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Nine common mistakes made by accident victims by Clearwater Injury | Accident Lawyer Jame Dodson.

I have practiced injury law for more than twenty years and have seen the consequences of clients making mistakes which hurt their injury claims. Most of them are made in otherwise good cases by people with legitimate injuries. They could be avoided if people were informed about what NOT to do! Unfortunately, too many people get their advice from someone at work or a friend who is well intentioned but has no clue what makes or breaks an injury claim. Let’s look at some of the more common mistakes and how to avoid them.

1. Giving a recorded statement-

While not every recorded statement hurts a case, they are a potential time bomb. Often clients volunteer damaging information which is totally unrelated to their case or they minimize the impact of the collision. Some people feel good right after an accident and assure the adjuster they won’t need medical care. When they later have issues requiring serious care, it looks like they changed their story.

2. Gaps in treatment-

Adjusters love to find instances where clients delay going to see a doctor or delay getting follow-up treatment. Adjusters argue and believe delays in treatment mean the treatment was not needed (i.e., no serious injury.)

3. Treatment was obtained from a doctor known to them to provide excessive treatments and run up excessive bills-

There is not always a direct relationship between the amount of medical bills and the value of a case (higher is not always better.)

4. Failing to tell treating doctors of prior complaints or treatment to the area of the body injured in the current accident.

These omissions to their own doctor damage the client’s credibility. It can make it appear they were hiding something that could hurt their case. Treating doctors should be told of these prior problems so they have the entire picture. The failure to reveal these issues to the client’s lawyer will be blindsided when confronted with the information for the first time by the claims adjuster.

5. Failing to describe the accident accurately.

If someone was involved ina rear end crash by a car going 20 mph, it harms the client’s credibility (and their case) if they tell the doctor they were hit by a car going 65 mph. Another example would be not carefully telling a doctor what caused a fall injury-slipping on a wet floor vs. tripping at the threshold. Don’t laugh! This happens! These descriptions must be accurate.

6. Going to a doctor the lawyer recommends.

If a lawyer sends a client to “their” doctor and the defense can prove the lawyer sends every client to the same doctor, how credible will the doctor’s opinion appear? Juries are suspicious of these referral relationships and they have the potential to hurt a case if it goes to trial.

7. Exaggerating the effect of the injury-

If someone testifies they can’t do their yard work because of their injury, what will a jury think if a surveillance video shows them working in the yard? There are many examples of this and all they do is hurt a case. Be honest!

8. Making a claim for lost wages when all past income has been “off the books.”

Many tax paying jurors are not so sympathetic to people who want to be paid lost wages but don’t pay taxes. -Human nature at work. If this exists, be honest with your lawyer.

9. In fall cases- not observing what caused the fall, (many people call a lawyer and have no idea what made them fall) or failing to alert the property owner of the accident (so they have an opportunity to learn what caused it.) Both are important factors that should be avoided. It is not convincing to an insurance adjuster when someone claims they were hurt falling in the produce aisle and there are no photos, and it was not reported to the store until a letter was sent by a lawyer, weeks later.

Avoid these mistakes and give yourself a shot at winning!

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The Five Mistakes that Can Wreck Your Florida Accident Case  was written by Florida Personal Injury Lawyer Jim Dodson to  help accident victims who have been injured in Florida. This must-read  book addresses many  aspects of the insurance claims process, what you need to know about hiring an attorney (if in fact you need to), as well as the myths associated with injury and accident claims. Learn  "What is a Personal Injury or Accident Case?", "How  You Determine the Value of a Personal Injury Case", and "Do you really need an attorney?" This  free consumer guide also provides you with a list of "What Every Injury Claim Must Have." Arm yourself with this valuable information before you hire an attorney, speak with an insurance adjuster or sign any forms. Click here to get your free copy. 

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