Is it too late to hire a personal injury attorney?

We always recommend working with an attorney as soon as possible after you or a family member has been involved in a serious accident. 

However, things don’t always work out as we would hope. 

After an accident, there are a lot of responsibilities to juggle and you may not get the chance to reflect and truly grasp the severity of your injuries. You could find yourself months down the line, wishing you had consulted a personal injury attorney. If you’re worried that you’ve missed your chance to seek legal counsel, read on to learn how to know if it’s too late to hire an attorney. 

Understanding when it’s too late to hire a Personal Injury Attorney

It can be common for injured individuals to initially downplay their accident or injuries. You may believe that you have time. You’re likely unfamiliar with personal injury law and the deadlines that accompany. You may opt to avoid legal action initially or consider going at it on your own. 

There are three main reasons that it would be too late to hire an attorney. 

1.     No injuries or damages

It’s not impossible to seek legal counsel without any evidence to support your claims, but it is incredibly difficult to make a strong case. You may run into issues when looking for an attorney to work with.

When seeking a personal injury attorney to help with compensation after an accident without any injuries or damages, you might find it difficult to find an attorney to work with. If there are no injuries or damages, there is no case for recovering compensation.

However, in Florida, if you decided that your injuries didn’t warrant a doctor’s visit within 14 days of the accident but then, later on, start to feel those effects of the accident settle in, you can still hire an attorney to help build your case for recovery. 

But keep in mind if you missed that 14-day window to seek medical treatment, you have most likely lost your window of opportunity to receive your $10,000 of PIP/no-fault benefits.

Read More: 7 QUESTIONS YOU NEED TO ASK A PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER BEFORE HIRING THEM

2.     After a settlement has already been made. 

If you decided to go on your own and fight for yourself or hire another attorney to help with your case, you may have been working with the insurance company to get compensated for any injuries that you encountered as a result of your injuries. 

If you already have agreed on a settlement, it is too late to hire an attorney (or new attorney) for the same accident. 

Unfortunately, by you agreeing to a settlement amount, you forfeit the right to any additional compensation. This can be especially devastating if there are underlying injuries. 

3.     After the statute of limitations has expired. 

In the State of Florida, there are time limits on the amount of time that can pass by before you take legal action on personal injury claims. 

After 4 years have passed since the date of the accident, you will no longer be able to make a corresponding personal injury claim. At this point, it will be too late to hire a personal injury attorney.

It can be frustrating to be involved in an accident and end up in a bad legal position. 

To be safe, we recommend reaching out to an attorney as soon as possible after an accident. 

You have nothing to lose when seeking legal counsel early on in your personal injury case. After seeking immediate medical attention, we urge you to speak with an experienced attorney. 

Here at Pipas Law Group, we offer free consultations. In addition, our services are paid out only when we win our case. Reach out to us today for a free case consultation.