Car accident that wasn't your fault and the other driver's insurance is offering you $3,000 for injuries that cost you $15,000 in medical bills. Slip and fall at a property that's been ignoring a hazard. Workers' comp claim that got denied. These are the situations where a personal injury lawyer pays for themselves.
PI attorneys work on contingency - meaning you pay nothing unless they recover money for you. A good one will tell you honestly in the first consultation whether your case is worth pursuing and what a realistic settlement looks like. A bad one will take any case, do minimal work, and push you to accept the first offer from the insurance company.
Don't accept any settlement from an insurance company without at least a free consultation first. Ask the attorney what percentage of cases they take to trial vs. settling - it tells you whether they're willing to fight or just running a volume settlement shop. Red flag: any lawyer who advertises heavily and then hands your case to a junior associate you've never met.