subject: Providence Personal Injury Lawyer Advice: Personal Injury Releases [print this page] As a consumer, you should be alert anytime an insurance company asks you to sign any paperwork, because you may be giving up important legal rights, including the right to fair compensation. This paperwork is known as a release and is especially important in Rhode Island and Massachusetts personal injury claims such as car accidents, acts of medical malpractice, or other incidents involving personal injury.
What is a release?
A release is generally referred to as a contractual agreement where one entity agrees to give up a valid legal claim against another in return for a benefit such as compensation. When you sign a personal injury release, you are forever giving up your legal rights to pursue additional compensation.
Why should I speak to a Providence personal injury lawyer before I sign a release?
Insurers never offer those without a lawyer the true value of their claim. In Rhode Island and Massachusetts where we practice personal injury law, most insurance companies use a detailed system aimed at convincing consumers to sign personal injury releases for far less than fair compensation for their personal injuries. Our personal injury lawyers routinely obtain much more compensation, even after deducting for our contingent attorneys fee, than insurers give those without a personal injury lawyer. We also protect our clients legal rights.
Releases are permanent. For example, in Rivera v. Gagnon, 847 A. 2d 280 (R.I. 2004), a mother signed a release with an insurance company resolving only her familys claim for pain and suffering after an automobile collision. She and her Providence personal injury attorney were told the familys medical bills would be resolved separately. Unfortunately, the mother signed a release giving up all her claims against the insurance company. Since the mother could not clearly prove there was a mutual mistake about the releases terms, she lost her ability to recover her familys medical expenses from the insurance company.
A Providence personal injury lawyer will also help you make sure the release accurately states the terms of your agreement. This is very important, since misunderstandings while settling a claim are common and can be extremely costly. For a long but thorough example of a Providence personal injury attorney successfully combining releases with claim assignment, see DeMarco v. Travelers Insurance Company, 26 A.3d 585 (2011).
But the insurance person told me that hiring a lawyer will decrease my settlement. Wont the insurance companys settlement offer be close enough?
The answer, of course, is no. Insurance companies have different priorities than personal injury victims. Insurance claims adjusters are encouraged to settle your case below their companys calculated cost. Given the financial and emotional pressure you face and the complexity of the rules involved, you might very well give up all chance of recovering the full extent of your injuries for a fraction of what you should receive.
Your Providence personal injury attorney will make sure you are treated fairly when you negotiate a settlement with an insurance agency. Insurance agencies must comply with a number of rules encouraging fair and prompt settlements that make up The Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act (R.I.G.L. 27-9.1-1 et seq.)
Providence personal injury lawyers are trained in helping fairly evaluate how much your personal injury claim is worth, and in helping you recover the full cost of your injuries.
by: Mike Bottaro
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