How to Maximize Your
Personal Injury Claim

This is the number one rule I give every client, and I cannot overstate it. Insurance companies track your medical records like hawks. Every missed appointment, every skipped therapy session, every prescription you didn't fill — they use it against you. Their argument is simple: 'If you were really hurt, you'd be following your doctor's treatment plan.' And juries buy it.

I had a client with a herniated disc — documented on MRI, visible, indisputable. She missed 4 physical therapy sessions because of work. The insurance company used those gaps to argue her injury wasn't severe enough to warrant the treatment. We still won, but it cost her about $40,000 in settlement value. Four missed appointments cost her $40,000. Follow your doctor's orders. All of them.

Here's what I need you to understand: medical treatment is the ONLY evidence of your injury that insurance companies and juries accept. Not your word. Not your family saying you're in pain. The medical records. If your doctor prescribes 12 weeks of physical therapy and you stop at week 6 because you're 'feeling better,' the insurance company will argue you weren't injured enough to need 12 weeks. They'll calculate your damages based on 6 weeks of treatment, not 12.

Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) is the medical term for when your condition has stabilized and further treatment won't significantly improve it. You should NOT settle your case until you reach MMI. If you settle before you know the full extent of your injuries, you can't go back and ask for more money later. Ever. That settlement is final.

Your injury claim isn't just about medical bills. It's about what the injury has done to your LIFE. This is what the law calls consequential damages — the ripple effects that touch every part of your existence. Can you still pick up your kids? Can you sleep through the night? Can you do your job? Can you play the sports you love? Can you be intimate with your spouse?

I tell every client to keep a daily pain journal. Write down: what hurts, how bad (1-10 scale), what you couldn't do today that you used to do, how it affected your mood, your sleep, your relationships. This journal becomes powerful evidence at trial. Juries connect with the daily reality of living with an injury far more than they connect with medical bills.

The other driver's insurance company will call you — usually within 24 hours. They'll be friendly. They'll express concern. They'll ask how you're feeling. Then they'll ask for a recorded statement. This is not optional for them — it's a calculated strategy to minimize your claim before you even know the full extent of your injuries.

'How are you feeling today?' If you say 'I'm doing okay,' they'll use that recording to argue you weren't seriously hurt. 'Were you wearing your seatbelt?' 'Did you see the other car coming?' Every question is designed to elicit an answer they can use against you. The correct response to any request for a recorded statement is: 'I have an attorney. Contact them.' Period.

I'm dead serious about this one. Insurance companies hire investigators who monitor your social media. They're looking for any post, photo, or check-in that contradicts your injury claim. You posted a photo at a family barbecue smiling? 'She doesn't look injured.' You checked in at a gym? 'He's clearly recovered.' You went on a vacation that was planned months before the accident? 'She's faking the severity.'

Even innocent posts get twisted. A photo of you at your kid's birthday party becomes evidence that you're 'not really in pain.' My advice: make all accounts private, post nothing about your activities, and absolutely never post anything about your case, your attorney, or the accident itself.

Most people think their case is worth their medical bills plus lost wages. That's the floor, not the ceiling. Under Utah law, you're entitled to compensation for the TOTALITY of how the injury has affected your life. This includes:

Economic damages: Medical bills (past and future), lost wages, diminished earning capacity, future medical costs, household services you can no longer perform.

Non-economic damages: Pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium (impact on your marriage), disfigurement, scarring, inconvenience, mental anguish.

Utah has NO CAP on non-economic damages in personal injury cases — the only cap is $450,000 for medical malpractice (Utah Code §78B-3-410). For car accidents, truck accidents, slip and fall, and all other PI cases, there is no limit on what a jury can award for pain and suffering.

Have a pre-existing condition? Bad back? Old knee injury? Arthritis? The insurance company will try to blame your current pain on your prior condition. Here's the law: under the 'eggshell plaintiff' doctrine, the at-fault driver takes you AS THEY FIND YOU. If you had a pre-existing bad back, and the accident made it worse, the at-fault driver is responsible for the WORSENING — even if a healthy person wouldn't have been injured as severely.

I've had clients with degenerative disc disease who were functioning fine before the accident. The crash aggravated their condition dramatically. Insurance tried to blame everything on the pre-existing condition. We proved the accident was the triggering event. Full recovery. The law protects you even if you weren't in perfect health before the accident.

Insurance companies make quick settlement offers for one reason: they know your case is worth more than they're offering. They're banking on your financial pressure, your frustration, and your desire to 'just get it over with.' Don't fall for it.

Once you sign a settlement release, it's FINAL. You cannot come back for more money — ever. Even if your injuries turn out to be worse than you thought. Even if you need additional surgery. Even if you can never work again. That release is permanent. Wait until you've reached Maximum Medical Improvement. Wait until you know the full scope of your injuries. Wait until your attorney has calculated the true value of your claim. Then — and only then — negotiate from a position of strength.