Atlanta Car Accident Lawyer

Car accidents injure millions of people each year throughout the United States. Not surprisingly, the frequency of crashes changes from year to year, and certain communities and areas tend to see more accidents than others.

For example, in Gwinnett County, there tend to be between 30,000 and 40,000 crashes each year. Dekalb County has similar statistics but typically has a few thousand fewer. 2017 was an outlier year, with Dekalb County reporting almost 41,928 crashes and Gwinnett County reporting 39,473. Fulton County typically has more crashes than both Gwinnett and Dekalb Counties, reporting anywhere from 43,776 to 63,984. In the Atlanta area as a whole, we typically see between 70,000 and 106,000 accidents reported each year.

Car accidents can occur for any number of reasons, but a significant number of crashes happen due to the negligence of people behind the wheel.

Some examples of driver negligence that can easily lead to a serious wreck include:

Importantly, some accidents occur because of defectively designed or maintained roads or defective vehicles. For this reason, you should always have a car accident reviewed by a lawyer, even if it was a single-vehicle accident, or you believe the accident was not another driver’s fault.

Of course, not every car wreck results in injuries. In fact, serious injuries tend only to occur in a fraction of cases. For example, in a year in which there reported 39,473 crashes in Gwinnett County, there were only 325 accident-related serious injuries. That said, in the same year, there were 13,535 accident-related injuries.

Similarly, in a year in which there were 105,912 accidents in the Atlanta area, there were only 1,509 suspected serious injuries. There were, however, 34,068 total injuries reported.

While only a fraction of car accidents result in serious injuries, it’s critical to remember that all of your accident-related losses are compensable. Common losses that accident victims successfully seek include medical expenses, lost income, lost quality of life, property damage, and physical and emotional pain and suffering. Insurance companies are known for trying to pay out as little as possible on every claim they receive, so it’s in your best interest to retain an attorney to represent you, regardless of the severity of your accident.

Car accident victims can sustain a wide variety of serious injuries, including:

In addition to these physical injuries, some car accident victims experience significant psychological trauma. In some cases, they may even develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or similar conditions that have a significant impact on their daily lives. Fortunately, Georgia law allows you to recover for both physical and psychological trauma. As a result, you should discuss all of your accident-related issues with your Atlanta car accident lawyer. If you do not, it could leave you with significant uncompensated losses.

As mentioned, many accidents happen due to drivers who speed, are impaired, or who are otherwise in violation of the law or making careless decisions on the road. When this is the case, any other people injured in the accident should hold the negligent driver liable for their losses. Losses commonly include medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more.

Sometimes, it might be clear that you should recover compensation from another driver or drivers. For example, if two cars were drag racing and one lost control, colliding into your vehicle, it is obvious that the drag racing drivers should cover your expenses and losses. The same should go for drunk drivers, aggressive drivers, and other parties who were blatantly negligent or reckless.

On the other hand, liability is not always clear following a car accident. In some situations, each driver will point fingers at the other, accusing them of causing the crash. It is important to have the right car accident lawyer investigating your accident to determine whether you can recover compensation or not.

An experienced car accident attorney will know how to identify fault in a car crash, as well as how to gather the necessary evidence to prove liability. Because consultations are free, you have nothing to lose by having an attorney evaluate your rights to possible compensation after a collision.

If you do have a viable car accident case, and you want to seek compensation for your losses, it is easy to assume that your case will take place in a courtroom. After all, we see many injury victims taking the witness stand on TV and in movies. In reality, however, very few car accident cases go to trial. Instead, the large majority of car accident claims resolve well before a trial date.

First, your attorney will file an insurance claim, which requests compensation directly from the insurance company without involving the courts at all. Negotiations will likely occur between your lawyer and the insurance adjuster, and, many times, your lawyer can obtain an insurance settlement offer that covers all of your losses. If this happens, your case is over, and you will not need to file a court case.

If the insurance company does not offer a sufficient amount of compensation, your attorney might need to file an injury lawsuit on your behalf. This still does not mean that you will have to go to trial. A major part of the litigation process involves rounds of settlement negotiations with the defendant and their insurance company.

Often, the insurance company wants to avoid the cost and uncertainty of trial so it is more willing to offer an acceptable amount during pretrial litigation. This is why most cases do not have to go to trial for car accident victims to receive compensation.

If a car accident case starts with an insurance claim, do you really need the help of an attorney? After all, many drivers file car insurance claims on their own on a regular basis. While you may certainly file a claim, you might not realize all the work that the insurance company is putting into limiting your payment, and you might end up with far less than you deserve.

Insurance companies should be on the side of injured claimants – after all, that is why their coverage exists. However, insurance companies often put profits first, and the less they pay on claims, the greater the profits might be. This means that insurance adjusters often receive training to limit payouts, which is especially successful with claimants who are unrepresented by an attorney.

An experienced car accident lawyer will be familiar with all of the tactics the insurance company might use to minimize your compensation. Once you get an attorney involved, the insurer will know that the chances of getting you to accept an inadequate settlement offer significantly decreased. Having an attorney handle your claim often brings better results in a quicker time frame. In the event your claim does have to go to court, you certainly want a skilled litigator handling this complicated process.

Naturally, car accident victims will wonder how much they might receive from an insurance claim or lawsuit. This answer is extremely fact-specific, and you want a lawyer to evaluate the value of your claim based on your circumstances.

Some factors that might affect the value of your claim include:

• How severe your injuries were
• How much medical treatment you needed
• Whether you needed to miss a significant amount of work due to your injuries and recovery
• Whether your injuries left you with permanent effects and impairments
• Whether your injuries prevent you from engaging in your usual activities and hobbies
• How much work you missed

The more expenses you have and the more your injury affects your everyday life, the more compensation you might recover. Many damages, like pain and suffering, are noneconomic and can be very difficult to prove. This is yet another reason why it is critical to have a car accident attorney on your side.

You will not receive compensation from the at-fault party or his or her insurance company until your case resolves through a settlement or you obtain a judgment at trial. Car accident cases can take anywhere from a few months to years to conclude.

Some of the factors that may affect how long your case take include:

• Whether the other party is conceding liability
• The number of parties involved
• The severity of your injuries
• Whether you were partially at fault for the accident
• Whether drugs or alcohol were involved

Fortunately, there are ways to pay your accident-related expenses while you are waiting for your case to settle. For example, many healthcare providers will provide care without need up-front or immediate payment if you agree to allow them to place a lien on any settlement or award you may receive in the future. Similarly, some companies will extend loans for other expenses to Atlanta car accident victims based on the strength of their cases.

An Atlanta car accident attorney will give you an idea of how long your case may take to resolve. In addition, a lawyer can often put you in contact with healthcare providers or lenders who often work with people who suffered injuries in car accidents.

One reason why you might hesitate to call a car accident lawyer—even if you suffered serious injuries—is because you might think that lawyers are expensive to retain. You likely hear about high-powered attorneys charging hundreds of dollars per hour, which could mean even a phone call or email can rack up your bill.

The good news is that not every type of attorney charges hourly fees, and your car accident attorney should not do so. This is because it is standard for accident and injury lawyers to take cases on a contingency fee basis. A contingency fee means that you pay nothing upfront and out of pocket, and you pay nothing unless the lawyer successfully obtains compensation for you.

If you do receive a settlement, the fees will come out of that amount, and you should agree to a specific fee percentage before starting your claim. This arrangement allows injured accident victims to get the legal help they need without having extra money available to hire a lawyer. When you are facing medical bills and lost income, the last thing you need is another expense. Contingency fees make it possible for you to fight for full compensation without writing a check to your attorney at the start of your case.

In short, car accidents happen often in the Atlanta area, and they regularly result in serious injuries. If you suffered injuries or lost a loved one in a car crash, you should never hesitate to protect your rights and interests by consulting with a car accident law firm you can trust.