How Does a Car Accident Settlement Work in Augusta, GA?

Getting into a car accident is stressful enough without having to navigate the confusing world of insurance claims and settlements. If you’re injured in a crash in Augusta, knowing how the settlement process works can help you know what to expect and make smarter decisions about your case.

Most car accident cases settle without victims ever setting foot in a courtroom. That’s great news because settlements often resolve faster than trials, and you have more control over the outcome.

But settling doesn’t mean accepting whatever the insurance company offers. The settlement process includes several key steps, and how you handle each one can affect how much compensation you receive.

Let’s review how car accident settlements work in Georgia, what you can expect along the way, and how to protect your rights.

What is a Car Accident Settlement?

A car accident settlement is a legally binding agreement between you (the injured party) and the at-fault driver or their insurance company. You agree to accept a specific amount of money to resolve your car accident claim. In exchange, you release the other party from any future liability related to the accident.

It’s like a contract—the insurance company pays you an agreed-upon amount to cover your damages, and you agree not to pursue additional compensation through a lawsuit. Once you sign a settlement and accept payment, the case is closed. You can’t go back and ask for more money, even if your injuries turn out to be worse than you thought.

This is why it’s important to fully understand your injuries and damages before you accept a settlement offer.

The Car Accident Settlement Process

If you’re wondering, ‘How do car accident settlements work?’, the process is relatively straightforward. Most car accident settlements in Georgia follow a similar path:

Filing the Initial Insurance Claim

The process begins when you file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company, putting them on notice that you’re seeking compensation for your injuries and damages.

Investigation and Evidence Gathering

Once you file a car accident claim, the insurer will investigate the accident, reviewing the police report, examining photos of the accident scene and vehicle damages, and interviewing witnesses.

Medical Treatment and Reaching Maximum Medical Improvement

Before you know what your case is worth, you need to complete your medical treatment or reach what doctors call ‘maximum medical improvement’ (MMI). This is the point when your condition stabilizes, though many accident victims make the mistake of settling before reaching MMI.

Calculating Total Damages

You can accurately calculate your damages once you know the full scope of your injuries. This includes medical bills, lost income, property damage, and compensation for pain and suffering.

For serious injuries, you’ll also need to consider future medical expenses and long-term impacts on your earning capacity.

Sending a Demand Letter

Your personal injury attorney will send a detailed demand letter to the insurance company outlining your case, explaining why their insured is liable, and specifying the compensation you’re seeking.

The Negotiation Phase

Insurers will respond with a counteroffer, which is almost always lower than your demand. This starts a back-and-forth negotiation process that can take weeks or even months.

Reaching an Agreement and Signing the Release

When both sides agree on a number, you’ll sign a settlement agreement and release form. This document closes your claim.

Receiving Payment

After you sign the release, the insurance adjuster typically issues payment within 30 to 60 days.

How Settlement Amounts Are Determined

Unfortunately, there’s no simple formula for determining how much your case is worth because every accident is different. But several key factors influence your car accident settlement value:

• Economic damages: Include your out-of-pocket expenses like past and future medical treatment, prescription medications, physical therapy and rehabilitation, lost wages and reduced earning capacity, and property damage to your vehicle.
• Non-economic damages: Compensate you for the intangible ways the accident affects your life, including physical pain and suffering, emotional distress and mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and permanent scarring or disfigurement.
• Liability evidence: The leverage you have in settlement negotiations that the other driver caused the accident.

Georgia follows a modified comparative negligence rule. If you’re found to be 50% or more responsible for the accident, you can’t recover a settlement. If you’re less than 50% at fault, your settlement is reduced by your percentage of fault. That’s $80,000 if you’re awarded $100,000 and found to be 20% at fault for the accident.

The Negotiation Process

Insurance companies are businesses. Their goal is to pay as little as possible on claims, so their initial settlement offer is almost always low. Don’t take it personally—it’s just their standard practice.

The process usually goes something like this: The adjuster makes a lowball offer, sometimes a fraction of what your case is truly worth. They’re hoping you don’t know any better or that you’re desperate enough to accept quickly.

Your attorney will then counter with evidence supporting a higher value, presenting medical records, expert opinions, and documentation of your damages. The insurance company will come back with a slightly higher offer, and the process goes on until you reach an acceptable number or decide to file a lawsuit.

Patience is critical during negotiations. Rushing to settle because you need money now often means cutting yourself short. A skilled attorney understands how to value your case and won’t let insurance companies take advantage of you.

At M. Austin Jackson Injury Lawyers, our expertise has helped car accident victims secure settlements of over half a million dollars. None of these settlements came from accepting the insurance company’s first offer.

Common Settlement Timeline

How long will this take? It’s one of the most common questions we hear. Unfortunately, it depends on your specific situation.

You might settle within a few months if your case is straightforward and involves minor injuries and clear liability. But if your case involves serious injuries, disputed liability, and multiple parties, it could take a year or longer to settle.

Several factors that affect the timeline:

• The severity of your injuries
• How long your medical treatment lasts
• Whether liability is disputed
• How reasonable the insurance company is being
• Whether you need to file a lawsuit to get fair compensation

Remember, there’s no prize for settling quickly. You want full compensation, even if it takes more time.

What Happens After You Accept a Settlement

Once you agree to a settlement amount, a few final steps remain:

• You’ll sign a release document that officially ends your claim and prevents future legal action related to the accident.
• The insurance company will process your payment, usually within 1 to 2 months.
• Your attorney will receive the settlement check, deduct their contingency fee (typically a percentage of the recovery), pay any outstanding medical liens from healthcare providers, and send you the remaining balance.

Settlements are final and binding. Once you sign that release and accept payment, you can’t change your mind later—even if you realize your injuries are worse than you initially thought or when they experience new medical complications.

Settlement vs. Going to Trial

About 95% of personal injury cases settle before trial, but that doesn’t mean going to trial is a bad decision.

Advantages of a settlement:

• Faster resolution and payment
• Lower legal costs
• More predictable outcome
• Less stress than a trial
• Privacy (personal injury settlements aren’t public record)

Advantages of a trial:

• Potential for higher compensation
• You get your ‘day in court’
• Creates a public record of wrongdoing
• Can hold defendants fully accountable

Most of our clients prefer to settle because it gives them reassurance and faster results. But if the insurance company refuses to offer fair compensation, we’re always prepared to take your case to trial. Sometimes demonstrating that you’re willing to go to court is enough to bring the insurance company back to the negotiation table with a better offer.

Mistakes to Avoid During Settlement

Here are a few of the most critical errors we see accident victims make:

• Accepting the first offer: That initial offer is seldom fair.
• Settling before you’ve finished treatment: Once you settle, you can’t get more money later. Wait until you fully understand your injuries and prognosis.
• Not accounting for future damages: If your injuries need ongoing treatment or impact your ability to work long-term, your settlement should reflect those future losses.
• Handling negotiations yourself: Having an experienced attorney levels the playing field and usually results in higher compensation.
• Giving recorded statements without legal advice: Anything you say can be used to minimize or deny your claim, so talk to an attorney before giving a statement.
• Posting on social media: Insurance companies regularly check social media for evidence to use against claimants.

How M. Austin Jackson Can Help

We’ve spent years helping our neighbors in Augusta and throughout Georgia navigate the car accident settlement process. We know the frustration of dealing with insurance companies more concerned with their bottom line than with helping injured people recover.

When you work with us, you can rest easy and focus on recovery. We handle every aspect of your settlement, from the initial investigation through final payment. Our experienced car accident lawyers gather evidence to build the strongest possible case. We calculate the full value of your damages, including future losses, and negotiate aggressively with insurance companies to protect you from lowball offers and bad-faith tactics.

Recovering from a car accident is hard enough without having to also battle the insurance company. If you’ve been injured in Augusta or anywhere in Georgia or South Carolina, call us at 706-981-9286 for a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions About Car Accident Lawyers