With more than 200 million licensed drivers on the road in the United States, it’s safe to say Americans love driving. After all, there’s nothing quite like taking a drive on a sunny day and riding with the top down.

As enjoyable as driving can be, a hard reality is that having them many cars on the road leads to a lot of car accidents. Even if you consider yourself to be the most careful driver in the world, accidents can still happen quickly and without warning; after all that’s why they’re known as accidents.

It’s estimated that nearly 1.25 million die in road crashes every year and an additional 20-50 million are injured or disabled. What’s more is that more than half of total traffic deaths happen among folks aged 15-44.

Car accidents can be downright scary and, in the case of folks who are disabled or injured, they can be life-altering. If you’ve been injured in a car accident, you’re likely experiencing a wide range of emotions and experiencing a great deal of pain. You may not know it, but you may be entitled to monetary compensation.

If you’ve been in life-altering car accident, you need to hire an accident attorney or a personal injury lawyer right away. It’s a safe bet that you’ve seen plenty of TV ads for specific accident attorneys where clients talk about how they got millions of dollars in settlements.

Before you hire an accident attorney, you need to know what qualifies as a personal injury case: basically it’s one where a person suffers some kind of accident and someone else might be legally responsible for that injury. Usually settlements are reached where the legally responsible party pays medical bills and for other expenses. In the case of car accidents, they represent about 52% of all personal injury lawsuits.

In cases involving personal injury as a result of a car accident, one of two things is likely going to happen. A lawsuit is filed where the plaintiff alleges that the defendant is the one directly responsible for a person’s injury. The plaintiff has to prove absolutely that the defendant was negligent. The other outcome is for both sides to reach a settlement. Accident attorneys can help plaintiffs get fair compensation during a mediation and ultimately reach a resolution where both sides are satisfied.

You may be wondering how else an accident attorney can help you. Well, by hiring an accident lawyer a car accident victim can expect to get plenty of benefits:

• Guidance: It doesn’t matter if you’re filing for bankruptcy, filing for divorce or you’ve been the victim of a car accident; taking any kind of legal action can be difficult. Thankfully, accident attorneys and personal injury lawyers can act as legal sherpas for any case. They’re experienced, having dealt with hundreds of cases before, and will take all the necessary legal steps, big and small, to plan the perfect legal pathway for each client. In the case of car accident victims, that includes assessing injuries, analayzing pain and estimating what a client’s medical needs may be.
• Compensation: Those person injury cases you’ve seen on TV all talk of how client earn millions of dollars for their troubles. It’s important to note that every single case doesn’t turn out that away, but an accident attorney can help ensure that each client gets every penny they are owed.
• Trial: While most personal injury cases are settled via settlements, some cases are a perfect fit for going to trial. A lawyer can advise a client if a trial is the right legal path to take. If so, a lawyer will know just how to handle talking to defendants, insurance companies and other concerned parties.

As previously stated, being in a car accident can be horrific, scary and potentially life altering. When it comes to life-altering accidents, it’s best to have an accident attorney in your corner. They’ll know exactly what steps to take to help you reach a fast resolution and ensure that you don’t get tripped up by any part of the legal process.