Car accidents often involve severe injuries, high medical bills, and costly vehicle repairs. Many accident victims cannot handle these expenses on their own and need to file lawsuits to claim financial compensation. After a car accident, the very first thing you should do is call for emergency help. A 911 dispatcher can send emergency medical responders and law enforcement to the accident scene. You should also look for evidence that might become important later if you can. Photographs and videos from the crash site might preserve important details to help your case in the courtroom. Some other important evidence might include witnesses, physical evidence, surveillance camera videos, and more. An attorney can help you use this information to claim special and general damages in your lawsuit. An attorney can also help you collect evidence, develop legal strategies, and negotiate settlements if necessary.
If you or someone you care about was in a car accident, our lawyers can help. We have represented countless plaintiffs in car accidents and other personal injury cases, and we are ready to take on your case and fight for you. We will tirelessly work towards building you a strong case, collecting as much evidence as possible, and advocating for you every step of the way. We will be with you from the start of your car accident lawsuit to the very end.
Macon, GA car accident lawyers can help you secure fair compensation for your damages, so call Howe Law at (888) 559-7033 to get a free case evaluation.
Types of Car Accidents in Macon, GA
Car accidents can happen in lots of different ways. While you may only think it matters that you were in any kind of car accident, the way that your car accident played out can actually be very helpful to our car accident lawyers. This is because certain kinds of accidents tend to be caused by certain factors, which can help our lawyers piece together a better picture of your car accident and form a stronger argument. Below, we will go into some detail about some of the kinds of car accidents that happen in and around Macon, GA.
Head-On Collisions
Head-on collisions happen when two cars traveling in opposite directions collide. Although many safety features in vehicles are designed specifically for frontal impacts, these kinds of crashes are still very dangerous because the driver is located close to the point of impact. Head-on collisions often happen when drivers are distracted and not paying attention to what is in front of them. Additionally, speeding drivers are somewhat more prone to head-on collisions because they do not have as much time to react to a vehicle suddenly appearing in front of them.
Rear-End Accidents
In a lot of ways, rear-end collisions are the opposite of head-on collisions. Although the driver and front passenger are far from the impact point, these accidents can still be plenty dangerous. In particular, anything that is lost in the rear of a vehicle can go flying forward when a rear-end collision happens, potentially seriously hurting or even killing anyone in the front of the vehicle.
T-Bone Accidents
T-bone accidents happen when a car is hit by a vehicle on the side. Even very safe cars can not stand up to T-bone accidents well by the nature of there being less physical car in front of the occupants when they are hit in the side.
T bone accidents can happen anywhere, but they are common at intersections and when pulling in or out of a shopping center, driveway, or other parking space where the oncoming vehicle may not see a car crossing in front of it in time.
Popped Tire Accidents
If a tire pops on a car, it could start moving in ways that the driver cannot predict. If this happens when there are other cars nearby, a car with a popped tire that is moving out of control could easily cause an accident to happen.
Tires can pop for a number of different reasons. First, whoever inflated the tire could have pumped a little too much air into it, and it could have popped under pressure. Second, poor road conditions like potholes can cause tires to burst if they travel over them too forcefully. Third, and by far the most likely reason, is that older tires get weaker as time goes on, so tires become more and more likely to pop as they are used.
What to Do Immediately After a Car Accident in Macon, GA
After a car accident, the very first thing you should do is call for emergency help. Some drivers in accidents hesitate to call for help because they do not feel badly injured or are afraid of involving the police and insurance companies. However, you might be required by law to report your accident to the authorities. Under Georgia Code § 40-6-273, you are legally required to report car accidents resulting in death or injuries to any people or property damage of at least $500. Even if you do not believe it necessary, failure to do so may lead to penalties.
Once you have called the authorities and reported your accident, you should try to gather any evidence if you can. If you are badly injured, wait where you are for help to arrive. If possible, take photos and record videos of the accident scene. Important details, including the damage to your vehicle, weather conditions, and the location of the accident, might be preserved in your photos. It is also very important to try and get the name, license plate number, and insurance information of anyone else involved in the accident. If you are not using them, they may be able to help you as a witness or bolster your case in other ways.
You should also identify possible eyewitnesses in the area. Anyone who might have seen your accident happen can provide testimony indispensable to your case. Our Macon, GA car accident attorneys can help you plan your next steps following your accident.
Important Evidence to Look for in Car Accident Cases in Macon, GA
There is much more important evidence to consider in car accident cases. As mentioned earlier, some evidence will come directly from the crash site. However, our investigation should not end there. Much more evidence might come from the surrounding area or people not even present when the accident happened.
Your photos and videos from the accident scene are important because they preserve the scene as it was at the time of the crash. Unfortunately, accident scenes do not stick around for long. Law enforcement officials tend to clear them away quickly in the interest of public safety.
Our Macon, GA car accident lawyers can take the investigation further by checking for security camera footage from nearby locations. Private homes or businesses near the accident scene might have security cameras that captured your accident on video. An actual video of the crash as it happened might be the strongest piece of evidence in our arsenal.
Police reports might contain very useful information, but the reports themselves are usually not considered admissible evidence in court because they violate the rule against hearsay. Even so, the accident report might contain information about witnesses or other evidence we can track down for your lawsuit.
Damages Available in Macon, GA Car Accident Lawsuits
Your damages represent your losses, injuries, and experiences surrounding the car accident that deserve compensation. Damages are the focus of your lawsuit as they are the primary reason most plaintiffs file their cases in the first place. Our Macon, GA car accident attorneys can help you understand the extent of your damages.
Special damages are your losses or injuries that cost you actual money. Medical bills, property damage, and lost income from being too injured to work may be summed up by bills, invoices, and paystubs. It is likely part of your special damages if it came with a receipt.
General damages are more subjective and sometimes harder to evaluate. They represent your personal experiences during and after the accident and usually are not connected to monetary costs. Even though general damages do not technically cost plaintiffs money, plaintiffs may still be financially compensated. Emotional suffering, physical pain, humiliation, and reputational damage are all considered general damages.
Calculating Damages in a Macon, GA Car Accident Lawsuit
When you ask for damages, you need to ask the court for a specific amount. You and our lawyers, therefore, need to figure out a way to determine what the amount of damages you are asking for is. There is no set way that you must calculate damages, but the two primary ways used in the legal field are the Multiple Method and the Per Diem Method.
The Multiplier Method
The first method to calculate damages in a car accident lawsuit is something called the multiplier method. This method takes your economic damages – the tangible things like hospital bills and costs of medical treatment, and multiplies them by a given factor to determine your total compensatory damages. For example, suppose you have $100,000 in medical expenses as damages. You can multiply that by a factor of, say, 3 to ask for $300,000 in non-economic damages for a total of $400,000 in compensatory damages. There is no set way to choose what you multiply your economic damages by, so make sure that you and our lawyers pick a value that makes sense and does not make the court scoff.
The multiplier method is most often used when a plaintiff’s injuries are not expected to fully recover. If a plaintiff is, for example, paralyzed, they will never stop dealing with their injuries, so asking for a daily amount to deal with injuries that will never go away does not make sense to the court. Because this method is used for permanent, serious injuries, the multiple that medical expenses are increased by can reach surprisingly high amounts in damages.
The Per Diem Method
The second method is called the “per diem” or “daily” method. This method does not simply multiply economic damages by a given factor. Instead, you and our lawyers will sit down and figure out a “daily pain amount” that symbolizes the hardships you had dealing with your injuries for each day you had to endure them.
Unlike the multiplier method, the per diem method is used when a plaintiff is expected to make a full recovery from their injuries at some point in the near future. If this method were used for injuries where the plaintiff is not expected to ever recover, the defendant would be on the hook for an infinite amount of damages, which is not something a court would award.
How a Macon, GA Car Accident Lawyer Can Help You
An attorney can help you with your case beginning the day your accident happens. Starting a lawsuit is often more complex than people realize, and your lawyer should have the skills and knowledge necessary to file all the appropriate documents and paperwork. For example, your initial complaint must contain specific details about your case and be filed with the correct court. Your attorney can help you do this quickly and efficiently.
Once filed, your lawyer can also help you develop legal strategies and tactics to win your lawsuit. Having things like evidence and witnesses is one thing, but you must know how to use them to succeed. There are complicated rules and court procedures our Macon, GA car accident attorneys are familiar with that must always be followed.
If you would rather avoid a full trial, your lawyer can advise you of other legal options, including a settlement agreement. Reaching a settlement might take time and negotiation skills that the average person might not have. However, your attorney will know how to negotiate to get your damages covered while avoiding a lengthy trial.
Contact Our Macon, GA Car Accident Attorneys for Assistance
If you were injured in a car accident, our Macon, GA, car accident lawyers from Howe Law can help you understand your legal options and hopefully help you secure compensation when you reach out to us for a free case review at the number (888) 559-7033.
