Personal injury law is complex, but it is even more difficult to understand when pervasive myths continue circulating. These common misconceptions about personal injury law may keep you from pursuing compensation that is rightfully yours, so it is important to set the record straight. In this article, we discuss some common myths about personal injury law – and share the facts you need to know to understand your situation better.

Three Top Personal Injury Myths

Personal injury only applies to slip and falls: Car accidents and falls might be the most common type of personal injury law case, but there are many other injuries that fall under this category. are the most common types of personal injuries, but they are not the only ones. For instance, a personal injury attorney may represent plaintiffs in a product liability case, when a product was misrepresented to the public to achieve sales, and subsequently caused harm. Persoal injury may involve medical malpractice, when a doctor misdagnosed your condition, prescribed the wrong medication, or did not provide a reasonable standard of care. Personal injury lawsuits cover medical expenses and property damages, but may also gain settlements for psychological and emotional harm, loss of relationships, career loss and more. If you were harmed in any way by someone else’s negligence, you may have a legitimate personal injury case. Don’t deprive yourself of just compensation, call an attorney and discuss the merits of your case.
It will be too hard to pursue a case I might not win: It is true that personal injury cases – especially if they go to court – may involve a lot of time and effort. It may take months to prepare and resolve your claim properly, and the complexity of some cases is much more intense than others. It is also important to present a strong argument and a bulletproof case to go to court – and a strong work ethic and attention to detail are necessary. However, you can’t let any of those facts dissuade you from pursuing your rights. Only 5% of cases ever go to court – meaning that you may receive a sizable settlement in a much shorter period of time. It is important to present all the facts to your personal injury attorneys and let them move forward in the way they see fit. Remember, most attorneys will not proceed to trial if they do not feel strongly that you can win your case or get a sizable settlement – it is how they get paid.
Refusing a settlement will make me more money in the long run: Your best chance of receiving a fair and amicable settlement after an injury is with the assistance of a personal injury attorney. You should call an attorney as soon as possible after your incident, and it is best never to accept the first offer from your insurance company. All that said, holding out and refusing every settlement offer will not necessarily net you a higher settlement in the long run. Unfortunately, many people assume that because they sustained an injury, they deserve to be set for life financially. While this may be true in extreme cases, it may not be true in yours. The insurance companies are not interested in playing fairly – at some point, the offers will end. Your personal injury attorney understands what is a fair settlement based upon other litigated cases and will give you the advice you need to know as to the right time to accept a settlement.

Probinsky & Cole is a professional personal injury law firm with offices in the Sarasota, Tampa, and Orlando areas.