Florida has a lot going for it but along with sun and sand, the Sunshine State has a rather confusing personal injury claim process.
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Unfortunately, the legal process doesn’t get a whole lot easier if your claim turns into a lawsuit. There are some critical steps to filing a personal injury lawsuit in Orlando. Not hitting all of the steps can be the difference between a successful settlement or watching your lawsuit be dismissed.
All Accident Claims Start with Your Insurance Provider
Like pretty much all states, Florida has minimum vehicle insurance requirements. All drivers with vehicles registered in Florida must carry at least $10,000 in liability insurance and $10,000 in personal injury protection. Since Florida follows no-fault insurance rules, everyone involved in an accident files a claim with their insurance provider, even if they’re not the at-fault party.
You pretty much always follow this step even if you’re planning on eventually filing a personal injury lawsuit. If you’re only carrying liability insurance, your property damage isn’t covered. Liability insurance only covers damage you cause to someone else’s property. However, if you have full coverage auto insurance your policy should pay out for your property damage up to the cap.
Personal injury protection (PIP) covers up to 80% of your medical costs and lost wages or up to the policy’s cap, whichever comes first. This is usually the easiest part of the legal process. Since you’re filing a claim with your insurance provider pesky things like negligence don’t come into play. In other words, it really doesn’t matter who’s responsible for the accident when you’re filing with your insurance provider.
Recovering Your Leftover Damages
This is usually when things get a bit interesting in the claim process. Your insurance has covered a portion of your damages but you still have outstanding expenses stemming from the accident. Now, you can start filing a claim for your remaining damages against the at-fault driver’s insurance provider. While it may sound relatively easy, things can get complicated.
Dealing with Comparative Negligence
Florida is one of a few states following comparative negligence rules. This rule serves a few purposes other than making filing a claim rather complicated. The general idea behind the rule is to help ensure everyone involved in an accident has the chance to possibly recover compensation.
The rule also works to protect insurance companies from overly large claims. This is supposed to help keep monthly premiums affordable for everyone since insurance providers may not be responsible for covering the claim’s entire value. So, how does comparative negligence work in a personal injury claim?
The rule allows for more than one party to be held liable for the same accident. Fault is assigned by the authorities and/or insurance adjusters to everyone involved in the incident. Your percentage of fault can range from 0% to 100%. As long as you’re not assigned more than 50% of the blame, you should be able to move forward with your personal injury claim. However, your potential settlement amount is reduced by your percentage of fault.
Calculating Your Remaining Damages
Okay, we keep stressing that you can only recover your remaining damages. This is essentially your second insurance claim so you can only try to recover what your provider hasn’t. This means carefully going over your remaining medical and property damage expenses. Don’t forget about lost income if it’s a part of your claim with your insurance provider.
After subtracting everything already covered, you should have the value of your remaining damages. If you’re only carrying liability insurance, all of your property damage may be recoverable. Since PIP doesn’t address your non-economic damages, sit down and get ready to play with a couple of formulas.
Your non-economic damages are things like your pain, suffering, mental anguish, and loss of life enjoyment to name a few. These are intangible losses meaning you can’t fall back on bills and receipts. This is when it’s time to use either the per diem or multiplier method. Both will give you the approximate value of your non-economic damages. Add this total to your economic damages and you have the overall value of your personal injury claim.
When Should You File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Florida?
Since the majority of personal injury claims are settled out of court, hopefully, you’re not going to need this information. Filing a lawsuit is usually time-consuming and can quickly get expensive for everyone involved. The cost of litigating a lawsuit is usually what keeps insurance companies out of court.
However, sometimes it’s the only way you can hope to recover at least some compensation. So, when is it time to turn your claim into a lawsuit?
Settlement Negotiations Fall Through
Most personal injury claims go through a few rounds of negotiations and the discussions can get lively. Your attorney is arguing for your fair compensation and the insurance adjuster is doing everything possible to get you to accept a lower figure. There’s usually a ton of back-and-forth going on and don’t be surprised if negotiations take a while.
On the other hand, you don’t want to spend months sitting around the negotiating table. Your bills are piling up. When it’s clear there’s no way you can reach an agreement, a lawsuit is usually your next best option. Sometimes, just the threat of a lawsuit is enough to bring the insurance adjuster back to the table.
The At-Fault Party is Under or Uninsured
Florida law is exceptionally clear when it comes to the state’s insurance requirements. Unfortunately, not everyone gets the memo. If your injuries and other damages are caused by someone who’s under or uninsured, your only option to receive compensation is to file a personal injury lawsuit in civil court.
Unfortunately, even if you win your case there’s still no guarantee you’ll ever see your settlement. If someone can’t afford insurance, they probably can’t pay your court-ordered settlement award.
Regardless of whether you’re filing a personal injury claim or lawsuit, trying to navigate Florida’s insurance laws can be a bit of a hassle. You can make the process easier by working with a Florida accident attorney. Who knows, your attorney may be able to help you avoid a lengthy and expensive lawsuit.
