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Every attorney advises that you need to call them immediately after a car accident to both establish and protect your legal rights. And it’s true. The longer you go without a lawyer, the lower your chances to recover full compensation for your car accident injuries. Call the experienced Rock Hill car accident lawyers at Schiller & Hamilton today to learn more.
Risks of Delaying Legal Action After a Car Accident
When an insurance company sees that you do not have an attorney on your side, they view you as a target of opportunity. They may owe you compensation for your injuries, and they will use every tactic to either reduce what they pay out or avoid it altogether.
Insurance companies may pressure claimants who do not have a lawyer. They may attempt to talk to you on the record. They want you to give a formal statement so they have it to use against you if necessary. They may also try to pressure you into accepting a settlement that does not come close to fully paying for your damages.
Car Accident Evidence Can Disappear in a Hurry
In a car accident claim, you must bring forth physical evidence showing that the other driver was to blame. There may be a limited amount of time to gather this evidence. For example, if you obtained the contact information of a witness at the scene of the accident, you may not be able to reach them months later or they may have forgotten what they saw and their testimony may not be persuasive or useful.
You may have even less time to collect evidence from the scene of the accident before you lose valuable physical evidence permanently. It could become very difficult to prove liability in your crash, especially when the facts aren’t clear or the other driver is telling a different story.
How an Experienced Lawyer Can Help You Late in the Process
While it makes sense to get an attorney early, there is still a chance to obtain compensation if you begin the legal process later. There may be certain accidents where the evidence is clear and losing time investigating the accident will not hamstring your case. Your attorney can begin with the police report and gather as much evidence as possible to help your case.
While the passage of time is not helpful to your case, never assume that it is not possible to get a settlement check. After all, your legal rights begin as soon as you establish that someone else was to blame for the accident, and they last until the statute of limitations lapses.
The Claims Process Can Take a Long Time
It can be many months from the time you file your car accident claim until a check is deposited into your account. Hiring an attorney is the first step in the legal process, which can be elongated by a stubborn insurance company. Waiting months or years to start the legal process does not make the process any easier. Since you are likely dealing with financial challenges after a car accident, you simply cannot afford to wait that long to receive compensation.
The South Carolina Statute of Limitations
Every state has its statute of limitations that imposes a shelf life on your legal right to compensation. The statute of limitation begins to run at the time when you were injured or should have known that you were injured. In a car accident case, this is usually the date of the accident. However, there may be some circumstances in which you begin to notice symptoms weeks after the accident. In that case, the statute of limitations would begin to run when you realized you were hurt.
South Carolina gives you three years from the date of your injury to file a personal injury claim.
Never wait to begin the legal process until shortly before your legal rights expire. Given the passage of time, your case will become exponentially more difficult, and it will be far tougher for you to receive money in your case.
You should contact an attorney as soon as possible after the car accident and let them use their professional judgment about the best time to file your case. Hiring an attorney gives you some control over the situation, and it protects you from the insurance company’s overreach.
Contact a Rock Hill Car Accident Lawyer Today
The attorneys at Schiller & Hamilton are effective legal advocates no matter when you hire us.
Everything begins when you contact us to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your car accident case. It costs you nothing out of your pocket to consult with one of our attorneys. To schedule an appointment with a lawyer, you can send us a message through a website or call us today at 803-902-4583.