Types of Auto Accidents Involved in Personal Injury Cases
Every time you drive or ride in a vehicle, the risk of a crash exists. A moment of inattention, recklessness, or intoxication can disrupt your life significantly. You could even lose a loved one. A disability could leave you unable to work. Even if full recovery is possible, the medical treatment and rehabilitation to get to that point come at tremendous expense.
When it comes to motor vehicle accidents, there can be many different types of cases and claims. How your particular case is handled depends, in part, on the type of motor vehicle accident and the different claims that are involved.
Car Accidents
Many accidents involve a car or other personal vehicle being in a collision with another car or personal vehicle. When this type of accident occurs, a personal injury lawyer can handle gathering evidence, assisting with medical treatment issues, and dealing with the various insurance involved. Whether you were hurt as a driver or a passenger, the attorneys of Webster & Garino are here to help manage your car accident case.
Commercial Truck Accidents
Commercial trucks, including semi-tractor/trailers, dump trucks, flatbed trucks, snowplows, and even pickup trucks with trailers, are different than straight-forward car accident cases. The injuries these commercial trucks and vehicles cause are often more devastating than accidents involving only cars. There are also deeper and more nuanced evidentiary and liability issues involved with commercial truck accidents. As with other drivers, commercial trucks are subject to Indiana’s driving laws and our “rules of the road.” However, the actions of every commercial truck is also governed by federal laws known as Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.
These federal regulations impose many rules on commercial trucks, including mandated breaks for drivers, limits on hours drivers can log, weight and load restrictions, and other requirements for trucking equipment. Violations of these regulations can impose liability for an accident in addition to violations of Indiana’s state driving laws. A personal injury attorney that is well versed in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations knows how to identify and preserve different types of evidence and look for rule violations that are not present in typical accident cases.
Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcycles accidents are yet another kind of specialized personal injury case. The truth is that motorists in cars and trucks often do not pay attention and do not notice motorcyclists, and this often leads to devastating accidents. Yet every motorist on the road has a duty to observe and maintain a constant lookout for other users of the roadway, including motorcyclists. A personal injury attorney with experience representing motorcyclists know the specific issues and dangers facing motorcyclists. For example, in some cases a motorcyclist can sustain serious injuries as a result of being forced to “lay down” their motorcycle to avoid a crash; yet insurance companies will often deny claims where their insured’s vehicle did not contact your motorcycle. The experienced personal injury attorney knows how to deal with these types of arguments and build a case for liability against the driver that caused your accident. In addition, the experienced personal injury attorney is well versed in the medical issues that arise with serious injuries that often result when a motorcycle accident occurs. If you have been injured while operating a motorcycle, Webster & Garino is here for you.
DUI Accidents
Drunk driving causes many accidents and fatalities every year in Indiana. Such accidents are often more tragic simply because they could have been so easily avoided by getting a ride instead of getting behind the wheel. Drunk driving accidents differ than standard accidents in several respects, including the fact that when intoxication is proven, punitive damages are available for drunk driving accidents. However, whether a defendant was intoxicated is often not a straightforward matter to prove. In many cases, blood alcohol tests are not administered until hours after an accident occurs. In those cases, an experienced personal injury attorney will work with an expert toxicologist to establish the defendant’s intoxication, which in turn maximizes arguments for liability and for the full scope of damages that are legally available.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Accidents.
Bicyclists and pedestrians are lawful users of Indiana’s roadways, just like cars and trucks, and are entitled to the full protection of Indiana’s driving laws and Indiana’s rules of the road. Drivers of vehicles have a duty to observe and maintain a constant lookout for other users of the roadway, including bicyclists and pedestrians that are crossing intersections. Yet insurance companies will often seek to diminish this and will argue that a pedestrian or bicyclist are at fault themselves. In addition, when these cases are tried, jurors can be prejudiced against bicyclists and pedestrians. An experienced personal injury attorney knows how to deal with these issues and will fight for you to receive full compensation for your injuries.
Uninsured and Underinsured Accidents.
Indiana law requires that every driver on the road maintain liability insurance with minimum limits of $25,000.00. Despite this fact, not every driver on the road has auto insurance in effect when they cause an accident. And in cases where a driver with minimum insurance coverage causes a serious accident, the minimum mandatory coverage of $25,000.00 is often insufficient to provide full recovery. When you are injured by a driver with no active insurance coverage, or insurance coverage that is insufficient, an experienced personal injury attorney knows to look for other sources of potential coverage to compensate you for your injuries. For example, your own auto insurance policy likely contains Uninsured Motorist Coverage for situations when you are injured by a driver with no insurance coverage, and Underinsured Motorist Coverage for situations where minimal insurance coverage on the part of the other driver are insufficient to fully compensate your injuries. However, even though this is protection that you have paid for, it is often the case that your insurance company will fight against compensating you under these provisions – typically, by arguing against the severity of your injuries and trying to minimize the value of your damages. Your own insurance company will also often attempt to rely on exclusions or other limitations in your policy to avoid coverage. At Webster & Garino, we are well versed in Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage claims, and we are here for you in the fight against the insurance company insuring the driver that hurt you as well as your own insurance company.
Consult a Car Accident Attorney Today
If you or a loved one has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, you deserve aggressive and competent representation from a personal injury attorney that is experienced in the specific type of motor vehicle accident that your case involves. We will provide you with a fair and free case evaluation of your motor vehicle accident, during which we will discuss the specific rights that you have in your case. An insurance adjuster will not have your best interests in mind, but Webster & Garino will. Contact our office today at (317) 565-1818.
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