Should I hire an attorney or try to settle? If settled, how much?

I have slipped and fell at a grocery store and have been getting the run around for over 1 1/2 years. I suffer from pain and deep tissue damage and affects my work. I finally got a claim number after over 1 year and began to seek out medical treatment but had to stop becuasue the dr. could not be assured that they would pay the bill. After pulling teeth the claims adjust is going to contact me next week to talk about a settlement. I have over 3k in med. bills, need ongoing treatment, and i am a bit over 3months away from 2years from the date of accident.





Should i hire an attorney or take a settlement. If i take a settlement, what would be reasonable?





Are there specifics i should state when they call me next week?

Should I hire an attorney or try to settle? If settled, how much?
You definitely should hire an attorney ASAP. You should have contacted one as soon as you saw you were getting a run around. It seems that the insurance company has been stringing you along, hoping you would blow the statute of limitations on this. You MUST file a law suit by a certain time after your accident, or you will not be able to at all. The time varies from state to state, but for a P.I. case, it is typically 2 or 3 years. You still have time, but NONE to waste. Ref. damages: it is impossible to say what a reasonable settlement should be without a lot more information. The most important thing is what your doctor estimates your degree of permanency (if any) will be, and how much ongoing treatment you will need. Your attorney will negotiate your settlement after he assembles all the info, and should be willing to take this on a contingency basis since there is no question of liability. Your only immediate expenses will be court and sheriff's fees. Again, get an attorney IMMEDIATELY, because you are running out of time!! If you go beyond the statute of limitations, you won't get squat from the insurance company because they will know you can't sue them! Hope this helps. Good luck!
Reply:Call an attorney immediately as you will be taken to the cleaners otherwise.
Reply:You should contact attorney, because they will get the money from your settlement. But they can file more money and cover all the expenses that they can find. In the end, you should get all your medical bills covered. Ask around for someone who had experience in this type of lawsuit.
Reply:get a lawyer. I hope it's not too late to file a suit.
Reply:Regardless of whether you go to court or you settle GET AN ATTORNEY. As for specifics, take every document pertaining to the accident WITH YOU. Also, write down the things you think the attorney should know about the incident. This way you won't forget anything. As for a reasonable settlement, it really depends and your attorney will tell you. Many states have specific guidelines for both settlements AND claims.
Reply:Depends on how good a negotiator you are. If you think you can handle negotiating the settlement, then, maybe try that. I mean, a lawyer is not always the best way to go. You would have to pay him/her and the results could end up the same as you could have done on your own. My advice, get a lawyer, but make sure he/she knows their stuff, because if they don't, you're the one who's going to have to pay. Good luck!



myspace images