Car Accident Lawyers in Delaware County: Full Tort, Limited Tort and What Comes Next

The first 48 hours

An adjuster will usually call within two days, and they will be pleasant. They may offer to sort out a rental, or send a cheque against the bills you have so far.

The bills you have so far are not the claim. A first offer arrives before anyone knows whether you need an MRI, an injection or surgery, and accepting it closes the file for good. There is no reopening it when the neck does not settle.

You are entitled to say you are not discussing the claim yet. That single sentence protects more value than anything else you will do this week.

Your tort election decides the case before it starts

Pennsylvania is one of the few states that makes drivers choose. Most people chose once, years ago, to save money on the premium.

Limited tort is not a dead end. Recognized exceptions include being struck by a driver convicted of driving under the influence, being hit by a vehicle registered out of state, being injured while a passenger in certain circumstances, and being hit by an uninsured driver. And whether an injury clears the serious impairment threshold is an argument to be made rather than a box the insurer ticks.

Send us your declarations page and we will tell you which election you have and what it means.

Where the money actually comes from

Often not the at-fault driver. Pennsylvania minimum liability limits are low, and a serious injury exhausts them quickly.

• Your own underinsured motorist coverage is frequently the largest available policy, and people routinely forget they have it.
• Stacking, across multiple vehicles on the same policy, can multiply what is available. Whether you have it depends on a waiver you may have signed years ago.
• A commercial policy, if the other driver was working, including delivery driving.
• Your medical benefits coverage, which pays treatment regardless of fault.

Finding every applicable policy is a large part of the work, and it is why the declarations pages matter more than the police report.

Comparative negligence, and the early blame

Pennsylvania reduces your recovery by your share of fault and bars it entirely above 50 percent. Expect the other insurer to suggest early that you were partly responsible: it costs them nothing to try, and an unrepresented person often accepts a figure they should have contested.

Treatment gaps

The most common self-inflicted wound in a car case is stopping treatment because you feel a bit better or cannot face the appointments. A gap in the records becomes the argument that you had recovered. If you need to pause treatment, tell your doctor why, so the reason is in the chart.