If you are injured in an auto accident, you may feel like you have to find a lawyer quickly so that you can begin getting the compensation you need from the insurance company. While this train of thought is on the right track, you have to keep in mind how important each step in the process of getting compensation is. If you begin rushing through the process, you might be lowering your chances of getting the money you need to fix damages that you and your vehicle have suffered, and you also run the risk of losing the case altogether. There is a lot on the line when you find yourself butting heads with an insurance company, so make sure you are hiring a lawyer who is qualified and ready to help you every step of the way. Making sure a lawyer is qualified may require you to be a little nosy when you first meet with the lawyer in question. You can ask them questions about their previous cases, like if they have gone to court and if they were successful. Even though it is possible to settle with the insurance company before you end up having to go to court, you want to hire an attorney that will be comfortable going to court if it should ever reach that point. Read this to learn more about auto accidents and what to do during an accident. Having an extremely experienced lawyer may also pressure the insurance company to settle out of court, raising your chances of getting the compensation you need even higher. When checking the history of your lawyer and his cases, also check to see if each successful case was what the client would define as success. Just because a client received compensation doesn't mean they got all the money they would need to cover hospital and recovery bills. If you want to make sure you will get the money you need, stick with a lawyer who makes sure that his clients proper and complete compensation. It is also important to ask about how a lawyer will receive payment. Check this out for more information about auto accident lawyers. Many lawyers look to receive payment based on a percentage of winnings. This means that the lawyer has a stake in how much compensation he is trying to get for you. Most lawyers ask for around one third of the winnings in payment, but is always important to check how much yours would be asking for. Each lawyer is different, and some are just plain not up to snuff. If you look for one that is successful, confident, and qualified, you will stand a better chance at getting the compensation you need. Visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_injury for more info about personal injury lawyers.