The value of a personal-injury claim is determined by many factors, most of which cannot be determined for several months after your injury.  Your damages are directly proportionate to the extent of your injury, and the amount depends upon whether or not your injury is permanent, what impact your disability has on your day-to-day activities, the nature and extent of the medical care you will need in the future, and a myriad of other factors that are unknown until your injuries have had some time to heal. 

There are exceptions to this general rule, but it is usually not a good idea to even attempt to evaluate a personal-injury claim for settlement until one year after the accident.  Exceptions include wrongful death cases or extremely serious, catastrophic injury cases where liability insurance proceeds are limited.  In some cases, it makes good tactical sense to make an early demand for settlement. 

The only positive general statement that can be made about personal-injury cases is that "EACH CLAIM IS UNIQUE".   Generalizations are extremely dangerous, and usually work to the disadvantage of the claimant in these cases.

Ultimately, a jury of your peers decides the value of a claim unless the parties can agree to settle out of court.  While it is true that most cases are settled out of court, we never assume any case will be settled; each case is prepared as though it will be tried to a jury.  In that way, we are prepared if yours is the case that goes to trial.

Remember:  This is your case, not mine.  When the time comes, you will make the decision how much money to demand in settlement.  I will help you with that decision, but the decision will always be yours to make.  Likewise, the decision whether or not to accept a settlement offer will be in your hands.