Car Accident Lawyer In Gainesville, Georgia
If you have suffered an injury from a car accident in Gainesville, Hall County, or Northeast Georgia, you may be unsure of your next steps. Hospital stays and medical treatment can be financially crippling, especially if you cannot work and have lost income due to your injuries.
However, it is essential to remember you have the legal right to fight for compensation for your losses. An experienced and trusted Gainesville car accident lawyer can help you pursue a claim at no risk to you.
Insurance companies have intricate knowledge and understanding of how the law works, which gives them an advantage when you first open a claim. To be fully protected and avoid being taken advantage of after a car accident, you should enlist the help of Stewart Melvin & Frost’s Trial Team. They are well-respected as a hard-working, responsive, and successful law firm based in Gainesville, GA.
The Trial Team at Stewart Melvin & Frost has served North Georgia for many decades and are skilled in fighting back against the big insurance companies. Our personal injury lawyers are also committed to providing a personalized approach to every case to provide the best legal services for every client’s unique situation and needs.
According to Andrew Gould, one of the personal injury lawyers with The Trial Team at Stewart Melvin & Frost, “We are passionate about holding folks accountable. It is what drives us to outwork and outperform the other side to ensure we maximize the value of each client’s claim. By doing so, we hold accountable the person or persons who caused this traumatic event to our clients.”
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What Should I Do after a Car Accident in Gainesville, Georgia?
The moments immediately following a car accident can be confusing and stressful. However, what you do in those moments can be critical to your safety and the success of your claim. Some of the most important things actions following an accident in Gainesville include:
- First and foremost, check on the safety and welfare of yourself and any passengers
- If able, call the police to the scene of the accident or have someone call them for you
- If able, take photos of damage to your vehicle
- If able, gather witness testimonies and contact information
- If able, check on the safety and welfare of the negligent driver, but limit your conversations with him or her
- DO NOT post anything about the accident on social media
- Document every detail you can recall about the accident and your injuries, when it is safe to do so
Additionally, it is critical to seek professional medical care as soon as possible to treat your injuries. Some car accident injuries may not seem serious immediately after the crash but could worsen over time without proper care. Failing to seek medical attention soon after the accident could also allow the insurance company to deny or devalue your claim.
After receiving medical treatment, it is essential to call a lawyer. Many car accident victims may assume that they can deal with insurance companies directly to negotiate a settlement. However, it is essential to note that insurance companies do not have your best interests at heart and often try to settle with car accident victims for as little money as possible. A skilled Gainesville car accident lawyer from The Trial Team of Stewart Melvin & Frost can negotiate on your behalf to help ensure you receive the amount you need to cover your injuries and losses fully.
How Long Will My Car Accident Claim Take?
No two accidents are alike, and the length of a car accident claim depends on several factors. The most significant factor, at least initially, is the client’s medical treatment and recovery plan. It is challenging to thoroughly evaluate any claim until we know the full extent of your treatment. So initially, we often must wait until treatment is completed or leveled off before we can evaluate a real sense of when a resolution of your case can be reached.
The second key factor is whether a lawsuit is required. Most car accident claims can be resolved without a lawsuit. In those instances, the process can range between a couple of months to a year or more, depending on the client’s length of treatment. However, when insurance companies undervalue your claim, they make it necessary to file a lawsuit. In some instances, after the lawsuit is filed, the insurance company will assign your claim to a new adjuster who evaluates the claim differently, and we can settle the case within a few weeks of filing the lawsuit. More commonly, however, after the lawsuit is filed, the process can take many months before the insurance company is willing to enter into any serious settlement discussions.
Should a trial be necessary, it may be 12 to 15 months after filing the lawsuit before a judge schedules your case. In other words, if the insurance company makes you file a lawsuit, the process may take a year or more to resolve.
“Sometimes insurance companies test our clients’ mettle and willingness to fight. While we love to try cases, we recognize most clients are not eager to step into a courtroom. Unfortunately for some clients, the insurance company makes a trial inevitable,” says Andrew Gould. “When that happens, we are always ready to go, fully prepared and focused to fight for our client. Accountability matters, and we will fight to make sure there is full accountability, even if that accountability must come from a jury.”
Given how long the attorney-client relationship often lasts, it is vital to choose a car accident lawyer that provides you with stellar representation and treats you and your family with the respect and courtesy you deserve. The Trial Team at Stewart Melvin & Frost takes great pride in the relationships we build with our clients. Our relationships have foundations built on trust, transparency, responsiveness, and high-quality representation.
Why Choose Stewart Melvin & Frost’s Trial Team?
Stewart Melvin & Frost has been providing expert legal services in Gainesville, Georgia, since 1936. For over 80 years, our well-respected and closely connected Gainesville car accident attorneys have developed their expertise in many specialized practice areas, including personal injury, wrongful death, and civil trial work.
Our car accident attorneys purposely maintain a low, selective caseload to ensure they have as much time as necessary to represent you fully and properly. Thoroughly reviewing and preparing for a car accident case takes an immense amount of work. It often requires combing through hundreds, if not thousands, of pages of documentation and interviews with physicians, investigative officers, witnesses, and others to determine the total value of your claim.
There is no such thing as a “small case” when handled correctly. Our car accident attorneys have chosen quality over quantity to deliver unparalleled service to every client. “For us, it is about the Golden Rule: Treat each client as you would want your family to be treated. It is why we choose quality over quantity of cases, to make sure we provide the level of service we would want our family to receive if the unimaginable happened,” says Gould.
No Charge for Initial Legal Consultation
For personal injury cases, we do not charge for the initial consultation. Personal injury clients pay on a contingency fee basis, meaning you only pay us if we can resolve your claim. Stewart Melvin & Frost’s Trial Team provides other personal injury services beyond representing clients injured in car wrecks. Some of our other specialties include:
- Wrongful death cases
- Trucking accident cases
- Product liability cases
- Premises liability cases
The Trial Team at Stewart Melvin & Frost is committed to protecting clients’ rights in the Gainesville, Hall County and Northeast Georgia area. When you partner with our car accident lawyers, you can have peace of mind that your case is in the caring hands of legal experts who truly care about you.
Mark Alexander & Andrew Gould: A Team like No Other
The Trial Team at Stewart Melvin & Frost, led by Mark Alexander and Andrew Gould, specializes in personal injury, car accident, trucking accident, and wrongful death cases. Mark Alexander and his legal team recently secured a record $11.5 million jury verdict in Hall County involving pedestrians struck by a vehicle. A former associate with the Kennan Law Firm, Andrew Gould has been involved with several high-profile personal injury and car accident cases across the country, securing numerous seven- and eight-figure results for his clients.
Mark and Andrew are committed to always being accessible and responsive to their clients and ensuring every client receives Stewart Melvin & Frost’s unrivaled expertise and high-quality representation. Their hard work is supported by technology and innovation, as illustrated by their use of jury focus groups designed to improve the client’s chances of a solid and favorable result.
Contact Our Car Accident Lawyers in Gainesville, Georgia Today
The Trial Team of Stewart Melvin & Frost is dedicated to helping accident victims like you in the Gainesville, Hall County and Northeast Georgia area pursue their right to compensation for their losses. When you choose us, you choose a trial team with the wealth of experience and skills needed to achieve the right outcome for your case.
To schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with one of Stewart Melvin & Frost’s skilled car accident lawyers, call (770) 536-0101 or book an appointment by filling out our contact form.
Contact Our Gainesville Auto Accident Lawyers Today
FAQ’s from our Car Accident Lawyers in Gainesville, GA
How long does a car accident claim take?
The length of time to complete a car accident claim depends on several factors. We understand most clients want resolution as quickly as possible, but the amount of work varies from case to case. The most significant variable, at least initially, is the client’s medical treatment. It is difficult to fully evaluate any claim until we know the full extent of your treatment. So initially, we often must wait until treatment is completed or plateaued before we can get a sense for when resolution of your case can be obtained.
The second key variable is whether a lawsuit is required. Most car accident claims can be resolved without a lawsuit. In those instances, the process can range between a couple months to a year or more, depending on the client’s length of treatment.
However, when insurance companies undervalue your claim, they make it necessary to file a lawsuit. In some instances, after the lawsuit is filed, the insurance company will assign your claim to a new adjustor who evaluates the claim differently, and we are able to settle the case within a few weeks of filing the lawsuit. More commonly, though, after the lawsuit is filed, the process can take many months before the insurance company is willing to enter into any serious settlement discussions. Should a trial be necessary, it may be 12 to 15 months after filing the lawsuit before a judge schedules your case for trial. Bottom line, if the insurance company makes you file a lawsuit, the process may take a year or more to resolve.
Given how long the attorney-client relationship often lasts, it is important to choose a firm that not only provides you with stellar representation, but treats you and your family with the respect and courtesy you deserve. At Stewart Melvin & Frost, we pride ourselves on the relationships we earn with our clients – foundations built on trust, transparency, responsiveness and high-quality representation.
What should I do after a car accident to protect myself?
The first tip is to document and keep everything. Document the following:
- If possible, get photos of the scene.
- What happened after the crash?
- Were you transported to the hospital by ambulance?
- Length of your hospital stay.
- What kind of treatment was provided for your injuries?
- How long were you out of work?
- What kind of treatment did you receive after leaving the hospital?
- Who all saw you and your condition after the wreck? (they may become helpful witnesses in the future).
Our second series of tips are:
- Do not speak to any insurance company before speaking to an experienced car accident lawyer.
- Limit your conversations with the negligent driver who hurt you – it is okay to check on him/her, but limit any substantive conversations about your condition or how the wreck occurred.
- Stay off social media – DO NOT mention your condition or the wreck on any social media platform.
The third tip is to make sure you know where to turn when you find yourself in the unenviable position of needing legal representation after a car accident. A veteran car accident lawyer knows what to look for to make sure your claim is fully and properly evaluated. Often, the factors that bring the most value to your claim are not obvious, even to the insurance company or other lawyers. You need a seasoned car accident lawyer who not only knows what those factors are and where to find them, but how to obtain them and what to do with them so that you and your family are fully protected.
When should I call a lawyer after a car wreck?
You will want to call a lawyer before having any substantive conversations about the car accident with any insurance company. It is strongly recommended that you call an experienced car accident lawyer as soon as you have received treatment for your immediate injuries, and it is safe to do so.
Talking to a lawyer will help you make better, more informed decisions about what to do after a car accident. It is never too soon to call a lawyer, as they will tell you exactly what you need to record and document for your case to make sure you are protected against the big insurance companies.
How should I hire an attorney after a car wreck?
The first thing you need to keep in mind is that the clock is ticking. In the state of Georgia, you have two years from the date of your wreck to make a claim for your injuries.
When you call a lawyer for a consultation, you might still be a bit shaken-up and shocked from the experience. This is normal, and your lawyer will help you collect your thoughts and make informed decisions about your next steps. They will ask for certain pieces of documentation and if you are confused about how to get it, the lawyer will either get the documentation on your behalf or tell you what you need to do to get the right evidence for your case.
Most importantly, though, you will want to hire a lawyer who is direct, honest and transparent with you during your initial visit. Be sure your lawyer tells you what you need to hear, not just what you want to hear. That is the foundation of trust, and trust is essential to maintaining a high quality and long-lasting attorney-client relationship.