Tampa is a beautiful city in Florida with many activities and sunshine to offer tourists and residents alike. As with other beautiful places in the U.S., accidents still happen in Tampa, leading to a number of personal injuries every year.
Anything from boating accidents to car crashes to dog bites can injure individuals in Tampa. Many accidents can lead to more than just physical harm, causing loss of wages, effects on working ability, or pain and suffering.
For this reason, many people who get into accidents and sustain injuries try to recover their losses by filing a personal injury claim. For the best chance at receiving the compensation you deserve from your claim, you’ll need excellent legal representation.
Why Do I Need A Personal Injury Attorney?
A personal injury attorney in Tampa can help you pursue maximum compensation for your losses if your accident was caused due to negligence. The first step is to file a claim and begin negotiations. Your lawyer can explain this process and keep you informed along the way.
A personal injury attorney will work to negotiate with insurance companies and hold them accountable. Insurance providers are looking out for their own interests, so they will try to get you to settle for the lowest compensation possible. If this is not the best option for you, however, your attorney will not settle.
Following this, your claim will be taken to court to attempt to find a suitable agreement for compensation. If an agreement cannot be reached in court, your case will go to trial where your Tampa personal injury attorney will defend your claim to the fullest degree. Essentially, having an excellent personal injury attorney in Tampa allows you the best chance of recovering damages from your accident.
List Of Personal Injuries Caused In Tampa
Injuries can be caused by a number of accidents, which occur in a variety of ways. Florin|Roebig has been providing legal counsel for personal injury claims for more than three decades and has experience in a myriad of related cases.
The following is a list of personal injuries which can be caused in Tampa and may result in a claim:
- broken bones
- car accident injuries
- dismemberment
- dog bites
- emotional or mental anguish
- head trauma
- pain and suffering
- slips and falls
- spinal cord damage
- wrongful death
Reasons To File A Personal Injury Claim
If you have recently been in an accident that led to your injury, you likely didn’t plan for such an expense. The health costs that can come with a major injury, like breaking your leg in a car accident, can quickly become overwhelming.
An overnight stay in a Tampa hospital could easily cost several thousand dollars, for example. Many people’s health insurance policies will only cover a portion of the cost of an inpatient stay. If you need surgery, this can further increase the cost. Plus, there is the time off work you’ll spend while in recovery.
Even if you have a savings and healthcare plan to pay for the majority of these expenses, the cost of being in an accident can rapidly pile up. Your home expenses may fall behind and, while trying to survive temporarily without your regular wages, this can become detrimental to your finances and affect your overall well being.
What Does A Personal Injury In Tampa Cost?
The total cost of a personal injury in Tampa varies by person and by injury. The type of care a person will need affects how much the injury will cost both to their insurance policy and out of pocket. In general, here are some average rates for medical costs due to personal injuries in Florida:
inpatient stay at a hospital: can range from approximately $2,300 per night to $2,800 per night, not including surgery and other costs
ICU stay: those who need to be rehabilitated in the intensive care unit could pay more than $20,000 per night
emergency room visit: average cost is just over $6,000
Of course, insurance plans will pay for a large portion of these costs, if they pay out as they are supposed to do. Even with insurance, costs can mount.
For example, just two nights in ICU could mean more than $40,000. Insurance plans typically cover 60 to 80 percent of medical costs, depending on the service. If insurance paid the maximum amount in this case, the injured party would still be responsible for covering $8,000.
Costs of an ICU stay are only one example of medical costs for a major injury. Other costs to account for include short- and long-term recovery, lost wages, and health costs that accrue as a result of the injury, such as continuing care appointments, prescriptions, and more.
Recovering Damages From The Accident
Most damages awarded for personal injuries in Tampa are called compensatory damages, because they compensate injured parties for their losses caused by the accident.
A person may recover a number of types of damages according to the injury or injuries they suffered.
Common compensatory damages awarded in Florida include:
- emotional duress
- loss of consortium (or, effects to relationships)
- loss of enjoyment (of life)
- mental anguish
- pain and suffering
- lost wages: tips, bonuses, overtime, sick leave
In some cases, a person’s injury may extend beyond the immediate impact on life and affect them long-term. An injury may cause a health issue that lasts for years or affect future working ability.
Special compensatory damages may be awarded in Tampa for:
- expenses caused by having to cancel plans
- home healthcare expenses
- loss of future wages
- rehabilitative care
- medical equipment
- future medical costs
Punitive damages, or those awarded solely to punish a person for their negligence, are rarely awarded in Florida. Individuals seeking legal counsel to file a claim can speak to their personal injury attorney who can help them understand which type of damages they may be entitled to.
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What To Look For In A Personal Injury Attorney
Before selecting a personal injury attorney in Tampa, you’ll want to do some research to ensure you are getting the best legal aid possible. Choosing an excellent attorney can be crucial to the outcome of your case.
Here is a list of three components to look for in a Tampa personal injury attorney:
1. Trial experience – not all personal injury attorneys have experience with personal injury cases that have actually gone to trial. While not all cases will make it to trial, you’ll want to make sure the attorney you choose can defend your case in court if necessary.
2. A focus in Personal Injury cases – some law firms take on a wide range of cases. An attorney with a focus or partial focus in personal injury cases will be able to devote their time and resources to your case if they accept it.
3. Proven success rate — while each case varies from the next, and no attorney can guarantee the outcome of your case, your odds of a successful outcome increase with a personal injury attorney who is part of a firm with a proven success rate.
Find Legal Counsel For Personal Injury In Tampa
Florin|Roebig attorneys have experience in handling personal injury cases since 1986, with many cases sent to trial. Our attorneys have helped numerous clients in Florida and other states recover up to millions of dollars to account for their losses.
If you have suffered a personal injury in Tampa and need legal counsel, contact Florin|Roebig today. We can provide a consultation to help you better understand your individual claim.
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