Paul Hanson: Lynwood, WA Auto Accident Injury Lawyer

Lynnwood, WA: INJURY AUTO ACCIDENT? INSURANCE CLAIM?

Injured in a car accident not your fault?  The at fault driver's insurance company being unfair and difficult?  Or your own insurance company?  Get a very experienced car accident injury lawyer to help you. And get much better, quicker, and fairer results. Call Lynnwood, WA Auto Accident Lawyer Paul Hanson at 425-778-7339.

Lawyer Paul Hanson has 40+ years experience helping drivers and passengers injured in auto accidents not their fault.  He is very effective in dealing and negotiating with auto insurance companies and their accident claims adjusters. Lawyer Paul Hanson is able to get fair and prompt accident insurance claim settlements for his injured clients. He will work hard to obtain a fair insurance claim settlement for you.  He will help you even the odds with the insurance companies.

Lawyer Paul Hanson has received the highest possible lawyer ratings from the national lawyer rating services. An “AV-Preeminent" rating from Martindale-Hubbell and a “10-Superb" rating from Avvo.com. He is a former Lynnwood, WA City Criminal Prosecutor.  He is very experienced, aggressive, affordable & conveniently located (right next to Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood).

Unlike many personal injury lawyers, Paul Hanson doesn't just take the big accident injury cases and reject the smaller ones. Our firm's accident injury cases range in size from a minor rear end collision ($10,500 case settlement), to a half million dollar case settlement for a family's very serious head on collision. Here are some of his typical auto accident injury case settlements: 

SAMPLE TYPICAL AUTO ACCIDENT CASE SETTLEMENTS:

Do not try to handle your auto accident injury claim without a lawyer. Hiring an experienced car or auto accident lawyer to help you with your auto accident injury insurance claim will always result in much better service, a much quicker claim settlement, and more money in your hands from the auto liability insurance company. And a lot less aggravation for you.

Contingency Auto Accident Lawyer Fee only.  If no insurance claim settlement is obtained, then no attorney fee is charged to you. Only case costs and expenses incurred by Lawyer Hanson.  A legal fee is charged ONLY if your auto insurance claim settles with the auto liability insurance company and you receive compensation money for your accident injuries.

 

 

SPECIAL AUTO ACCIDENT INFORMATION

If you are in a Lynnwood, WA car or auto accident involving injuries or property damage, there are certain important actions you should take. These actions will help you avoid future hassles with insurance claims adjusters and help you obtain fair compensation for your bodily injuries and property damages. 

1.  Call 911. Insist on a police investigation and accident report. 

In many cases, there are no witnesses and you and the other driver may have conflicting versions of how the accident happened. If you do not request a police investigation, you may seriously damage your chances of obtaining full compensation, or may be blamed for an accident that is not your fault. Police are not required, however, to investigate and do an accident report when there are no injuries and none of the vehicles has more than $750 in damages. Or when a non injury, minor damages collision occurs on private property such as a store parking lot. 

2. If you are injured, immediately obtain needed medical treatment. 

If you are injured in an auto accident, immediately obtain all needed medical treatment. Go to the nearest hospital emergency room, or to your personal physician. An accident injury, if untreated, may become substantially worse and take longer to heal. And if you fail to promptly seek medical treatment, the at fault driver's insurance claims adjuster may later assert that your delay meant that you weren't really injured. That will then greatly reduce your accident injury claim's settlement value.

3. Assist the injured.

If someone is seriously injured, call 911 or the police and tell them an ambulance is needed. Make the injured person as comfortable as possible, but do not move him or her unless its absolutely necessary to avoid further injury. 

4. Do not move your vehicle while waiting for Lynnwood, WA Police to arrive. 

Unless your vehicle poses an immediate hazard to other traffic, it is important that you leave it in the same position that it came to rest after the accident. Ask the other driver not to move his or her vehicle until the police arrive. The single most important piece of evidence that the police officer has to determining fault is the position of the vehicles after the accident. 

5. If you are injured, tell the investigating Lynnwood, WA Police officers. 

The first record of your injuries will be contained in the investigating officer's report. If you fail to mention to the police officer that you were injured, it may create suspicion in the mind of the insurance adjuster (who will ultimately evaluate your claim) that you were not hurt. Ordinarily the officer will ask if you are injured. However, if the officer does not ask if you are injured, or assumes that you are all right, let the officer know immediately of all injuries or pain. Even minor ones.  

6. Obtain names and telephone numbers of eyewitnesses.

Often by the time a police officer arrives at the accident scene, witnesses are gone. Therefore, it is very important for you to identify any witnesses and write down their names, addresses, and telephone numbers. 

7. File your auto accident report when required by law.

You are not required to file an accident report when the collision is investigated by a law enforcement officer who files a report. You may, however, file your own report if you wish or if you disagree with details reported by the officer. Your report, which is filed with the Washington State Patrol in Olympia, must be sent within four days of the accident. 

8. If you have a serious injury, do not try to settle your own claim. 

If you have suffered a serious injury requiring follow-up medical attention, you should consider hiring an attorney to represent you. An experienced personal injury attorney will generally make sure that you receive the compensation that is due you, usually more than you will be offered in settlement by insurance adjuster, even after attorney's fees are paid. 

If you choose to accept a settlement for injury without seeking legal representation, you may receive a settlement that does not fairly compensate you for permanent injuries and damages. Once a claim is settled, it can never be reopened. The best rule is not to attempt to settle an accident claim for at least 90 - 180 days following an injury. If you're uncertain about whether to settle, talk to a lawyer who handles personal injury cases. 

Most lawyers handle injury cases on a contingency-fee basis, meaning there is no charge unless they recover compensation for you. But you are responsible for out-of-pocket expenses, called costs, paid by your attorney for your case. There is usually no charge to review your claim with a personal injury attorney. 

9. Promptly report your loss to your own insurance company, and the other driver's insurance company, but do not give a statement to the other driver's insurance adjuster until you have talked to a lawyer. 

The odds are that a claims adjuster for the other driver will be assigned to your claim before you have been able to retain an attorney. This may happen as soon as a day or two after the accident. The adjuster will request permission to take a recorded or written statement. 

If you are considering hiring a lawyer, you should NOT give a statement to an insurance adjuster for the at fault driver's insurance company. Such statements made can seriously prejudice your claim later on. Instead, tell the at fault driver's insurance adjuster that you have to decided to hire a lawyer. Instruct him or her to refer all questions to your lawyer. At the proper time, your lawyer will assist you in making any necessary statements to the at fault driver's insurance company. 

10. Your time for making an auto accident claim is limited by Washington State Law (Statute of Limitations).

For every injury or death claim, there is a period of time during which you must file your claim with the court or the claim will be barred. This time limit is called “Statute of Limitations". 

In Washington State, the period for bringing an injury or death claim is usually three years from the date of the accident.  But there are some exceptions. The period for bringing a claim for injury to a child does not begin to run until the child's 18th birthday. A claim arising out of the death of a child, however, is usually limited to three years. For accidents which occur in other states, the time period may be as short as one year from the accident date. 

Although you may have several years to actually file your injury claim lawsuit with the court, the sooner you consult with a personal injury lawyer following an accident, the more that attorney can do to help you on your claim. Too many accident victims wait too long before consulting a lawyer. Such delay can seriously weaken their otherwise valid claims.

Call Lynnwood, WA Auto Accident Lawyer Paul Hanson for more information. Call 425-778-7339