The car accident continues to be a major cause of injury, mild, moderate, to severe and tragic in the Detroit area and greater Michigan.
Whether or not your legal rights and rights to compensation are protected depend greatly on what information is created at the time of the accident.
THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, WHEN YOU ARE IN THE WORST SHAPE TO EVEN THINK ABOUT THE FUTURE!!!
So what does your insurance company do? They try to get a statement out of you right away, tape you on the phone. A "Do you mind if we tape this conversation?" Just say no, you may not tape this conversation! The things that you say early on, may deny you the compensation you deserve down the line.
Rule Numero Uno: DO NOT GIVE A STATEMENT UNTIL YOU HAVE A LAWYER.
The insurance company does several things when they get notice of your case. At a certain point in time they set aside RESERVES.
Why are the reserves important? Because the amount of reserves becomes a major tickler on the future of your case. For example, the insurance evaluator puts reserves of $30,000 on your case. Well guess what? When they have spent $30,000 on you and your wage loss, medical bills, etc.... they schedule you for an IME in order to hire a doctor, who is probably on retainer, to provide the medical opinion to cut you off your benefits. Or in the most serious cases, to find you are deserving of benefits, and give the insurance company employee the evidence they need to increase your reserves.
So much is important early on. Get pictures. Go to the Doctor and do what he says. Keep every document and thing you have regarding the accident, the insurance info, the collision shop receipts, the emergency room discharge papers, in a file or red rope. Call a good lawyer who does personal injury contingency work, not your divorce lawyer or the one who did your home closing. Talk to a lawyer, right away to make sure you don't blow it.
