Finally got my settlement offer and I'm so confused

[Keith Bowen]

I could really use some outside perspective because my head is spinning and I don't want to make a stupid decision out of desperation. After almost a year of dealing with this nightmare — I was a delivery driver and got rear-ended pretty badly on Route 28, messed up my neck and still have nerve issues in my right arm — my lawyer just called with a settlement number from the insurance company and said he thinks it's "fair but not great." The problem is, I'm completely broke at this point. I've been scraping by on savings that are long gone, my credit cards are maxed out, and the idea of dragging this out another six months or going to a hearing just makes me want to cry. I know I'm supposed to be thinking long-term about future medical care and whether I can even go back to that kind of work, but right now the thought of having some money in my account next month feels impossible to pass up. I found a workers compensation claim attorney Kingston online that had some articles about evaluating settlement offers, and I've been trying to do the math on what my future treatment might cost, but honestly I have no idea what my arm is going to feel like two years from now. Has anyone else been in that spot where you know you're probably leaving money on the table but you just need the nightmare to be over? How do you know when to hold out and when to just take the deal and move on with your life?