But while nearly all bicycle accidents are shocking and scary, not all of them require a lawyer. The Santa Monica bicycle accident lawyers at Steinberg Injury Lawyers want to help you understand how to determine whether or not you need to seek help from an attorney if you have been injured while riding your bike.
There are no set rules that apply to each and every incident, but there are some common-sense guidelines that you can follow to help you make the determination. Let's take a look at those now.
You might not need an attorney's assistance if the following situations apply to you:
- Short treatment length. Your medical treatment did not last for more than a few weeks. You may have gone to the emergency room, but were released that same day with instructions to contact your family physician and to take over-the-counter pain medication.
- Non-serious injury. You did not suffer any fractures or bone breaks, closed head injuries, nerve damage or internal bleeding.
- Short/no hospital stay. Your hospital visit was a single instance, and you were not required to stay overnight. Nor did you need to go back to the emergency room for any reason later on.
- Your family physician did not refer you to a physical therapist or send you to any sort of rehabilitation center for weekly treatments of any sorts.
- You did not have to undergo any type of surgery to treat your injuries.
- Your medical bills were limited to an ER visit and a couple of family doctors' appointments, and will not be very expensive.
- You have no long-term medical problems and are told by your doctor that you will not need any treatment in the future.
- After your recovery, you are still able to do all of activities that you used to do before the accident.
While it can be a relief to know that you probably don't need an attorney, if you are unsure about whether or not you fit into any of the above categories, we encourage you to ask. Most experienced and trustworthy lawyers will provide you with a free consultation where they will tell you up front that it would cost more to hire an attorney than the insurance company will offer.
The lawyers at Steinberg Injury Lawyers offer this free consultation to the community, as well as a complimentary book on all types of accident claims, The Seven Biggest Mistakes That Can Ruin Your California Injury Case. Call 800.989.6385 for your free copy or to set up a complimentary case evaluation.
