Accidents happen. Unfortunately, people do not always come out the other side squeaky clean. Often, accidents result in injuries that could be quite serious.
A personal injury lawyer can help you after an injury from an accident. We can investigate who is at fault, build your case, and give you the peace of mind that comes with knowing you have experienced legal representation. An accident could leave you dealing with large medical bills and mental stress. You do not need to fight for compensation alone.
Call our personal injury lawyers at Howe Law at (844) 876-4357 for a free case review.
Types of Motor Vehicle Accidents in Florence, AL
Thousands of motor vehicle accidents happen every day. Unfortunately, many of these accidents result in injuries. Depending on the type of vehicle that hit you, those injuries might be severe or even result in death.
Minor Vehicle Accidents
Everyone is bound to get in a fender-bender at least once in their life. Minor vehicle accidents might not seem as dire as a multi-car pile-up on the highway, but benign vehicle accidents can still take a physical and financial toll. You could walk away from the accident feeling fine only to find out you suffered injuries the next day when the adrenaline wears off. Alternatively, the cost to repair your vehicle could balloon out of control as more damage is discovered.
Truck Accidents
Commercial trucks can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. Semi trucks and 18-wheelers can do serious damage if they hit another vehicle. You will likely be dealing with a long recovery period and large medical bills after a truck accident.
Several factors could cause truck accidents. For example, the driver could make a careless decision on the road, or the trucking company could have pressured the driver into over-working themselves to the point that it impacts their driving. Alternatively, the truck could have a manufacturing defect, like an axel made of substandard materials. Our personal injury lawyers can help you put together the best case for your particular truck accident.
Traffic Violation Accidents
Rarely do motorists have complimentary words for other drivers sharing the roadway. If a driver’s careless actions caused your injury, you might have a claim against them. The legal term for carelessness is “negligence.” A driver can be found negligent in court either because they failed to uphold their duty to other drivers or violated a traffic law.
Drivers have a duty to be safe around other drivers. For example, if a driver hit you because they were tailgating your car, they failed to uphold their duty to drive responsibly.
On the other hand, drivers are negligent when they violate traffic rules as a matter of law. Here, the driver’s negligence stems from the fact that they disobeyed the law, not from an abstract duty to care for others. If a driver hit you while going 40 miles an hour when the speed limit was 25, they were negligent because they went over the speed limit and violated the rule.
Slip and Fall Accidents in Florence, AL
Slipping and falling down sounds innocuous but can result in serious injury or death. An impact at the wrong angle or in the wrong location could result in permanent loss of range of motion, paralysis, broken bones, or other internal injuries.
Slip and fall accidents happen for all sorts of reasons. For example, poorly lit stairwells can make it more likely for people to trip and fall, or wet floors without proper signage could make a mundane grocery trip dangerous.
Damages for Injuries in Florence, AL
Damages are broken down into three main categories: economic damages, non-economic damages, and punitive damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are costs with actual monetary values. The most common form of economic damages awarded in personal injury lawsuits is money to pay for medical treatment. Another kind of economic damage is lost income from an inability to work. If you had a job that you no longer can perform due to injuries, you might be entitled to lost earning capacity compensation, too.
Economic damages tend to be covered by insurance, but not always in full. You should be prepared to go to court to fight for economic damages.
Non-economic Damages
Noneconomic damages are more abstract and do not have a set dollar amount attached to them. Common non-economic damages are mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life from injuries, or pain and suffering.
Because non-economic damages are not easy to quantify as there are no bills or financial statements for mental anguish. Instead, you will often have to fight for them in court.
Punitive Damages
Most damages are awarded to put the plaintiff in a similar place where they were before the accident. Punitive damages are instead awarded to discourage particularly nasty defendants from repeating the conduct that led to an injury.
Courts are wary of awarding punitive damages and certain thresholds must be met before they can consider awarding these damages.
Contributory Negligence in Florence, AL
Alabama uses a legal rule called contributory negligence. This is an extremely strict rule which prevents a plaintiff from recovering damages if they were even slightly their fault.
Many states use a comparative fault standard instead. Under that rule, a plaintiff can be up to 50% at fault and still recover. Under contributory negligence, that is not the case. Instead, plaintiffs must prove that they had no contribution to any causes of their injuries.
It is important to be aware of this very strict standard so you do not hurt your case by accident. When talking to an insurance company or opposing lawyer, do not say things like “my bad” or that you “made a mistake.” Those statements could be used against you and prevent you from recovering any damages.
Call Our Florence, AL Lawyers Today
Talk to our personal injury lawyers at Howe Law at (844) 876-4357 today for a free case analysis.
