If you get this wrong, you can miss wage benefits, lose proof of retaliation, and blow the 2-year deadline to sue over the crash.

The insurance company will tell you switching lawyers "slows everything down," "looks bad," or could "complicate your job situation." They may also act like your employer can get rid of you because you are "causing problems."

What is actually true in West Virginia: you can change lawyers mid-case. Your file follows you. Your old lawyer may claim part of the fee later, but that is between lawyers and does not wipe out your case.

And if the RV or motorhome crash happened while you were working - driving for deliveries, hauling equipment, transporting staff, anything job-related - your employer cannot legally punish you for pursuing workers' compensation. West Virginia law bars discrimination for receiving or trying to receive benefits under W. Va. Code § 23-5A-1.

That does not mean employers never cut hours anyway. Some do. So handle it like evidence matters.

• Save schedules, texts, write-ups, and payroll records from before and after the crash.
• Ask for schedule changes and discipline in writing.
• Tell your new lawyer the exact date your hours dropped or threats started.
• If the crash was work-related, make sure the WC-1 claim was filed. In West Virginia, that deadline is generally 6 months from the injury.
• If another driver caused the wreck - common on I-64, I-77, or narrow Kanawha Valley routes during Memorial Day, July 4th, or Thanksgiving traffic - your third-party injury claim is separate from workers' comp, and the lawsuit deadline is usually 2 years from the crash.

If your current lawyer is letting the carrier or employer run the show, switching now is usually safer than waiting until medical restrictions, a disability rating, or lost earning capacity are already being lowballed.