When people drive carelessly or negligently, they significantly increase their chances of causing a motor vehicle accident. Following an accident, an experienced car accident lawyer will typically turn to the at-fault motorist’s insurance company, seeking monetary compensation and damages on behalf of the accident victim.
However, even when your case involves another insurance company, you want a lawyer to put your own motor vehicle insurance company on notice of a potential claim. Your attorney can handle all communications with insurance company representatives, including adjusters from your insurance company.
Your lawyer may also investigate your accident circumstances, gather the necessary documents, and file a claim with the appropriate insurance company on your behalf. Then, your Hammond car accident lawyer can negotiate with insurance company adjusters for a favorable settlement offer or pursue litigation in the court system on your behalf.
Ways That Motor Vehicle Crashes Typically Happen
Most of the time, motor vehicle accidents occur when other drivers behave negligently and carelessly. Traffic law violations cause many motor vehicle accidents. When drivers speed, fail to use their mirrors, turn without signaling, and fail to yield the right-of-way to other vehicles at the correct times, they significantly increase their chances of causing a severe accident.
A car crash may also occur when another driver exhibits various types of road rage or aggressive driving maneuvers. When drivers resort to road rage to move ahead of other traffic, they might aggressively cut off other vehicles, weave around traffic without using their turn signals, speed excessively, or tailgate other cars.
When drivers execute these risky maneuvers, they might crash and cause debilitating injuries.
A car accident may also happen when another driver fails to observe the road from behind the wheel. Instead of paying attention to their surroundings, a distracted driver might look at a GPS navigation system, cell phone, or another electronic device. Alternatively, they might roughhouse with vehicle passengers instead of watching the road.
Anything that takes a driver’s attention off the road, either physically or mentally, may cause an accident.
Some motor vehicle crashes happen when drivers operate vehicles under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Operators of passenger vehicles are legally intoxicated if their blood alcohol concentration, or BAC, reaches at least 0.08 percent.
Police may arrest drivers under 21 years old and commercial vehicle operators with a far lower BAC.
Intoxicated drivers tend to lose their ability to concentrate. They may also drive erratically or experience delayed reflexes and reaction time. Consequently, they cannot always stop their vehicle in time to avoid a severe crash.
If you suffered injuries as a driver or passenger in a recent motor vehicle accident, you may be eligible to file a personal injury claim seeking monetary recovery. Your car accident attorney can review all your legal options with you and file a legal claim on your behalf with the appropriate insurance company.
What Injuries Do Car Accident Victims Frequently Suffer?
Depending upon the accident circumstances, car accident victims may suffer severe injuries that lead to medical treatment and other complications. The injuries that a car accident victim sustains will depend on the type of accident, which may include a rear-end collision, broadside collision, sideswipe accident, or head-on collision.
Other factors that can affect the nature and extent of an accident victim’s injuries include where the accident victim was sitting in the vehicle, the force of the collision, the number of crashes that occurred, and their bodily movements in the car at the time of the accident.
Common injuries a car accident victim may sustain include whiplash, soft tissue injuries, traumatic head and brain injuries, mouth and teeth injuries, eye injuries, open lacerations, bruises, bone fractures, rib fractures, internal bleeding, internal organ damage, complete and incomplete spinal cord injuries, full and partial paralysis injuries, and death.
Upon suffering one of these injuries in a car accident, obtain the medical care you need as quickly as possible, increasing your chances of recovering fully. Additionally, talk with a car accident attorney in your area as soon as possible.
Your lawyer can start handling your personal injury claim right away by gathering essential documents and assembling a settlement demand package on your behalf for the insurance company to review. Your lawyer may then litigate with the insurance company on your behalf and, if necessary, pursue a lawsuit in court for you.
What Type of Claim Do I File After a Car Crash?
Following a car crash, an accident victim may be eligible to file several different types of claims, depending on their accident circumstances. A personal injury attorney will file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company in many situations.
However, in some cases, the at-fault driver may not have any insurance, or they may not have sufficient insurance coverage to adequately compensate you for your losses.
If the at-fault driver has no motor vehicle insurance coverage, you can file a first-party claim with your own insurance company. This is an uninsured motorist claim.
Similarly, if the at-fault driver has some insurance coverage but not enough to fully compensate you for your accident-related losses, then you can exhaust the at-fault party’s insurance policy and then turn your attention to your insurance policy for the balance. This is called an underinsured motorist claim.
Like an uninsured motorist claim, an underinsured one is also a first-party one. To successfully file a first-party claim with your insurer, you must place the insurance company on notice of a potential accident claim as quickly as possible.
Your lawyer can handle all contact with insurance company representatives, including communication with your own insurance company, and supply them with the proper notice and other documentation.
In addition, no matter which insurance company you are dealing with, your lawyer can handle all settlement negotiations for you and help maximize the compensation you receive, either through a favorable settlement offer or a favorable litigation result in the court system.
Things You Should Not Tell Your Insurance Company
Following a motor vehicle accident, there are several things that neither you nor your attorney should tell any insurance company representative, including a representative of your own insurance company.
Despite what they say in their advertisements, insurance companies are not interested in reasonably compensating you for all your accident-related injuries and losses. Instead, insurance companies want to limit their payout to you to keep as much of their money in house as possible. They cannot accomplish this goal if they must pay out a significant monetary settlement or jury verdict in your case.
With that in mind, when speaking with an insurance company or adjuster, you should not blame yourself, fully or partially, for the accident. The insurance company adjuster can quickly use this information to their advantage and try to deny your personal injury claim or lawsuit.
Additionally, you should not make any statement to the insurance company adjuster about the severity of your injuries.
For example, never tell the adjuster that you were not injured seriously or that you suffered only minor injuries in the accident. If you make these statements, the insurance company adjuster may quickly become skeptical, question the severity of your injuries, and offer you less money than you truly deserve for your losses.
Moreover, after a car accident, you need to refrain from naming individuals who may have been a witness to your car crash. If the insurance company has this information, they might dig deeper and look for a reason to deny coverage or liability in your case.
Also, you should not tell an insurance company adjuster you are unrepresented. This is because insurance companies routinely take advantage of unrepresented accident victims and may try to resolve your case as quickly and cheaply as possible.
Finally, before you speak with an attorney, you should never inform an insurance company adjuster that you are willing to accept a pending settlement offer. Always talk with a lawyer about your legal options and use their advice when deciding whether to accept or reject a settlement offer from the insurance company.
The insurance company — even your own — is not acting in your best interest. When you have an experienced car accident attorney in your corner, they can aggressively advocate for you and pursue a higher settlement number than the insurance company currently offers you.
How Do You Successfully Prove Your Car Accident Claim?
To recover monetary damages in a car accident claim or lawsuit, you must satisfy several legal elements of proof.
First, you must demonstrate that your accident directly resulted from another individual’s negligence. For example, another driver might have operated their vehicle while distracted or under the illegal influence of alcohol or drugs.
Additionally, you must establish that both the car accident and your injuries were a direct and foreseeable result of the other party’s negligence.
An experienced attorney can retain one or more experts who can help you satisfy the required burden of proof in your case. For example, an expert accident reconstructionist can review the circumstances of your accident, along with police diagrams, investigation reports, medical treatment records, and other evidence, to draw their own conclusions about how the accident happened and who was responsible.
Similarly, a medical expert can relate the cause of your claimed injury or injuries to the motor vehicle accident and establish that one or more of your injuries are permanent.
What Monetary Damages Can I Recover for My Car Accident Injuries?
Victims who suffer injuries in car crashes may be eligible to recover various types and amounts of monetary compensation in the form of damages.
The total damage award that a car crash victim receives, either through settlement or litigation, will depend upon the nature and extent of their injuries, the cost of their medical treatment, their accident circumstances, and other accident-related factors.
Monetary compensation may include recoverable damages for related past and anticipated medical expenses, loss of earning capacity, loss of earnings, loss of the ability to use a body part, loss of life enjoyment, mental distress, physical pain and suffering, loss of spousal consortium and companionship, inconvenience, permanent disability or disfigurement, and long-term care costs.
In addition, if you lost a loved one in a recent car crash that another driver caused, you can file a wrongful death claim or lawsuit, seeking reimbursement for funeral and burial expenses, loss of the decedent’s future earnings, and loss of the decedent’s care, comfort, and companionship.
Your attorney will do everything they can to maximize your monetary damages and become whole again after your car accident.
Speak with a Car Accident Attorney Near You Right Away About Filing a Personal Injury Claim
After a car accident, you must retain skilled legal counsel to represent you as quickly as possible. Your lawyer can handle all insurance company communications on your behalf and file the claim or lawsuit necessary to recover the monetary damages you deserve.
Sometimes, people might think that their accident case is simple and they don’t need the help of a lawyer. This is nearly always a mistake. Insurance companies are usually large organizations that have teams of adjusters and lawyers who work for the interests of the insurance company and against yours. Your best bet when dealing with an insurance company is to say nothing to it and let your lawyer do the talking for you.
Always remember that an insurance company will not advocate for your interests, but for the company’s bottom line. You want a professional standing up for you who knows how to deal with insurance companies. A car accident lawyer near you is waiting to help.