FORMER TEXAS ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY. Among Other Accolades, Ward Maedgen Has Been Named In D Magazine’s – The Best Lawyers In Dallas multiple years.
Lawyer – Traffic collision, Nearby – Grand Prairie
Why an experienced auto accident attorney is important
Our legal team will examine every aspect of the incident to determine the strongest possible claim. You have the greatest chance for getting justice, whether it is through a settlement or jury award. A vehicle accident lawyer can assist you in determining whether your injuries are eligible for compensation through no-fault insurance. This includes financial recompense for any injuries or losses you sustained, missed wages, and other skyrocketing costs. Contact our Dallas law offices for a free initial consultation to learn more about all your options. Ward Maedgen Accident Attorneys is dedicated to making sure that your case goes as well as possible.
Claims adjusters and managers employ tactics and methods to reduce the payout, or get it denied altogether, when an insurance claim is filed. The legal team of the insurance company can also intervene if a case is brought to court. The bottom line is that these teams of professionals have their entire job to lower the insurance company’s annual payouts. They do a great job.
This means that regardless of outcome, as soon as you engage with the insurance carrier of the other driver, you will be guaranteed to be working against people who’s purpose is to reduce claims while staying within the bounds of the law. Unarmed and without a lawyer is a terrible idea.
Sometimes clients discover this the hard and fast way. For instance, people have come to us after having given a recorded declaration. They want to be able to work with insurance companies. They usually make major mistakes that work in the company’s favor and decrease or even eliminate their chances for a favorable settlement. It is usually too late for us.
It is crucial that potential clients do not communicate with insurance companies. Because they are seeking information that is potentially harmful to the client but advantageous to the defendant and insurance company, this is why. This is especially true when it comes to contributory negligence. It is possible to have misunderstandings when you speak with insurance companies. They aren’t trying to protect you. Instead, they are playing a game in which they try to get out from paying you the amount of your claim.
Common Case Types – Traffic collision – Texas
Rear-end Collisions
The Texas Department of Transportation doesn’t collect data about the percentage of rear-end collisions in traffic accidents. However, they know that this number is around 28% to 29% nationally. This type of accident is the most common across the nation and Texas is no different.
Texas is a “modified relative fault state” meaning that rear-end crashes do not just point the finger at the driver. It is important to consider the potential contributing factors. Have your brake lights been on? Are you able to stop traffic flow completely? Are you using turn signals or a lane change? These cases require a finding to fact. Was the defendant’s vehicle following you? Because your testimony can be refuted, there must be other evidence to prove the defendant followed too closely.
Rear-end collisions may occur for a couple of reasons. Sometimes it’s not apparent circumstances or conditions that cause them. A road object might cause the defendant’s vehicle to suddenly stop, causing it to collide with you. Sometimes, a defendant might be following you too closely and run up to your bumper before running into you.
In court, the questions will come from both sides of the aisle. How can we talk about the weather? Can they be blamed for this collision? Speeding is another possibility. There might even be an argument about whether or not your tail lights were working. Last but not least, there’s the matter of contributory negligence. You might be argued that you contributed to the accident if you did not lane brake ahead of traffic.
Rear-ending is not an automatic win for a claimant, as you can see. An experienced auto accident attorney is invaluable in navigating these issues.
Head-on Collisions
Although head-on collisions are statistically less common than rear end accidents, they are statistically more deadly. In 2020 the Texas Department of Transportation reported 538 deaths from head-on collision accidents. These accidents were responsible for nearly 14% of all traffic fatalities in Texas.
Distracted driving accidents
Today, texting is no longer the only distraction from personal devices. While Texas has outlawed texting while driving since 2017, it is still permissible to use a handheld device for other things such as using GPS or playing music. It does not necessarily mean that someone who causes an accident because of distracted driving is exempted from liability if they are doing something other than texting. The law states that a person may be charged with a Class A offense, which can lead to jail time of up to one year and a maximum fine of $4,000.
Individual cities in the Dallas/Fort Worth region have their own ordinances, which are more stringent than state laws.
Distracted driving was the reason for 368 traffic deaths in 2020. There were many more who could have been involved in non-fatal crashes or contributed to them.
Single Vehicle
Texas saw 1,354 car-related deaths in 2020. The NHTSA refers to these as “ROR” or Run-Off-Road crashes.
ROR crashes most often involve one party. This includes factors like alcohol use, poor weather and distracted driving. Because these types of accidents usually occur without fault, they are not often handled by personal injury law firms.
ROR accidents can happen when another driver is driving, and you have to take evasive maneuvers to avoid being in a collision. Texas saw 51% of fatal accidents in rural areas during 2020. These areas often have two-lane highways, with opposing traffic. Drivers could drift into the oncoming lane. Drivers may also attempt to pass unsafely.
You’ll need to prove the other driver was responsible for you being run off the road. If an accident occurred between two cars, the insurance company will examine why. Eyewitnesses might be able to give testimony if another driver fled the scene. Many drivers now have dash cams in their vehicles.
To prove that your Run-off-road accident occurred due to negligence of another driver, you will need to consult a personal injury attorney.
Intersectional and Side Impact Collision
Side impact and intersection collisions are major contributors to serious injury and death in Texas, just like head-on collision cases. In 2020, the state had 865 fatalities due to intersection-related accidents.
Side-impact collisions can result in serious injury. There is less impact protection on the side than there is on the front. This type of accident is very dangerous in Texas, despite the fact that modern cars come with side impact airbags, impact pillars, and curtains.
A broad-side accident, like other types of Texas accidents, can’t automatically be considered a case due to Texas’ modified contributory negligence laws. It is possible that, even if the driver was negligent in an accident, their negligence might not be enough to get their car insurance paid out. A Texas accident attorney can help you if you lack the experience and expertise.
Common Mistakes after a Traffic Collision
Parties to an accident often move the vehicles involved in the collision without taking photos or having police on the scene. This is a mistake because it makes photographic evidence less reliable and leaves the possibility for police to observe the vehicles after they have settled from the collision.
Another common error is when people contact their at fault insurer and make a recorded declaration. Many people believe they are being cooperative, which is wrong. They don’t have to look out for their insurance company. They want to help their insured. The insured is not required to contact the insurance company.
People also sometimes make the mistake of waiting to seek treatment until they feel they can manage it. They don’t have medical documentation to support their claims. As time passes, there is a delay in getting treatment. If you delay in seeking medical attention, or if you wait too long to seek it, insurance companies can claim that you are not injured. An insurance carrier can also use a gap in treatment as a defense.
People can make common errors by not speaking to the at-fault company, making a statement, trying their best to resolve the claim, accepting an earlier settlement without knowing the outcome and not seeking treatment immediately.
The fight against the insurance companies
Insurance companies may unjustly accuse the wounded person of causing a collision in an effort to reduce payouts. You might find yourself victim-blaming after the police report is wrong. It is possible that you will find yourself in a “he told, she said” dispute with the negligent driver. You’ll need convincing evidence and the support of a professional to win your case.
We carefully examine the circumstances surrounding clients’ claims by reading police reports and gathering testimony.
Insurance for personal injury protection
Personal injury protection (PIP), which is a type if coverage that is included with many personal auto policies, is an option. PIP can be removed in certain situations, like if you are eligible for Medicare. However, most drivers must have it.
This personal auto insurance protection provides coverage for medical expenses incurred after an accident. It’s a type of “no-fault.” This means you can pay for your own and your passengers’ medical bills regardless of how the case ends. PIP also covers lost wages.
The Texas minimum policy limit for PIP is $2,500. This is not much. If you had a good insurance agent who went over the coverages with you, there’s a good chance that you may have opted for a higher amount. This will allow you to pay for short-term medical expenses while the case progresses.
When an Accident Case Is Submitted to the Court
The majority of insurance claim claims are settled before a lawsuit is filed.
However, not all automobile accidents can be resolved. Perhaps the issues to be resolved are beyond both parties’ capabilities. Maybe the defendants and plaintiffs couldn’t agree on the amount of compensation to be paid because they couldn’t settle their differences.
Witnesses and expert witnesses, responding officers of the law enforcement, and others may be called to testify in front of a jury during a trial. The jury will decide how much (or not) liability the defendant is liable. Although a trial case may take more time and money than a settled claim, a jury might be able to award a plaintiff higher than any settlement. Sometimes your attorney may even be able to argue that you be awarded punitive damages which is something that would not be offered in a settlement.
Depositions
After you file a suit, the defense side will ask for a deposition. This is a formal conversation that you will have with the defense side. The court reporter and both attorneys from each side will also be present. You’ll be asked questions by both sides to find out more about the accident, who was at fault, your injuries, and damages. To get the other drivers’ perspectives, our attorney will depose them to gain insight into their testimony at trial. We will also learn about the finances of the defendant and their insurance coverage.
Your attorney will sit with you to defend you against answering questions in a way that may hurt your case while abiding to truthful answers. Your attorney may ask you questions that can help your case. The process doesn’t have to intimidate you. Texas’s deposition rules mean you won’t be intimidated, and your accident attorney will ensure that this happens.
Texas Motor Vehicle Trial Cases: Expert Witnesses
An expert witness is a person who can testify before a jury in a court case. Expert witnesses can offer their expert opinion to assist the hearings in drawing a conclusion, based upon the available information.
Medical experts are the most common expert witness in motor vehicle accident cases. These doctors or other medical experts can render an opinion about an injured party’s probability of recovery, need for treatment, or prognosis.
Although expert witnesses can help to strengthen a claimant’s case, this is not always the case. Further, expert witnesses are not always called and typically only participate in a case when required by the court. When this happens, an experienced motor vehicle firm will have resources to draw upon for finding the right expert witness.
How long does a court case take for an auto accident?
It is not the only thing that will determine how long the process takes. There are a lot of things that need to happen before you ever step into the courtroom. The lawsuit will be served on the defendant. After that, each party must exchange evidence and depose witnesses. The whole process can take up to a year, depending on the complexity of the case and the number of parties involved.
As you can see, it’s not wise to go it alone in Texas. For a free consultation, please call us. We will help you determine your legal options. Ward Maedgen Accident Attorneys have helped many people recover after accidents for many years.
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