Union City
Personal Injury Lawyer

Many Union City residents will go through an injury at some point in their lives. If another person or party is legally to blame for the accident or situation that led to your injury, you might have a valid legal claim for damages. If so, you’ll need the help of a personal injury lawyer in Union City.

If you have grounds for a personal injury claim, you may be entitled to full compensation for the costs you face because of your injury. The experienced personal injury team at John Foy & Associates began as a small local law office, and we’ve since grown to be one of the biggest and most respected law firms in Georgia.

Is It Worth Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney in Union City, GA?

Yes, it’s almost always worth hiring a personal injury lawyer in Union City for your case. The amount of money and time it will save you justifies any fees that your lawyer charges – and we don’t even charge anything upfront.

You may be tempted to just let your case go and pay for all your expenses yourself. We understand that you may want to avoid the hassle of legal proceedings, but we can assure you that your lawyer will handle the legal details for you so that you can focus on recovery. 

You may also be tempted to try to file your claim alone. That’s not advisable. Without the help of someone who has experience in personal injury law, your chances of getting the compensation you deserve are slim.

To get a better idea of whether it’s worth it to hire our lawyers’ help, contact us for a free consultation. Our team can assess your situation and tell you what they can do for you.

Cases that Our Union City Personal Injury Lawyers Handle

Personal injury law is a wide-ranging umbrella, and there are many different cases that we handle at John Foy & Associates. Those cases include:

• Car accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Truck accidents
• Premises liability 
• Slip and falls
• Social Security disability
• Wrongful death
• Workers’ compensation

No matter what injury you’ve sustained or what accident you’ve been in, one of our personal injury attorneys in Union City can meet with you and tell you what the next steps should be for your case.

What Is a Personal Injury Claim?

For most people, a personal injury accident is their first major experience with the legal claims process. If you’re left with extreme injuries or property damage, the process can feel very overwhelming, even hopeless. But as a victim, the law is on your side.

Georgia law states that if you didn’t cause the accident and your injuries, you are not responsible for your costs – the at-fault person is. Filing a personal injury claim is your way of holding the at-fault person or entity responsible and seeking compensation for expenses that weren’t your fault.

What You Need to Know About Filing Your Claim in Union City 

Personal injury law can be complicated. While the best way to understand it is to have a lawyer by your side to guide you through your case, there are some basic things you should know about the process. 

Important things to know about filing your personal injury claim include:

1. The Insurance Company is Not on Your Side

In most cases, you’ll file your injury claim with the at-fault person’s insurance company. This should be straightforward: you and your Union City lawyer calculate your damages and make a claim for compensation, then the insurer approves your claim and you get paid. It’s often not that easy.

Although insurance companies might make it seem like they’re on your side, they are for-profit businesses looking for ways to cut costs. Insurers have negotiators experienced in talking down to victims and downplaying their injuries. They’d be happy to pay you the smallest amount possible – or even claim you had some blame in the accident to reduce their payout.

But you need and deserve the money to pay for your costs and allow you to move on from the accident as fully as possible. Before you take any calls from the at-fault person’s insurance company, accept any money, or give any statements to them, contact a lawyer.

2. You Can Gather Information for Your Case

Evidence is key in any personal injury claim. To receive financial recovery for your damages from an accident, you’ll need to demonstrate the other person or entity’s negligence.

While your attorney will work to gather evidence for your case, there are things you can do too, starting as soon as the moments after the accident.

Here are some ways you can help compile information that might be helpful to your claim:

• Report the accident to the police.
• Take pictures of everything, including your injuries, any property damage, and the whole accident scene.
• Talk to witnesses and ask for their contact information. Their testimony may be a key piece of evidence in your case.

You’ll also want to see a doctor as soon as possible for your injuries, even if you think they aren’t that bad or you feel okay. Some injuries can manifest or worsen over time, and you don’t want anything to get excluded from your damages.

3. Documentation Is Very Important

Keep clear records of every bill you receive or pay, including doctor bills, repair costs for your vehicle or other property, and more. This includes all medical records and doctor reports. Damages like this – with a clear dollar sign – make it easy to calculate their worth for your insurance claim.

4. Be Prepared for Negotiation

Again, insurance companies are not on your side. Chances are high that you’ll get offered a dollar amount that is much less than what you actually deserve. Your claim could even get denied. But don’t give up.

Contact a lawyer who has intimate experience with personal injury cases. They will be able to look at your situation with a legal eye and determine what your claim is actually worth. Then, they can negotiate with the insurer on your behalf and fight for a fair settlement.

Bottom line: You shouldn’t have to pay a cent for damages that aren’t your fault.

What Are the Chances of Winning a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

In personal injury law, it can be a little more complicated than “winning” and “losing.” In general, 90-95% of personal injury cases are settled outside of court, which means the two parties come to an agreement on how much compensation is to be paid. 

A settlement is usually good news. It means that you are going to receive some money for your damages. While there are settlements that are more or less favorable for the injured party, most settled cases provide a reasonable amount of money depending on your case.

Our personal injury lawyers in Union City are master negotiators, and we know how to get a good settlement that will allow you to recover without worrying about money. Insurance companies and the other party’s lawyer will try to reduce your settlement in any way possible, but our attorneys can keep them from taking advantage of you.

How Much Money Can I Recover from a Georgia Personal Injury Accident?

Since Georgia is an “at-fault state,” the person whose actions led to the accident is responsible for covering all damages resulting from it. That means the money you can recover depends on what you lost because of the accident.

Your settlement amount all comes down to the total of your damages – the costs you face as a result of the accident. Expenses you can claim may include the following:

Medical Costs

Common medical expenses from injury accidents include:

• Medical bills for doctor visits, tests, and/or surgeries
• Prescription medications
• Costs of traveling to and from appointments
• Potential future expenses like rehabilitation or physical therapy

Medical costs often make up the biggest portion of personal injury claims.

Property Damage Costs

Property damage is another part of many personal injury claims. That includes the cost of repairing damage to your car—or even the cost of replacing the vehicle – if you were injured in an auto accident.

Property damage losses can also be rental car expenses, towing costs, damage to personal items inside your vehicle, or other damage to your personal property because of the accident.

Lost Wages

Many personal injury victims end up having to take time off of work to recover from their accidents. This can bring double the stress as you rack up medical bills without being able to keep earning money at work.

Thankfully, time lost from missed work is something you can typically claim as damages. You may also be able to claim “loss of future earnings” if your injury is going to prevent you from working for an extended period of time.

Pain and Suffering

If a physical injury is present, you can seek recovery for mental and emotional losses, as well. These fall under pain and suffering damages, and there is no set way they are calculated for every case.

Examples of Mental Pain and Suffering

• The physical pain you experience, now and in the future
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Anxiety, depression, mood swings, or anger
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Other forms of emotional distress
• Disturbances in sleep, appetite, or daily energy

It’s these types of damages that make it impossible to give an average personal injury accident settlement amount. But a Union City personal injury attorney can help calculate your unique losses and ensure any settlement you’re offered is fair to you.

How Long do I Have to File a Personal Injury Claim in Georgia?

In most cases, you have until 2 years from the date of your accident to file a personal injury claim, according to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (OCGA) § 9-3-33. There are some exceptions to this, but most personal injury cases fall under this rule.

That doesn’t mean you should wait that long to start filing, though. There will be work for you and your lawyer to do before you can officially file. Plus, the longer you wait, the harder it will be to gather evidence that proves you were the victim of someone else’s negligence.

Talk to a Union City Personal Injury Lawyer for Free Today

You shouldn’t have to suffer financially after an injury that wasn’t your fault. The Union City personal injury lawyers at John Foy & Associates will bring 20+ years of experience (and long track record of success) to the table.

We want to sit down with you and discuss the best options for you. Call now for a free consultation or fill out our online contact form.