By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.
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When can you handle an injury claim without a lawyer?
You can usually handle a claim yourself when the injury was minor, you recovered within a few weeks, your medical bills are small, and the at-fault driver’s insurer has already accepted liability in writing. In that situation the main job is paperwork: collect your bills, wage records and photos, then send the insurer a clear demand.
Plenty of people settle small claims on their own. A rear-end tap where you saw urgent care once, felt better in two weeks and missed no work is a common example. If the other driver’s insurer has said in writing that its driver was at fault, there is not much left to argue about except the amount.
If you go this route, a few habits protect you:
- Finish treatment before you settle. A release ends the claim, even if you later learn the injury was worse than you thought.
- Keep every bill, receipt and pay stub that shows lost time.
- Give the adjuster facts in writing. You can decline a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer.
- Ask whether your health plan or Medi-Cal paid any bills. They may expect to be repaid from the settlement.
Our guide to a personal injury claim without a lawyer walks through the steps, and how lawyers calculate settlement value explains what insurers look at when they make an offer.
When should you hire a personal injury lawyer?
Talk to a lawyer if you were treated at a hospital, need ongoing care or surgery, missed significant work, or the insurer disputes fault. The same goes for cases involving a government vehicle or property, a commercial truck or rideshare, an uninsured driver, a death, a child, or medical liens. These are the cases where mistakes cost the most.
The value of a lawyer grows with the size and complexity of the claim. Signs that you are past the do-it-yourself stage:
- Hospital or ER treatment, fractures, a head injury, injections, or a surgery recommendation.
- Disputed fault. The insurer says you were partly or fully to blame. Each state splits fault differently; see comparative fault in California, Texas and Washington.
- More than one possible defendant, such as a driver and an employer, a property owner and a contractor, or a chain-reaction crash.
- A government defendant, which brings its own short claim deadline (see below).
- A wrongful death. Who may sue and what can be recovered is set by statute in each state.
- A low offer that does not cover your bills, or an adjuster who stops responding.
For car crashes specifically, see do I need a lawyer for a car accident. If you decide you want help, our page on when to hire a personal injury lawyer covers timing, and how to choose a personal injury lawyer covers what to check before you sign.
Do you need a lawyer if a government agency is involved?
Yes, in most cases. Claims against a city, county, school district or state agency have their own notice rules. In California the written claim is generally due within six months. In Texas notice is due within six months, and some city charters set shorter periods. In Washington you file a standard claim form, then wait 60 days before suing.
Government claims trip up more injured people than any other deadline because the regular two- or three-year filing period does not protect you if you skip the claim step.
| State | Claim or notice rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| California | A claim for personal injury or death must be presented to the public entity no later than six months after the claim accrues. If you miss it, you may apply for leave to present a late claim within a reasonable time, not more than one year after accrual. If the claim is rejected in writing, the lawsuit generally must be filed within six months of that notice. | Cal. Gov. Code § 911.2; Cal. Gov. Code § 911.4; Cal. Gov. Code § 945.6 |
| Texas | Under the Texas Tort Claims Act, a governmental unit is entitled to notice within six months after the incident, describing the injury, the time and place, and what happened. City charter notice periods are also ratified by the statute, and some are shorter. Formal notice is not required if the government had actual notice of the death or injury. | Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101 |
| Washington | Claims against local governments go to the entity’s designated agent on the standard tort claim form, within the limitations period. You cannot sue until 60 calendar days after the claim is presented, and the limitations period is tolled during those 60 days. Claims against the state follow a similar 60-day rule. | RCW 4.96.020; RCW 4.92.110 |
Buses, police cars, garbage trucks, public sidewalks and public hospitals all fall into this group. If a city or county vehicle hit you, read what to do when a city or county vehicle hits you.
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Do truck, rideshare and company vehicle crashes need a lawyer?
Usually, yes. Commercial cases often involve more than one insurance policy, an employer or motor carrier, and evidence such as electronic logging data, dashcam video and driver files that the company controls. Some of that data can be overwritten or lost if nobody asks for it to be preserved, so early legal help matters more here than in a two-car fender bender.
A semi-truck, delivery van or Uber or Lyft crash is different from a crash between two private cars. The questions are bigger: Was the driver an employee or an independent contractor? Was the rideshare app on, and was a passenger in the car? Which policy pays first?
The trucking company and its insurer usually start their own investigation right away. Your side should do the same. A lawyer can send preservation letters for vehicle data and video, request the driver’s records, and identify every policy that may apply.
Related reading: truck black box and dashcam evidence and Uber accident claims.
What about uninsured and underinsured motorist claims?
If the at-fault driver had no insurance or too little, your own UM/UIM coverage may pay. Your insurer then sits on the other side of the table, and the policy has its own rules. In California, for example, you generally must sue the uninsured driver, reach agreement, or formally demand arbitration within two years of the accident.
People are often surprised that their own insurance company can be as tough to deal with as the other driver’s. UM and UIM claims are contract claims under your policy, and many go to arbitration instead of court.
California’s uninsured motorist statute says no cause of action accrues under the coverage unless, within two years of the accident, you have filed suit against the uninsured motorist, reached an agreement on the amount due, or formally started arbitration by certified-mail notice to the insurer (Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2, subd. (i)). Missing that step can end the UM claim.
More on this: making an underinsured motorist (UIM) claim and hit by an uninsured driver in California.
How do medical liens affect whether you need a lawyer?
If Medi-Cal, Medicare, a health plan or a doctor working on a lien paid for your care, part of your settlement may belong to them. Those claims must be resolved before you are paid. Lawyers spend a lot of time confirming lien amounts and asking for reductions, which often changes how much you keep.
- Medi-Cal. In California, a settlement is not final until the Department of Health Care Services gets notice and a chance to assert its lien, and recovery is limited to the part of the settlement that represents medical expenses (Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 14124.76). DHCS explains the reporting steps on its personal injury lien page.
- Medicare. Medicare makes conditional payments that must be repaid when you receive a liability settlement (CMS).
- Private health plans and lien-based providers. Many plans have reimbursement terms, and some doctors treat on a lien and are paid from the settlement.
Handling liens yourself is possible but slow. See medical liens after a car accident.
How long do you have to file a personal injury lawsuit?
The general deadline is two years from the injury in California and Texas, and three years in Washington. Government claims, minors, delayed discovery and wrongful death can change the math. If you are close to a deadline, that alone is a reason to call a lawyer now.
| State | General deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|
| California | 2 years for injury or death caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another | Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 |
| Texas | 2 years from the day the cause of action accrues for personal injury; 2 years from death for wrongful death | Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003 |
| Washington | 3 years for injury to the person or rights of another not otherwise listed | RCW 4.16.080(2) |
Our personal injury statute of limitations guide covers the exceptions. For death cases, see the wrongful death deadlines for California, Texas and Washington.
Does it cost anything to find out if you need a lawyer?
No. Most personal injury lawyers, including Beverly Law, offer a free consultation and work on contingency, which means the fee comes out of a recovery and you owe no attorney fee if there is none. California, Texas and Washington all require contingency fee agreements to be in writing.
The written agreement must state the fee percentage and how costs are handled (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 6147; Tex. Disciplinary R. Prof’l Conduct 1.04(d); Wash. RPC 1.5(c)). Read it before you sign and ask questions about anything unclear.
For numbers and examples, see how much a personal injury lawyer costs and what percentage accident lawyers take. If you want to talk through your situation, call Beverly Law at (310) 552-6959, 24/7, or visit our Los Angeles personal injury lawyer page. We handle cases in California, Texas and Washington, in English and Spanish.
Common questions
Can I settle a personal injury claim without a lawyer?
Yes. Many small claims settle directly with the insurer. It works well when injuries are minor, treatment is finished, fault is accepted and no liens are involved. Get every offer in writing and do not sign a release until you know the full cost of your injury, because a release usually ends the claim for good.
Is it worth getting a lawyer for a soft tissue injury?
It depends on how long treatment lasts and whether fault is disputed. A sprain that resolves in two weeks may not need a lawyer. Months of therapy, injections, or an insurer that says the crash was too minor to hurt you are reasons to get a free case review.
Do I need a lawyer if the accident was partly my fault?
Often, yes. Partial fault reduces what you can recover, and in Texas you recover nothing if your share is more than 50 percent (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.001). How fault is assigned is one of the main things insurers argue about, so having someone push back on that percentage can change the outcome.
Should I talk to a lawyer before I talk to the insurance company?
If you can, yes. You must report the crash to your own insurer under your policy, but you generally have no duty to give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer. Statements given early, while you are still in pain or on medication, are often used later to minimize the claim.
How do I know if my case is too small for a lawyer?
Ask. A lawyer can tell you in one call whether the case makes sense to hire out. If it does not, a good lawyer will say so and may give you tips for handling it on your own. Beverly Law consultations are free.
Can I hire a lawyer after I already started the claim myself?
Yes. You can bring in a lawyer at any point before you sign a release or the deadline passes. The lawyer will notify the insurers, take over communication and review anything you already sent. It helps to bring copies of your letters, bills and any offers.
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Related pages
Do I need a lawyer for a car accident? · Comparative fault in California, Texas and Washington · How do lawyers calculate settlement value? · City or county vehicle hit me · Medical liens after a car accident · Making an underinsured motorist (UIM) claim
Sources
- Cal. Gov. Code § 911.2
- Cal. Gov. Code § 911.4
- Cal. Gov. Code § 945.6
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101
- RCW 4.96.020
- RCW 4.92.110
- Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.001
- RCW 4.16.080
- Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2
- Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 14124.76
- California DHCS, Personal Injury Lien Process
- CMS, Non-Group Health Plan Recovery (Medicare conditional payments)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 6147
- Tex. Disciplinary R. Prof’l Conduct 1.04(d)
- Wash. RPC 1.5(c)
Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 8, 2026.