If you have experienced a personal injury in North Dakota you may be eligible for compensation by filing a personal injury claim. There are several kinds of personal injuries covered by personal injury claims in North Dakota including, truck accidents, slip and falls, motor cycle accidents, auto accidents and much more.
Before filing a personal injury claim, you may want to seek personal injury help in North Dakota first. This may help you to get the settlement you deserve for injuries caused by in accident that was caused by someone else.
How Do I File a Claim in North Dakota?
As soon as your accident and injury have taken place and you are absolutely certain that the accident was not your fault, you should begin the process of gathering the evidence as soon as possible which proves that the accident and injury were not due to your negligence. The best evidence could include all or some of the following:
- a police accident report, if the accident involved calling the police such as in any motor vehicle accident;
- reports in writing compiled by eye witnesses to the accident;
- medical reports written by your doctor showing the nature of your injuries with the estimated recovery time;
- photos taken by you and any witnesses who saw the accident which prove who caused it;
- surveillance camera images which recorded the accident such as a slip and fall in a supermarket or an accident at an intersection or red light.
When you have all of that evidence ready, you should start to look for a North Dakota personal injury help from a North Dakota personal injury attorney. A personal injury claim may have a better chance of being a success when a North Dakota personal injury lawyer works on your behalf. The lawyer can negotiate for the best settlement possible with the insurance company of the individual found to be at-fault and whose negligence caused the accident and your injury.
The majority of personal injury accident claims are reached by negotiation and an out of court settlement so only rare cases end up being heard in court. When your lawyer has filed your personal injury claim the insurer will conduct its own investigation into your claim and when this has been completed will either offer you a settlement amount or deny your claim.
If you believe the insurance company has failed to provide adequate compensation which covers all the financial loss and emotional hardship brought on by your injury, you may decide to file an appeal to the insurance company’s claims manager. However, before beginning your personal injury claim you should check the statute of limitations for
What Is the Statute of Limitations in North Dakota?
The statute of limitations comes under North Dakota state law that sets a dedicated time limit on a personal injury victim’s right to file a personal injury claim. If a claimant misses the deadline, the defendant in the claim may make use of the statute of limitations as a defense against any personal injury damages claim that has been filed.
If the defendant can confirm that the statute of limitations is applicable to the case, it is usually dismissed so that the injured victim no longer has the right to file any personal injury claim at all. Currently, the statute of limitations for personal injury claims in North Dakota is set at six years from the date of the incident that brought about the injury.
How Do I Prove Negligence in North Dakota?
In order to prove negligence for an injury in an accident in the State of North Dakota it is important to provide the best evidence available to the at-fault person’s insurance company. Most personal injury lawsuits in North Dakota involve some sort of negligence on the part of the person found to have caused the injury. A negligence claim can only be filed if an injury has taken place due to the negligent act which as well as a physical injury could include both financial and emotional injuries.
North Dakota personal injury law is based on modified comparative negligence which is often called the 50 percent rule where an injured party is not eligible to recover any personal injury compensation if they are found to be 50 percent at fault or more for the accident. If the victim of the injury is 49 percent or less at fault, they can recover a percentage of the total compensation claim. If damages are $100,000 and they are found to be 20 percent at fault, they would be entitled to recover $80,000.
What Kind of Compensation Can I Receive in North Dakota?
Most personal injury claims in North Dakota include amounts for the following:
- the costs of medical treatment until it has been completed;
- punitive damages if there is evidence which proves the negligent act was deliberate;
- the pain and suffering caused by the injury;
- loss of enjoyment of life;
- loss in income.
How Do I Get Personal Injury Help in North Dakota?
When the evidence is available which proves who caused your accident and injury, you should consider starting the personal injury claims process in North Dakota by selecting a personal injury lawyer. Most North Dakota personal injury lawyers provide a free case evaluation before the personal injury claim process is begun. Fill out the Free Case Evaluation on this page to get in touch with an independent, participating attorney who subscribes to the website today!