2 Jun

Will My Auto Insurance Rates Go Up If I Hire An Attorney After A Car Accident?

Florida Law Group Car Accidents, Personal Injury

As Florida auto accident attorneys, one of the most common questions we hear from injured accident victims about filing a personal injury lawsuit is whether or not their auto insurance rates will go up if they hire us or another attorney to represent them.

While we believe that you should always be more concerned about your own physical and mental health than insurance rates, clients whose accidents have put them in tough financial situations may wonder whether hiring an attorney is truly worth the cost – especially if it makes their auto insurance rates go up.

That’s a common concern that has kept or delayed many people from seeking the justice that they deserve, so we will take a closer look at the answer to this question in this blog post!

Understanding Florida’s Insurance System (Right Now)

Understanding auto insurance is always confusing, but in Florida it is especially so. Florida has traditionally been one of the few “no-fault” states, which doesn’t mean that no one is legally responsible for the accident – it just means that drivers are required to carry personal injury protection, or PIP coverage, and receive benefits through that coverage first before taking legal action. Each driver in Florida is required to carry $10,000 in PIP coverage. That amount will only cover 80% of your medical expenses, 60% of your lost wages, and up to $5,000 of funeral costs if an accident resulted in death, which is why people whose injuries cost more than that should consult a lawyer in order to get the rightful compensation they deserve.

Now, there is a bill that all auto insurers and law firms are currently keeping an eye on – SB-54 – that may become law this summer, which would do away with the PIP system. If that happens, the average cost of your rates will go up, and the process of recovering benefits following an accident will look different, but that will be due to the new law. The answer to the question of if your insurance rates will go up if you hire a lawyer after an accident will not change. The short answer is no; the more accurate answer is that it depends (but not on the hiring of legal representation).

Hiring An Attorney Won’t Make Your Rates Go Up, But Being At Fault May

Whether or not your insurance rates increase following an accident has nothing to do with your hiring a lawyer and everything to do with the type of driver your insurance company perceives you to be.

As long as you were not substantially at fault for the accident, Florida law actually prohibits insurers from raising your rates. “Substantially at fault” means 51% or more – that percentage is typically assigned by a judge. If another driver was mostly at fault for the accident, then your insurance company has no basis by which to increase your rates, regardless of you hiring an attorney to pursue the full compensation you deserve, because you didn’t cause the crash.

However, if you were at fault for the accident, or if you have been involved in a number of accidents within a short period of time that were not just a string of bad luck, you have become more of a risk to your insurance company and they are more likely to increase your rates (because the cost of insuring you has gone up).

Hiring an attorney is your right as an injured accident victim. Insurance companies may try to prevent you from hiring a lawyer, because it means that they are more likely to get away with giving you a lowball offer, but they can’t raise your rates just because you are taking advantage of your legal rights.

Understanding Contingency Fee Pricing

The fact that insurance rates won’t go up after an accident if you hire an attorney placates some people, but others still worry that hiring an attorney won’t be worth the cost. Research has shown that the opposite is true.

See, most personal injury attorneys in Florida charge clients on a contingency fee basis, which means that their clients only have to pay their legal fees if they win their case and recover a settlement. Their fees are automatically deducted as a percentage of that settlement, which would not have been won without their help. Contingency fee pricing helps any injured accident victim, regardless of their financial situation, have access to quality legal representation. This fee arrangement takes the risk off of the client; clients actually risk more by not hiring an attorney, according to legal research.

One study conducted by Nolo found that 9 out of 10 participants who had a lawyer received a settlement, compared to about 5 out of 10 who proceeded on their own. Participants who hired a lawyer received about $77,600 in compensation, on average, compared to an average of $17,600 for those who proceeded on their own. And even after deducting the average 32% contingency fee, represented participants walked away with net payouts that were three times higher, on average, than what underrepresented participants received.

Hiring an auto attorney after an accident won’t increase your car insurance rates, but it could give you the compensation you need to get quality treatment and find closure!

Call The Florida Law Group

The Florida Law Group has been named in the top 1% of auto accident injury firms in the United States. We have recovered over $1 billion dollars for our clients, and we have the knowledge and experience necessary to answer your questions about insurance and compensation, inform you of your legal rights, tell you what your injuries are really worth, and fight tenaciously for the maximum settlement that you deserve. Filing a claim or lawsuit is a time-sensitive matter, so if you were injured in an auto accident, call our firm today to schedule a free consultation!

As Florida auto accident attorneys, one of the most common questions we hear from injured accident victims about filing a personal injury lawsuit is whether or not their auto insurance rates will go up if they hire us or another attorney to represent them.

While we believe that you should always be more concerned about your own physical and mental health than insurance rates, clients whose accidents have put them in tough financial situations may wonder whether hiring an attorney is truly worth the cost – especially if it makes their auto insurance rates go up.

That’s a common concern that has kept or delayed many people from seeking the justice that they deserve, so we will take a closer look at the answer to this question in this blog post!

Understanding Florida’s Insurance System (Right Now)

Understanding auto insurance is always confusing, but in Florida it is especially so. Florida has traditionally been one of the few “no-fault” states, which doesn’t mean that no one is legally responsible for the accident – it just means that drivers are required to carry personal injury protection, or PIP coverage, and receive benefits through that coverage first before taking legal action. Each driver in Florida is required to carry $10,000 in PIP coverage. That amount will only cover 80% of your medical expenses, 60% of your lost wages, and up to $5,000 of funeral costs if an accident resulted in death, which is why people whose injuries cost more than that should consult a lawyer in order to get the rightful compensation they deserve.

Now, there is a bill that all auto insurers and law firms are currently keeping an eye on – SB-54 – that may become law this summer, which would do away with the PIP system. If that happens, the average cost of your rates will go up, and the process of recovering benefits following an accident will look different, but that will be due to the new law. The answer to the question of if your insurance rates will go up if you hire a lawyer after an accident will not change. The short answer is no; the more accurate answer is that it depends (but not on the hiring of legal representation).

Hiring An Attorney Won’t Make Your Rates Go Up, But Being At Fault May

Whether or not your insurance rates increase following an accident has nothing to do with your hiring a lawyer and everything to do with the type of driver your insurance company perceives you to be.

As long as you were not substantially at fault for the accident, Florida law actually prohibits insurers from raising your rates. “Substantially at fault” means 51% or more – that percentage is typically assigned by a judge. If another driver was mostly at fault for the accident, then your insurance company has no basis by which to increase your rates, regardless of you hiring an attorney to pursue the full compensation you deserve, because you didn’t cause the crash.

However, if you were at fault for the accident, or if you have been involved in a number of accidents within a short period of time that were not just a string of bad luck, you have become more of a risk to your insurance company and they are more likely to increase your rates (because the cost of insuring you has gone up).

Hiring an attorney is your right as an injured accident victim. Insurance companies may try to prevent you from hiring a lawyer, because it means that they are more likely to get away with giving you a lowball offer, but they can’t raise your rates just because you are taking advantage of your legal rights.

Understanding Contingency Fee Pricing

The fact that insurance rates won’t go up after an accident if you hire an attorney placates some people, but others still worry that hiring an attorney won’t be worth the cost. Research has shown that the opposite is true.

See, most personal injury attorneys in Florida charge clients on a contingency fee basis, which means that their clients only have to pay their legal fees if they win their case and recover a settlement. Their fees are automatically deducted as a percentage of that settlement, which would not have been won without their help. Contingency fee pricing helps any injured accident victim, regardless of their financial situation, have access to quality legal representation. This fee arrangement takes the risk off of the client; clients actually risk more by not hiring an attorney, according to legal research.

One study conducted by Nolo found that 9 out of 10 participants who had a lawyer received a settlement, compared to about 5 out of 10 who proceeded on their own. Participants who hired a lawyer received about $77,600 in compensation, on average, compared to an average of $17,600 for those who proceeded on their own. And even after deducting the average 32% contingency fee, represented participants walked away with net payouts that were three times higher, on average, than what underrepresented participants received.

Hiring an auto attorney after an accident won’t increase your car insurance rates, but it could give you the compensation you need to get quality treatment and find closure!

Call The Florida Law Group

The Florida Law Group has been named in the top 1% of auto accident injury firms in the United States. We have recovered over $1 billion dollars for our clients, and we have the knowledge and experience necessary to answer your questions about insurance and compensation, inform you of your legal rights, tell you what your injuries are really worth, and fight tenaciously for the maximum settlement that you deserve. Filing a claim or lawsuit is a time-sensitive matter, so if you were injured in an auto accident, call our firm today to schedule a free consultation!