Bushwick Car Accident Lawyer
Fewer neighborhoods in Brooklyn, or even NYC, are packed with as many drivers as Bushwick. Unfortunately, many drivers here do not act with the care they should, injuring others on the road.
If a negligent driver crashes into you and you are dealing with the fallout, our team can help you pursue compensation. Your no-fault insurance policy can be helpful after a car accident, providing coverage for medical care and some of your lost earnings, but it cannot fully compensate you. To do that, we must file a lawsuit. However, victims can only file a lawsuit in the event of serious injuries or significant economic losses. Our team can help by gathering evidence that meets one of these requirements. Serious injuries come in many forms, but we can meet that threshold if you only have a fracture. We can also file a lawsuit if your economic losses are over $50,000, which is not such a high bar considering healthcare costs today.
Call The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083 today to receive your free case review with our Brooklyn car accident lawyers.
Filing for Insurance After a Car Accident in Bushwick, Brooklyn
While the end goal is almost always to recover your losses in a lawsuit, we must first consider your car insurance after an accident in Bushwick. Every driver in Bushwick and throughout New York must carry no-fault insurance, known as “Personal Injury Protection” (PIP). Under this system, those injured will file a claim with their insurance provider, as opposed to a third-party claim with the other driver’s provider in an “at-fault” state. The major reason no-fault insurance is used here is because injury victims can recover compensation no matter who caused the accident.
However, PIP insurance will only pay for economic damages, including your medical bills. If you only have the minimum policy, your medical expenses can quickly exceed your limits. PIP also only covers up to 80% of your lost income, leaving you on the hook for your remaining missed wages. Further, no compensation is allocated for your non-economic damages, which you probably know as “pain and suffering.”
Our car accident attorneys can help you pursue all the damages you suffered instead of settling for what insurance can offer. Unfortunately, I.S.C. Law § 5104(a) does not give victims a general right to recover non-economic losses in a lawsuit. We must meet one of the law’s exceptions to file a lawsuit.
Filing a Lawsuit After a Bushwick, Brooklyn Car Accident
The law above does allow victims to pursue non-economic damages in cases of “serious injury” or “basic economic loss.”
Basic economic losses under § 5102(a) refer to the first $50,000 victims spend to cover their damages. If your hospital bills, medical exams, physical therapy, and lost income add up to more than $50,000, this threshold has been exceeded, and we can file a lawsuit for pain and suffering.
The other route to file a lawsuit is to meet the “serious injury” definition under § 5102(d). Death, amputations, serious disfigurement, and miscarriage are obvious serious injuries. Injuries that limit you when doing your daily tasks for 90 out of the first 180 days after the accident also qualify as “serious.” Injuries that limit a body part, function, or system are serious, as well. We can collect your medical evidence and organize it so it meets this threshold.
The “statute of limitations” is another important issue to address at the onset of your case. This is the deadline placed on every car accident victim to file their lawsuits. Fortunately, New York’s statute of limitations is not as short as some other states, As C.V.P. Law § 214(5) provides up to three years after the crash occurred to file.
You have even less time to file a lawsuit if the person who crashed into you was a government driver. Perhaps a negligent MTA bus driver hit you. If so, we would have a total of one year and a half under G.M.U. § 50-i to file a lawsuit against the government agency the employee works for. However, we must officially notify the agency of our intention to sue within 90 days of your accident, according to § 50-e(a).
How to Take the Right Steps After a Car Accident in Bushwick, Brooklyn
While it is understandably challenging, try your best to keep cool after an accident. The law requires you to take certain steps following a crash, and some you should do to help your legal claim.
First, V.A.T. Law § 600(1)(a) requires parties involved in a car accident to exchange information with one another. The information to provide includes names, addresses, license numbers, and insurance information. You are in no way required to provide any more information than that. If you do discuss the case more with the other driver, you run the risk of saying something that can be construed as accepting fault. Even when you are talking to the police, only provide the facts you know and refrain from any speculating.
You can exchange information while you wait for the police to arrive. If an accident involves injuries, fatalities, or property damage over $1,000, § 605(a)(1) dictates that it must be reported to law enforcement as soon as possible. While most accidents qualify under this law, you should report your accident to the NYPD, no matter the particular circumstances. We can help obtain a copy of your NYPD collision report once it is ready. Copies can be easily purchased online for a small fee or by visiting the NYPD’s 83rd Precinct in Bushwick, whose record department will provide a copy free of charge.
Gathering evidence before you leave the scene and the city cleans it is also a good idea. Simply take out your phone and start photographing. Take pictures of the vehicle damage, the street, signs, lights, your injuries, and anything else that looks relevant. Also, get eyewitnesses’ contact information if anyone stopped to help.
Our Car Accident Attorneys in Bushwick, Brooklyn Can Give You the Legal Support You Need
For a free case evaluation with our car accident attorneys, contact The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.