This is one of the most common questions that personal injury claimants ask their New York personal injury attorney. Realistically, there is no accurate way for your attorney to determine how long it will take for your case to settle. There are many factors that may extend or shorten the time it takes for your claim to settle.
However, a good attorney can estimate how long it may take your case to settle by looking at certain factors. Most often, personal injury lawyers will look at these important factors to determine whether their cases should be litigated or settled out of court.
The Important Factors
The best answer to a question of how long it takes to settle a personal injury claim is “it depends.” Some claims may take only a short time to settle, while others are more complex and may take years to reach a fair settlement.
Below are three important factors that may give a good insight into estimating how long it takes a personal injury claim to settle:
- The extent and severity of the injuries you have suffered.
- Your long-term prognosis.
- The documentation of your losses and your injuries.
Accepting a Settlement Too Soon
The general rule is that insurance companies do not voluntarily pay large settlements. Most often, they offer small, menial settlements that increase in small increments, in the hopes that the delay will force the claimant to accept a much smaller settlement. In other words, their goal is to delay the settlement process in an attempt to make you accept a lower settlement because you cannot afford to have your claim run its course.
Call Us
Attorney Kenneth A. Wilhelm is a New York personal injury attorney with over 42 years of experience. For more information or to schedule a complimentary consultation, please call 1-800-967-5496 or visit us at www.work4youlaw.com. We can even come to you. Huge amounts of money have been offered to our clients.