An accident involving the negligence of another always comes at the worst time. More often than not it can either turn a good day into a bad one, or just make a bad one worse. There’s really no such thing as a “good” accident, and what makes it extra painful to deal with is the fact that you have to go through so much effort to get compensated for something that wasn’t even your fault. This is where personal injury lawyers come in. They will take a look at your case, and will know how to successfully negotiate an award amount that is suitable to the scope of your accident. Just like the timing of your accident, though, timing is everything when you file for your case. You don’t want to drag your feet when it comes to getting a personal injury case going. After all, if you wait too long, you may no longer have a case. Below are different facets that determine how long you have to file a case.
General Rule
An argument that an opposing lawyer or insurance adjuster will always try to capitalize on is the idea that if someone waits too long to file or get treated for their injury, then surely the injury wasn’t serious enough to the client and therefore a lesser sum should be awarded. How can one justify a larger sum when apparently the client has all the time in the world to file or treat at their leisure?
Type of Case
Different cases have different statutes of limitations. These are the limits of time after an accident or act of negligence (reasonably) you have until you can no longer file a case against it. There are cases like that of basic car crashes that have less time and there are cases like a medical malpractice case where you can have up to 10 years to file. These limits can also vary state to state.
Scale of Injury
Some injuries take years to develop and won’t be discovered until then. The courts take this into account and allow for extra time to file for a case involving the applicable injury.
Age of Victim
Also as a general rule, minors are given additional time to file outside the general limit given to adults.
If you or someone you know was involved in an accident, contact an attorney, today to begin building your case.