How to Get the Most Compensation for a Car Accident in New Jersey
New Jersey traffic accident lawyer Song Dong-ho is the accident and injury team at General Law Firm. Today I’d like to share with you what you need to know to get the most out of a car accident in New Jersey. In particular, if it is your first car accident or you are a novice driver, there are many cases where you lose money by panicking without knowing what to do. If you have an accident while driving in New Jersey, what do you need to know in order to receive a large amount of compensation?
First of all, it is important to keep many records of the accident.
You should leave plenty of evidence to help the case, such as the extent of damage to the vehicle at the time of the accident, whether there was any physical trauma, exactly where the accident occurred, and if there were no witnesses. In many cases, for safety or other reasons, the vehicle is moved to the shoulder before the police arrive.
In this case, when the police officer arrives at the scene of the accident later, it is necessary to accurately understand the accident, but in some cases, the police report is incorrect because it is not possible to accurately explain to the police due to the language barrier or the shock of the accident. . Therefore, in the event of an accident, we recommend that you preserve the vehicle if possible, or, if that is difficult, take photos and leave plenty of evidence.
Also, since some traumas recover naturally over time, it is necessary to leave a lot of records such as photos immediately after the accident. Having more of these records will help you later in the settlement process. The presence or absence of eyewitnesses is also very important. For example, there are cases in which the other party’s insurance company said they would not settle at all, and in some cases, tens of thousands of dollars were agreed upon based on eyewitness testimony.
Recently, there are many cases where the records of the black box are used as evidence, so it is important to keep the records of the black box well in case of an accident. In addition, as time passes after an accident, the memory of the situation at the time of the accident will naturally fade, so it is helpful to leave a note about the situation at the time of the accident or a voice memo right after the accident.
The next most important thing is to get regular treatment.
Since compensation is ultimately measured according to the severity of the injury, without objective data on the injury, no matter how serious the injury may be, a lack of evidence can make it difficult to reach agreement. If you compare a lawyer to a chef, medical records are like ingredients for cooking. Just as you need ingredients to cook, you need good records to show your injuries so that your lawyer can reach a reasonable settlement based on those ingredients.
Therefore, it is very important to keep a record of all diagnostic tests that show objective indicators, such as MRI, CT scan, X-ray, and EMG neurological examination, as well as physical therapy, chiropractic therapy, and acupuncture.
However, no matter how good the ingredients, the taste of food is not good without the skill of the chef. Therefore, having a good lawyer is another requirement to get the maximum compensation.
There are many factors such as what kind of injury the customer suffered, how much settlement offer was received from these injuries, whether this offer was a good one, whether further negotiations were necessary, whether it would be advantageous to file a lawsuit, and if so, at what point it should be done. It is essential to have an experienced attorney as the case must be handled by strategically analyzing and judging the requirements.
In particular, in the case of an accident injury case in New Jersey, the statute of limitations is two years from the date of the accident. Also, if the other driver is a public entity, you may lose all rights if you do not file a Notice of Claim within 90 days of the date of the accident, subject to Title 59 of the New Jersey Tort Claim Act. These parts are difficult for an individual to understand, and you should be especially careful because you may lose all your rights to claim compensation.
If it is a minor accident with only a few dents and no bodily injury, there is no need to hire a lawyer. However, if you suffer from injuries after an accident, especially if the severity of the injury is severe, it is even more essential to hire a lawyer. There is a high probability that the other party’s insurance company will not take the case of an individual who proceeds without a lawyer seriously, so there is often a big difference in the settlement amount depending on whether or not a lawyer is hired.
Therefore, if you are injured in a New Jersey car accident, we recommend that you consult with an experienced attorney.
If you have any additional questions regarding the above, or if you have any legal information you would like to know, please contact us at mail@songlawfirm.com .
