mediation. During mediation, an unbiased third, party, acts as a mediator to see if the parties are able to compromise and reach a settlement without the necessity of a trial. The costs of the mediator are typically shared equally by the parties.Trial.
If the parties are unable to reach a settlement at mediation or prior to trial, the final step is a trial. A jury is selected to hear the evidence in your case and then ultimately decide the issues in your case. However, you can still settle your case during and even after the trial.WHY HIRE KMW FOR YOUR PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM?
The experienced team of attorneys and staff at Keller, Melchiorre & Walsh have handled every type of personal injury claim from start to finish.
We have the necessary resources to investigate your claim and the knowledge and skill to present your case in a way to maximize your recovery.
To learn more about us, read what our clients say about us and see our recent results.
We routinely handle personal injury cases across Florida. We have offices in Jupiter, Tampa, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, and Miami, Florida. This allows us to cover the Treasure Coast including Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties, as well as Florida’s west coast including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Sarasota counties.
If you or a loved one has been injured or harmed as a result of the negligence or actions of others, call us at 561-295-5825 for a free strategy session to learn how we can help you.