Cost containment is another benefit

With less time and resources to be used for personal matters, the company expects to make significant savings on administrative costs. Pre-paid legal services can be a very attractive alternative to hiring a lawyer for many people. You should consider the importance and relative priority of these benefits considering your own legal needs.

Pre-paid legal plans can take the sting out of hiring a lawyer. Lawyers’ fees are prohibitive for most people, you can run bills of thousands of dollars, and this is simply out of reach of most working and middle-class families. With pre-paid plans, what you get charged is more in line with what you pay for your health or home insurance.

Plans start as low as $9 per month and typically do not exceed the $30 mark. There are several very complicated sets of fees lawyers charge: contingency fees, flat fees, statutory fees, and hourly rates. In the case of contingency and statutory fees, you must get into the intricate details of how these fees are computed.

The other two types of fees can be as equally complex. Increasingly, attorneys choose to incorporate any overheads they incur, like secretarial expenses, parking charges, and travel fees into their flat and hourly fees. They can also set a minimum number of billing units, like three tenths of an hour, irrespective of how long it takes them to deal with your problem.

This is just a sample rundown of what might influence the various fees charged by lawyers, other factors and arrangements can apply too. Contrast this with the simplicity in which pre-paid legal services are priced and furnished. The process is simple and straightforward: you sign an agreement to pay a fixed monthly fee and that is about it.

If what you are looking for is not covered, your plan provider will give you a prior notice of a different billing so that you know exactly how much you will be charged. Pre-paid plans offer unlimited phone consultation and advice. This aspect of the service can save you a lot of trouble, money, and time in the future.

Most legal problems you are likely to face in your day-to-day life can be solved if you take the necessary steps in line with the law. With the right advice and consultation with your lawyer, you can detect legal blunders before they occur and hence minimize the risk of litigation and protection. Choosing a pre-paid legal plan is a good way to save money, but choosing a plan you need and a provider you can trust is a different matter.

Legal plans are offered in different models and differ in the specifics of what they cover. While phone consultation and simple drafting and reviewing of simple contracts are included across the board, more elaborated and complicated legal matters are not covered. It is best to review your own legal needs before you choose a legal plan.

Ask which legal services you will need most and then choose a plan that provides the best coverage given those needs. For instance, if you are a business owner, lawsuits, lease, and contract negotiations could be high on your list and you would be looking for a legal plan that provides coverage accordingly. Know what legal coverage you already have, do not pay for coverage twice.

If you have car insurance, then you are covered for liability and medical protection, home insurance covers you for injuries sustained on your property. Your existing insurance policies already cover some of your legal costs and there is no need to pay for that coverage when you select a legal plan.