The Law Offices of Stanley S. Scott, LLC

 

Personal Injury

 

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Finding yourself involved in an Auto Accident is never easy, especially if it leads to injury, hospitalization, medical bills, and or missed wages. That is why our legal team treats each of our cases with the care and attention to detail that it deserves.

 

When you work with

The Law Offices of Stanley S. Scott, LLC you can have confidence knowing that a personal injury attorney from our firm will be by your side through every step of the legal process. Our team handles each case personally & professionally. We provide legal guidance with an unmatched level of personal service. At the firm, all of our clients receive the following:

 

• High-quality service

• One-on-one legal service from an attorney

• 24 / 7 availability and promptly returned phone calls

• Free, no-obligation initial consultation

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A good & experienced personal injury attorney will:

 

1. Have investigators who can talk to witnesses and do accident reconstruction immediately following the accident.

2. Help you resolve your vehicle damage claim

3. Coordinate payment of your medical bills and tell you whether you should use health insurance and/or your personal auto medical payment coverage.

4. Secure payment of all of your bills and make sure that you fulfill all of the contractual provisions in your health insurance and auto insurance contracts. These may mandate that your carrier is notified of the wreck and properly repaid at the end of the case.

5. Fight for discounts on those repayments that may not be eligible to obtain on your own.

6. Know what your case is worth.

 

 

 

What You Should Do and Not Do After an Accident:

 

1. Call the police: 

When you have been in an accident, regardless of who was at fault, make sure the police are called to the scene. 

​Do not let the other driver talk you into just exchanging information and driving off.  In many jurisdictions contacting the police after an accident its mandatory.​

 

​2.  Leave Your Car Where It Is - Unless Its Location Is a Danger:

If you move your vehicle inmediately after a wreck, your actions may make it very difficult for the police and the insurance companies to determine whose fault the wreck was.

 

3.  Collect Evidence:  Take Photographs/ Get Names, Numbers & Addresses of any Witnesses:

Its always a good idea to obtain photographs of the damage of the vehicle and even the accident scene and vehicle positions.  Now a days nearly everyone has a camera phone.

It is nice to see exactly what the vehicle looked like following the wreck instead of relying on eyewitness testimony that could be given years later if the case ends up in court. 

More often than not, the responsible party will deny their own fault. Witnesses are crucial in delivering the facts & supporting your claim.

  

4. Do Not Give a Recorded Statement (with Certain Exceptions) /Do Not Admit Fault :

The insurance adjuster for the other driver involved in a wreck will almost always call you to discuss the wreck and ask if they can record your statement. When the adjuster contacts you, however, he or she is not asking to take your stament just for kicks; rather they are taking the statement to see if there is any possibility he or she can claim that you were fully or partially to blame for the wreck. Their ultimate goal is to minimize their monetary contribution to your recovery and to force you to accept the lowest possible settlement offer. Luckily, once the insurance company receives a letter of representation from an attorney, all direct contact with the injured person must cease.  The exception to refraining from giving a recorded may be in a situation where the carrier asking for a statement is your own insurance comapny. (* Depending on your policy language, you may have a duty to cooperate with your carrier.) In any case, it may be a good idea to first speak with a personal injury attorney from our office. 

 

5. Go to the Hospital if You Have Pain or Do Not Feel Well:

If you are suffering any pain after an accident, you are best served by going to the emergency room. Adrenaline is a funny thing. I have had many clients over the last 15 years who have not felt much pain after a wreck, but then began having pain once the initial rush or shock of the wreck began to wear off. I've had investigating police officers tell me that they've been in numerous situations where people initially seemed to be pain free and uninjured after an accident. They were walking around talking (just happy to be alive). However, as time went on, that officer might see that same person eventually lie down next to the road in agony, literally unable to move. Or, sometimes we find out that someone who did not appear to be injured at the scene, was later diagnosed with a serious injury in the emergency room.

 

6. If You Are Injured, Call Our Legal Offices Right Away !:

Fact: People who hire good attorneys wind up being compensated with more money than people who attempt to handle claims on their own.

One study of uninsured motorist claims concluded that represented policyholders recovered 90 % more than those without lawyers...In general, represented claimants recovered two to five times as much as those without the aid of a lawyer. 1

(* "Delay, Deny, Defend" ; Jay M. Feinman Portfolio (2010), p.88

 

7. Call & Notify Your Insurance Carrier of the Accident:

Make a report to your insurance company, so that they are aware that it occurred. Just report that it took place, but don't say you were at fault, or any other details at this point.