Every car accident is unique, but there are common reasons that they occur. If you suffered an injury in a crash by another person, you should retain a car accident attorney to represent you. You can have expensive injuries and medical bills and be unable to work during your recovery. A Pahrump car accident lawyer will fight for compensation for your medical bills, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.
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Primary Causes Of Car Accidents
There are many common causes of car accidents, with most involving some human error:
- Drunk driving: Intoxicated drivers cause almost 11,000 traffic accident deaths annually. In a recent year, drunk drivers killed 13,524 people in accidents, or a death every 40 minutes.
- Speeding: Almost 30 percent of car accident deaths in that year involved speeding, with 12,151 fatalities and 300,000 injuries.
- Distracted driving: Approximately 8 percent of fatal auto accidents, with 3,300 deaths, were related to distracted driving recently. Reading, eating and drinking, using a cell phone, and adjusting the GPS or radio were common causes of distracted driving accidents.
- Fatigued driving: Recently, there were also 690 traffic deaths related to fatigued driving. The majority of fatigued driving accidents happened between 12 and 6 a.m.
Once you hire a car accident attorney, they will investigate the accident to pinpoint the cause. For example, your attorney can determine if the driver used their cell phone when the car crashed. They also can interview crash witnesses to learn if the at-fault driver was drunk or sleepy.
Common Car Accidents
Any kind of auto accident can cause severe or fatal injuries, but the following accident types are among the most common:
Rear-End Accidents
Rear-end crashes are the most common. They usually result from drivers not paying attention to the road, and some happen because of tailgating. When the front driver suddenly slows down in traffic or at a red light, the rear driver may hit them if they aren’t paying attention. Rear-end accidents also can happen because of fatigue, drunk driving, and poor weather conditions.
The rear driver is usually liable for the rear-end collision, but there are times when the front driver can be blamed. For example, the forward driver may have stopped suddenly on the road or backed up for no reason.
Rear-end crash injuries can be anything from minor to fatal. Even at a low speed, a rear-end crash may lead to severe injuries, including head trauma, broken bones, and spinal injuries. The fuel tank in the rear of the vehicle may rupture in a high-speed rear-end accident, leading to severe or fatal burns.
Head-On Accidents
Head-on crashes are among the most severe of all accidents but less frequent than other types. When both vehicles go towards each other, such as on a two-lane road, the force in the crash is doubled. Head-on crashes are much more likely to cause severe injuries or death than others.
Common reasons for head-on crashes are intoxication, fatigue, and fatigue. You can suffer a traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, shattered bones in the face, limbs, or torso, etc. Most head-on crashes occur on rural roads.
Side-Impact Accidents
Side-impact crashes happen when a car hits the other at 90 degrees in one direction, such as in an intersection. These accidents are also called T-bone crashes.
T-bone accidents are especially hazardous for the person on the side of the impact. The side of your car has much less mass to handle the power of the impact than the front or rear. Side-impact collisions are often due to drivers not stopping or yielding or not paying attention to traffic signals and signs.
Side-impact accident injuries can be severe and include serious head injuries, broken bones, lacerations, internal organ damage, and spine injuries.
Sideswipe Accidents
Sideswipe crashes happen when at least two vehicles are going parallel to each other, and one glances off the other. Drivers may cause sideswipe accidents because they didn’t check their blind spot when changing lanes.
Although the initial injuries from sideswipe accidents might be minor, the collision may cause the driver to lose control and hit other vehicles or objects. Thus, sideswipe crash injuries can be severe or fatal.
Single-Vehicle Accidents
Many car accidents only involve one vehicle, such as when someone runs off the road and hits a tree. You cannot usually seek compensation if you are involved in a one-car accident or if it was your fault.
However, some single-vehicle accidents may involve a defective vehicle part or other driver negligence. Suppose an oncoming car drifts into your lane, and you take evasive action that causes a rollover crash and injuries. You can hold the other driver liable for the accident, even if they didn’t hit you. There also can be a product liability claim if a defective car part, such as brakes, led to the accident.
Rollover Accidents
Rollover crashes happen in many situations and are likely to cause severe injury or death. The force of the vehicle flipping combined with being thrown about or out of the car can lead to devastating injuries or worse.
Many rollover accidents happen when someone leaves their lane, causing an oncoming car to take evasive action and causing them to lose control and crash. Any sudden vehicle movement, especially at higher speeds, risks the driver losing control and having a rollover crash.
In the worst case, the driver or passenger isn’t wearing a seatbelt and is thrown from the vehicle. This almost always causes catastrophic injury or death.
Multi-Vehicle Accidents
Accidents that involve more than two vehicles are multi-vehicle collisions. The involvement of three or more vehicles means more people may be injured or responsible. There may be more insurance money available to compensate for your injuries. On the other hand, several injury victims may compete for compensation, so hiring the best car accident attorney is paramount.
Potential Damages In A Car Accident
Car crashes are often severe and disabling so that the financial losses can be considerable. Your auto accident lawyer may help receive compensation for the following if another party’s negligence caused the collision:
- Cost to replace or repair your vehicle.
- Cost of your current and future medical expenses. A car accident attorney will work with your medical team to understand your injuries, prognosis, and future medical needs.
- Lost earnings for the past and future.
- Reduced earning capacity if you have a long-term disability. For example, a spinal cord injury may make you permanently disabled. You should receive compensation for being unable to work in the future.
- Mental and emotional anguish for a severe injury.
Many accident victims may assume they can negotiate with the insurance company to settle their claim. However, most car accident victims don’t know the full value of their claims. Nor do they usually understand how much future medical care they will need. It is better to speak to a car accident attorney in a free consultation to enlist them in your efforts for fair compensation.
How A Car Accident Attorney Can Help
A car accident attorney is an important resource after the above auto accidents. The attorney can help you receive just compensation for your economic and non-economic damages. This is possible if the attorney proves who caused the accident in this way:
- The at-fault driver had a duty of care: Drivers have a duty of care to drive safely, obey the law, and not injure others on the road.
- The driver violated their duty of care by speeding, losing control of their car, and hitting you head-on.
- You suffered injuries from their violation of the duty of care, such as broken bones.
- You have financial losses from the injuries, such as $10,000 in medical bills.
Your attorney will use the evidence to show that another driver’s negligence injured you. Common accident evidence that may prove liability includes:
- Eyewitness statements about who caused the accident.
- Physical crash scene evidence includes vehicle damage, road debris, and skid marks.
- Statements from the drivers in the accident.
- Police reports.
- Cell phone data, if distracted driving was a factor.
- Vehicle black box data, if available.
- Photos and videos of the crash scene.
- Surveillance footage of the crash, if available.
Other essential duties that your car accident attorney will perform are:
- Build the most substantial claim so you can maximize your compensation.
- Write a demand letter to the insurance company to demand payment for your medical bills, lost earnings, pain and suffering, and mental anguish.
- Determine your full medical expenses and injuries, including future medical needs.
- Determine the full amount of lost earnings, including lost future earnings and possibly loss of income earning capacity if you have a disability.
- Negotiate with the insurance company for a fair settlement.
- Take the case to court in a lawsuit if settlement negotiations fail.
- Keep you updated about the legal process during the case, which may take several months.
Your attorney will also negotiate for the most pain and suffering compensation for your losses. Insurance companies often try to minimize what you receive for pain and suffering. Payment for pain and suffering when there is a long-term or permanent injury can be high. They may rely on recent settlements in the area for similar injuries, so you receive more pain and suffering compensation.
What Is A Car Accident Claim Worth?
The value of your car accident claim depends on many factors. Your auto accident attorney will review the following factors before making a settlement demand from the insurance company:
- The severity of the injury: The worse the injury, the more the claim is worth. For example, a severe head injury is worth more than a whiplash injury. It also matters if the injury is easily visible, such as a broken bone or spine injury. A whiplash injury might be severe because of disabling pain, but it is more complex for the insurance company or jury to see.
- The amount of medical bills: Serious injuries that require a long recovery, hospitalization, or surgery will be worth more than a minor injury that heals after you visit the doctor once.
- How much income you lose: A severe injury can keep you out of work for months, years, or forever. Therefore, the settlement would be higher than if you lost only a week of work.
- The amount of insurance: Many drivers only have minimal liability insurance, so you may not receive the total case value in your claim. However, more insurance can be available if the driver was working at the time of the crash, such as a truck driver.
- The amount of pain and suffering: Pain and suffering compensation is often the biggest part of an injury claim. Severe pain and suffering from a catastrophic injury, such as burns, will result in a more significant settlement.
- Property damage: A totaled vehicle will usually lead to a higher case value than if the vehicle is repairable.
- Your age and health: The claim value can increase if you are younger and healthy. This is because a younger, healthier person has more work years in front of them than a retired person.
- Where the crash happened: The location of the accident can influence your case value. Some areas of the country have insurance companies and juries that may offer a larger settlement or verdict than others.
A car accident attorney is an essential resource after a serious crash caused by another party. They will maximize the compensation you receive and understand the full value of your claim. The best part is the attorney doesn’t cost you out-of-pocket. They are compensated by a contingency agreement at the end of the case.
Speak To A Car Accident Attorney Now
A car accident injury can turn your life upside down. You might be unable to pay for medical bills, daily expenses, etc. A car accident attorney may assist if another person causes the accident. You can receive compensation for your injuries, lost earnings, and more. Speak to a Pahrump personal injury lawyer in your community in a complimentary consultation.