if you have clear liability and actual injury, you might think you do not need an attorney. But one of the things an attorney can give you is an analysis of the medical causation and if you need someone like an orthopedist or neurologist to prove your damages.
If you go see a chiropractor for two or three months, there won’t be a huge issue with paying you something for pain and suffering and your medical care bills. But your PI attorney will also get involved in your medical liens and trying to reduce medical bills so that you come out ahead with more money in your pocket. Most PI attorneys work with medical clinics that do so much business with them, they can often cut their bill once the case settles if you need to. The incentive to do that for a private self pay patient is practically nonexistent.
But you should consider that many physicians want nothing to do with lawsuits, nor do they have a particular interest in helping you with medical causation to prove your damages. If you rely on your own medical insurance, you may get some really conservative doc that essentially throws you under the bus and says you don’t need an MRI or a specialist - and that your never had before accident back pain is due to you being old and having pre-existing conditions
In Louisiana, there are a few people who will take 20% on cases that are quick non-serious flips, or cases where they will pony up the policy limits immediately.
The main thing is, there are a lot of moving parts in a personal injury matter, and if you don’t understand them and try to do it yourself, you could wind up completely screwed, or you could wind up fine. But you might consider that every insurance company is hoping and praying that you do not get lawyered up. Which should tell you something.