Despite most motor vehicles having hundreds of effective safety features, car accidents continue to be responsible for an alarming number of fatalities every single year. In fact, according to Zero Deaths Maryland, there are an average of 514 traffic fatalities in the state annually. Tens of thousands of Marylanders per year also suffer life-altering injuries in car crashes, of course.
As you probably know, many personal injury attorneys have reputations for settling most or even all of the cases they accept. While taking a settlement is not necessarily wrong, there are certain situations when it is entirely too premature to settle a case. Here are a couple of them.
You do not know the full extent of your damages
An insurance settlement should compensate you for all injuries and other damages you suffer in a car accident. If you are still looking for a medical diagnosis, undergoing treatment or adjusting to your post-accident way of life when the insurance company makes a settlement offer, you may not yet know the full extent of your damages.
You have received an unreasonably low settlement offer
Insurance companies usually do not make their best offer immediately. This makes sense, as making money in the insurance business often requires collecting premiums and paying as little as possible for accident claims. Simply put, if you have received an unreasonably low settlement offer, agreeing to the offer is not likely to be in your legal or financial interests.
Even though there might be some back-and-forth between you and the insurance company, you must closely monitor Maryland’s personal injury statute of limitations. Ultimately, you probably only have three years from the date of your accident to file a lawsuit.
