When is The Best Time to Work with a Personal Injury Lawyer?

Personal injuries can occur when least expected. Whether a person sustains a minor or major injury, it can disrupt their life and relationships. Not only that, the expensive medical treatments and medication following an accident can cripple you financially.

You may be reluctant to seek professional legal assistance in such a situation, thinking of it as another expense.

You don’t always need legal representation. In a minor fender-bender accident with another vehicle where you were not injured at all, you may be able to deal with the insurance company on your own to get your car repaired.

However, suppose you have been severely injured due to someone else’s negligence. In that case, you should consider legal representation from an experienced and qualified personal injury lawyer without thinking of it as an expense. Legal representation can offer you more benefits over the cost by protecting your rights and fighting for the compensation that you deserve.

You may have heard that some personal injury attorneys charge a lot, but that’s not necessarily the case. Consider selecting a lawyer who works on a contingency basis. This usually means that you won’t have to pay them any legal fees unless you get compensated for your injury. Similarly, knowing when to contact a lawyer can make all the difference to your case. Read on to learn more about the best time to work with a personal injury lawyer.

When the Injuries are Serious

This includes any injury that necessitates hospitalization, surgery, rehabilitation, physical therapy, orthopedics, chiropractic work, and cosmetic surgery. All this can cost you big if you pay out of your pocket.

Therefore, you should file a claim to get compensated. However, the value of your claim may increase if you have a lawyer representing your case. This is because many victims are unfamiliar with the complexities involved in the claim process and don’t know how to navigate them, and they may end up settling for less than what they deserve.

When an Insurance Adjuster Makes a Low-Ball Offer

After an accident, an insurance adjuster is likely to approach you. They may come across as friendly and concerned about your health, but sometimes their objective is to close the case by making you agree to the lowest settlement possible. They might go to any extent to limit their liability, such as asking you reflexive questions to get the answer they are looking for.

For example, they may ask you a reflexive question like, ‘how are you?’. Generally, a reflex reply would be: ‘I am fine, thank you.’ Answers like these can impact your settlement amount negatively.

Victims should be careful not to make any statements or sign documents that may impact their claim amount. Also, suppose the adjuster continues to compel you to sign documents or agree to a low settlement stating that you can only get this or nothing. In that case, it’s an excellent time to work with a personal injury lawyer.

Injuries Caused By Medical Providers or Defective Products

Suppose you have been injured by a defective product or as a result of medical malpractice. You’re likely to be confronted by a team of attorneys defending their clients, including the manufacturer, doctors or the hospital. Medical service providers or product manufacturers may not readily admit to their fault. They may attempt to dispute and stop you from getting the information pertinent to your personal injury case.

Furthermore, they may use legal proceedings to avoid claim settlements. In such a situation, it makes sense to seek legal representation and protect your rights. An experienced personal injury attorney understands the tactics of insurance companies. They can fight such tactics and help you seek the compensation that you deserve.

When the Evidence is Not Sufficient

To get the claim amount you deserve and prove the defendant guilty, the victim must provide supporting evidence. For this, a thorough investigation of the accident scene is vital. Unfortunately, the police department and insurance companies have a limited amount of resources and time that they can spend on each case. When the evidence is insufficient, it is an excellent time to work with an experienced law firm.

Such a firm has a team of skilled North Carolina and South Carolina personal injury lawyers who can carry out an in-depth investigation and reconstruct how the accident occurred. From subpoenaing witnesses to obtaining video footage from surveillance systems, black boxes, and logbooks (in the case of a truck accident), an experienced attorney will work to uncover crucial and hidden evidence to build a strong case and justify your claim amount.

When Facing a Permanent Disability

It is essential to work with a team of North Carolina and South Carolina personal injury lawyers if an accident results in a permanent disability. Such an injury can be life-changing; it can affect your ability to work as well as enjoy life.

When pursuing a claim, permanent disability and its repercussions on the victim’s life should be considered to receive compensation for future medical care and lost earnings. A lawyer advocating on your behalf will fight for the compensation that you deserve to help you gain financial stability and move forward in life.

At the Law Office of Jason E. Taylor P.C., we take pride in the excellent legal services and caring assistance we offer to victims of personal injury cases in and around North and South Carolina. We have a team of experienced lawyers who work in clients’ best interests on a contingency basis. We strive to help you fight for justice and compensation to help you get on the road to recovery.

Contact us today for case representation. We’ll go the extra mile to fight for full and fair compensation.

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Notice of Data Security Event
Updated March 28, 2025

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor is providing notice of an event that may affect certain individuals’ information. Although we have no indication of identity theft or fraud in relation to this event, we are providing information about the event, our response, and additional measures individuals can take to help protect their information, should they feel it appropriate to do so.

What Happened? On October 28, 2024, The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor identified suspicious activity related to our email system. We quickly took steps to investigate and determined that an unknown actor may have accessed certain emails within our email system between August 7 and November 7, 2024. We then conducted a comprehensive review of the potentially affected emails and attachments to determine what information was contained therein and to whom the information related, which was completed on February 25, 2025. Unfortunately, we were unable to verify the addresses of certain affected individuals, so we are providing this notice to ensure potentially affected individuals receive information about the event.

What Information Was Involved? The information affected may include individuals’ Social Security number, driver’s license and state ID information, financial account number, and health information.

What We Are Doing. We are notifying individuals about this matter and providing guidance about free resources that are available to assist with monitoring relevant accounts, credit reports, and how to place a fraud alert or security freeze on one’s credit file. Further, as with our typical security practices, we will continue to evaluate our policies, procedures, staff training, and technical security measures to reduce the likelihood of an event like this reoccurring.

What Individuals Can Do. We encourage you to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud by reviewing your account statements and monitoring your free credit reports for suspicious activity and to detect errors. We also recommend you review the below “Steps Individuals Can Take To Help Protect Personal Information”.

For More Information. If individuals have questions about this matter, we have a dedicated assistance line with agents ready to answer their questions. Please contact our toll-free dedicated assistance line at 1-800-939-4170, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. through 9 p.m., excluding holidays. You may also write to us at The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor, Attn: Compliance, P.O. Box 2688, Hickory, NC 28603.

Sincerely,

The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor

STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT PERSONAL INFORMATION

Monitor Your Accounts

Under U.S. law, a consumer is entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. To order a free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call, toll-free, 1-877-322-8228. Consumers may also directly contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below to request a free copy of their credit report.

Consumers have the right to place an initial or extended “fraud alert” on a credit file at no cost. An initial fraud alert is a 1-year alert that is placed on a consumer’s credit file. Upon seeing a fraud alert display on a consumer’s credit file, a business is required to take steps to verify the consumer’s identity before extending new credit. If consumers are the victim of identity theft, they are entitled to an extended fraud alert, which is a fraud alert lasting seven years. Should consumers wish to place a fraud alert, please contact any of the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below.

As an alternative to a fraud alert, consumers have the right to place a “credit freeze” on a credit report, which will prohibit a credit bureau from releasing information in the credit report without the consumer’s express authorization. The credit freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in a consumer’s name without consent. However, consumers should be aware that using a credit freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in their credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application they make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or any other account involving the extension of credit. Pursuant to federal law, consumers cannot be charged to place or lift a credit freeze on their credit report. To request a credit freeze, individuals may need to provide some or all of the following information:

1. Full name (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III, etc.);
2. Social Security number;
3. Date of birth;
4. Addresses for the prior two to five years;
5. Proof of current address, such as a current utility bill or telephone bill;
6. A legible photocopy of a government-issued identification card (state driver’s license or ID card, etc.); and
7. A copy of either the police report, investigative report, or complaint to a law enforcement agency concerning identity theft if they are a victim of identity theft.

Should consumers wish to place a credit freeze or fraud alert, please contact the three major credit reporting bureaus listed below:

Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/ https://www.experian.com/help/

https://www.transunion.com/credit-help
1-888-298-0045 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
Equifax Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 105069 Atlanta, GA 30348-5069 Experian Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Fraud Alert, P.O. Box 2000, Chester, PA 19016
Equifax Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 Experian Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion Credit Freeze, P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn, PA 19094

Additional Information

Consumers may further educate themselves regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, credit freezes, and the steps they can take to protect their personal information by contacting the consumer reporting bureaus, the Federal Trade Commission, or their state attorney general. The Federal Trade Commission may be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580; www.identitytheft.gov; 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338); and TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. Consumers can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. Consumers have the right to file a police report if they ever experience identity theft or fraud. Please note that in order to file a report with law enforcement for identity theft, consumers will likely need to provide some proof that they have been a victim. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement and the relevant state attorney general. This notice has not been delayed by law enforcement.

For District of Columbia residents, the District of Columbia Attorney General may be contacted at: 400 6th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001; 1-202-442-9828; and oag.dc.gov.

For Maryland residents, the Maryland Attorney General may be contacted at: 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; 1-410-576-6300 or 1-888-743-0023; and https://www.marylandattorneygeneral.gov/.

For New Mexico residents, consumers have rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as the right to be told if information in their credit file has been used against them, the right to know what is in their credit file, the right to ask for their credit score, and the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. Further, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the consumer reporting bureaus must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information; consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information; access to consumers’ files is limited; consumers must give consent for credit reports to be provided to employers; consumers may limit “prescreened” offers of credit and insurance based on information in their credit report; and consumers may seek damages from violators. Consumers may have additional rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act not summarized here. Identity theft victims and active-duty military personnel have specific additional rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. We encourage consumers to review their rights pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act by visiting www.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_summary_your-rights-under-fcra.pdf, or by writing Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20580.

For New York residents, the New York Attorney General may be contacted at: Office of the Attorney General, The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224-0341; 1-800-771-7755; or https://ag.ny.gov.

For North Carolina residents, the North Carolina Attorney General may be contacted at: 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; 1-877-566-7226 or 1-919-716-6000; and www.ncdoj.gov.

For Rhode Island residents, the Rhode Island Attorney General may be reached at: 150 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903; 1-401-274-4400; and www.riag.ri.gov. Under Rhode Island law, individuals have the right to obtain any police report filed in regard to this event.
STEPS INDIVIDUALS CAN TAKE TO HELP PROTECT A MINOR DEPENDENT’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

Typically, credit reporting agencies do not have a credit report in a minor’s name. To find out if a minor has a credit report or to request a manual search for a minor’s Social Security number each credit bureau has its own process. To learn more about these processes or request these services, consumers may contact the credit bureaus by phone, writing, or online:
Equifax Experian TransUnion
https://www.equifax.com/personal/help/article-list/-/h/a/request-child-credit-report/
https://www.experian.com/help/minor-request.html
https://www.transunion.com/fraud-victim-resources/child-identity-theft

1-800-685-1111 1-888-397-3742 1-800-916-8800
P.O. Box 105788
Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013 P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016

To request information about the existence of a credit file in a minor’s name, search for a minor’s Social Security number, place a security freeze or fraud alert on a minor’s credit report (if one exists), or request a copy of a minor’s credit report consumers may be required to provide the following information:
● A copy of their driver’s license or another government issued identification card, such as a state identification card, etc.;
● Proof of address, such as a copy of a bank statement, utility bill, insurance statement, etc.;
● A copy of the minor’s birth certificate;
● A copy of the minor’s Social Security card;
● The minor’s full name, including middle initial and generation, such as JR, SR, II, III, etc.;
● The minor’s date of birth; and
● The minor’s previous addresses for the past two years.

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