Get immediate medical attention.
AVOID strangers who may show up at the scene or the hospital claiming to be “investigators” or claim to work for some unidentified law firm. These are ambulance chasers and apart from engaging in illegal activity they will hurt your case. Their promises are false and they do not have your best interest in mind.
In all motor vehicle accidents insist that the police come to the scene and file an accident report.
Take pictures of the accident scene such as broken sidewalks, uneven sidewalks, cracked sidewalks, defective or broken steps, icy conditions, snow that has been negligently removed, car damage and position in the street, etc. as soon as possible. Take lots of pictures from different distances and different angles. You may never have an opportunity to do this in the future. Use your phone or smartphone. One picture is worth a thousand words and you can never take too many pictures.
Write down the names, addresses and phone numbers of any witnesses who can support your case. Insurance companies will try to claim you were not even at the scene.
Tell them you are represented by attorneys and advise them to direct ALL questions to your attorneys. If you do not yet have attorneys to represent you then:
You still must not speak to the insurance company for the defendant. They are interested in only getting their insured/client out of trouble so as to not have to pay on the claim.
Don’t be mislead by their initial claim that they want to pay your medical bills or settle your claim but just need some information from you.
Insurance adjusters know how to ask trick questions that will hurt your case later on. Unless you are trained to identify these questions you could easily defeat your own case.
Don’t trust the insurance company to help you, they are in business to collect premiums and minimize payment on claims. The more they collect and the less they pay, the more profits for the insurance company and less for you.
Yes, any lawyer can, but not all lawyers have the same training, expertise and trial experience necessary to maximize the value on your case. At Vozza & Huguenot we have an impressive track record of results. See some of our cash awards as well as our resumés noted in this site.
No. Having a fancy address for a law firm doesn’t guarantee that it has the expertise or local knowledge of the courts, local court personnel and opposing counsel necessary to maximize your recovery.
“Big” firms will not be able to give your case the time or personal attention it deserves. It is very likely that a young associate attorney will be assigned to your case and may already be overwhelmed with too many cases. This causes them to overlook important details of your accident.
To date we have handled over 8,000 cases and have vast experience in the personal injury field.
Yes that’s right. Our fees are contingent upon our ability to secure a settlement for you. In the unlikely event that we are unable to secure a cash settlement on your behalf you will not be charged a fee regardless of the amount of time or money spent on your case.