How much time does it take to settle a construction accident case?

For some people, going to court after a construction accident case is the right idea. But for others, they just need money now to cover immediate expenses. So it definitely makes a lot of sense in that situation to try and settle the construction accident case. The main idea is to figure out when and how to settle, but also how much time is needed to settle a construction accident case. Here’s what you need to know.

There’s no standard settlement timeline

One of the things that you will notice with the construction accident settlements is that there is no set timeline. Every case is different. The timeline is affected by the injury severity, if the liability is disputed, the number of parties involved, evidence available, if the lawsuit becomes necessary, etc. All of those things matter quite a bit, and it will only make the experience better as a whole.

Also, the medical recovery will determine your timeline in most cases. Before you evaluate the claim value, you want to know the extent of your injuries. If you are settling too early, that means you are leaving money on the table. And naturally, that’s always something you truly need to avoid to the best of your capabilities. 

Investigating the accident takes time

Some people want a result right away and they are impatient. But realistically, investigating an accident will eat up quite a bit of time. There are accident reports to go through, construction accident reconstructions, surveillance footage, medical records, witness statements and so on. They need to cover all the evidence before sharing any conclusion. So yes, there will be quite a lot of time needed to complete this process.

Determining who is responsible

In some construction accident cases, you will have multiple parties that are liable. For example, the liability extends to the general contractors, subcontractors, property owners, maintenance contractors, engineers, architects and so on. The most important thing here is to determine who is responsible and naturally, that can eat up quite a bit of time. You can’t start settlement negotiations without knowing who is liable, so that alone is going to require time.

Insurance company response

The response from your insurance company will determine how fast a case will settle. Sometimes, insurers will negotiate in good faith. Or they might dispute liability, question the severity of your injuries and so on. There are situations where the insurance companies request more medical records, expert opinions, independent medical examinations and so on.

Settlement negotiations

Once your construction accident attorney in Chicago gathered all the evidence and knows the extent of your damages, he will start negotiating the settlement compensation. That is a process which involves reviewing the insurance, discussing disputed issues, negotiating compensation and so on. Many of the construction accident cases will be solved during negotiations without even going to a trial.

Is a lawsuit necessary? Most of the time it won’t be the case, because both parties want to settle, or at least one of them might want to do so. That being said, if the parties can’t agree on a settlement, going to trial is the best approach, and that’s what will make things better in the end.

The thing is, the discovery process for the lawsuit can be very lengthy. These construction accidents involve multiple defendants and a lot of documentation, so the discovery on its own can take multiple months, which is a thing to take into consideration here. 

Completing the settlement

Before the case is sent to trial, many courts will encourage settlement conferences or mediation. That’s not always going to be taken into account, but in some cases it might, and that’s the thing you need to consider here.

The problem with settling too fast is that you don’t always know the extent of your injuries and all the costs that you might have to deal with. It doesn’t seem important at first, but if any extra expenses arise down the line, you can’t request more compensation. Once you settle, that’s final and you have to handle everything with the money you accepted as a settlement. That’s the reason why many construction accident cases go to trial, because you want to know the full extent of the injuries. And in most cases, a settlement might not be necessary.

Conclusion

It’s clear that the construction accident cases don’t have a set timeline, be it for the settlement or a trial. Sometimes, they can settle very fast. Other times, a settlement is not possible and you have to wait for a few months or years until the trial is finished. There are also things that can delay a settlement or a trial, like disputed liability, serious injuries, multiple defendants, ongoing medical treatments and so on. That’s why you want to have a vetted professional by your side, just to be on the safe side.