Attorney Rosenthal has been handling car accident and motorcycle accidents since 1993. He has handled countless cases. It is Attorney Rosenthal's role to guide you through the process from getting your car or motorcycle fixed, to getting your medical treatment, to settling your case.
While car accidents can happen very quickly, often it feels like time has stopped and you experience it in slow motion. A car accident can be very traumatic, and you re-live it over and over.
When you have a car accident, it is important to take several steps- as soon as possible:
- Get the name and contact information for witnesses
- Get medical help as soon as possible
- Don't speak to the other person's insurance company until you talk to a lawyer
- Take pictures of your bruising or any marks on your body and the damage to your vehicle, if significant.
Your attorney may want to get a written statement from a witness and may want to get photos of any bruising on your body, and any damage to your vehicle. When you are injured in a car accident, you have a responsibility to cooperate with your own insurance company, but you have no obligation to talk to the other person's insurance company. It is usually better that you don't talk to them.
In getting your car fixed, we usually like to go through the other person's insurance. Sometimes the other insurance company won't approve any repairs until they get a copy of the police accident report and speak to their driver. When it costs more to repair your car than what the car is worth (often with older vehicles), the insurance company will declare your vehicle a “total loss” (this is call “totaling your car”). Then the insurance company will value your car based on the NADA value averaged with a local source.
There are many factors that go into a car accident case settlement. The most important factor usually is the medical treatment. The doctors' reports are critical- what the doctors say about the severity of your injury, the need for future treatment, whether you have a permanent injury, the length of your treatment, the cost of your treatment. It is important that before you settle your case that you have explored all your medical options. Once you settle, if you discover a new medical problem you won't be able to get more money from the insurance company.
When you are getting your medical treatment it is best to treat consistently. Gaps of time between appointments can hurt your case. If treatment with one doctor isn't improving your situation, let that doctor know. If you still don't improve, there are often many medical options available to you. You should discuss this with your doctor and lawyer. Skipping treatment or not scheduling treatment is not the best approach.
It is important to keep track of time missed from work. Lost wages are something that we take note of and work to get your reimbursed for from the insurance company.
There are many factors that go into deciding what your settlement is going to be - how the accident happened, your medical treatment, your lost wages, and the injuries' impact on your life. In some cases it may be necessary for the attorney to use an expert such as an engineer or economist to convince the insurance company on some issue in the case.
Attorney Rosenthal works hand-in-hand with clients to understand how the accident has affected them, and to guide them through the recovery and settlement process. Most clients have his mobile phone and he can respond to texts or calls after hours or on weekends. Your case won't be pushed off to a secretary or junior attorney. Attorney Rosenthal has been successfully handling motor vehicle accident cases since 1993 and has guided countless clients through the process from accident, to recovery, to settlement.