What to do when you’ve suffered a personal injury

Even though a personal injury is something most would prefer to avoid thinking about, the fact of the matter is that a high percentage of the population will experience a personal injury at some point in their life. According to the CDC, in 2019 alone 96.5 million Americans visited a physician’s office seeking treatment for general injuries. But not every instance of personal injury can result in financial compensation—some are simply accidents. According to the New York City Bar Association“the law does not impose an absolute responsibility on everyone to take care of everyone else in all situations.”

Instances of personal injury where an involved party might be held responsible for financial compensation fall under the “tort law” category. These are instances where, according to the American Bar Association, a defendant is “liable for damages you sustained.” Liability, in this context, is defined as a situation where a person or entity involved in an injury had a “duty to take some level of care to ensure you did not get injured.”

The range of circumstances that might prompt such a scenario is quite broad. It could include wrongful action or inaction by a city government, a failure to repair dangerous conditions on personal property, or reckless or negligent driving. To make matters more complex, the nuances of personal injury laws vary from state to state.

for instance, when it comes to automobile accidents, some states, such as New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania, are no-fault states, meaning compensation does not depend upon who may or may not have caused an accident. Others, such as California, Texas, and Illinois are at-fault states, meaning insurance payment depends on the degree of fault for each party.

Consulting a personal injury lawyer can help one handle these complexities. And while there may be various ways to approach the situation based on the circumstances or the differences in state law, one can take certain failsafe actions in the wake of such an event to increase the likelihood of a favorable claim or settlement. to that end, the Patel Firm compiled a list of things to do when you’ve suffered a personal injury using a variety of news and legal sources.