Personal injuries can arise from various types of accidents. The consequences of a personal injury can be difficult to endure. Fortunately, victims may be compensated for various types of damages caused by personal injuries.
However, the process for recovering compensation in a personal injury lawsuit can be complex. Defendants’ insurers may use several different strategies to adjust blame and dispute aspects of your claim. The guidance and support of a personal injury lawyer can be valuable when communicating with insurance companies throughout each stage of your lawsuit.
If you were injured because of another person’s negligence, get help recovering the financial compensation available to you. Contact our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers by calling The Carrion Law Firm at (631) 910-7493 for a free case review.
Possible Personal Injury Claims in Hempstead
When people talk about personal injury claims, they could be talking about almost any kind of accident or injury. Personal injury claims require plaintiffs to have some kind of bodily injury, usually caused by some other negligent person. Talk to an attorney about how your accident happened and the extent of your physical injuries. They may help you determine whether you have a valid claim and how you can get fair compensation.
Vehicle Accidents
Accidents on the road happen all the time, and drivers and passengers often get hurt. While we often rely on insurance to help us cover the costs of a car accident, it does not always pan out the way we hope. Filing a case against the other driver might be what you need to do to get your damages covered. When preparing a car accident case, talk to your attorney about where and how the accident occurred.
Many accidents happen on busy roads and highways around Hempstead, like Southern State Parkway or Sunrise Highway. Knowing where your collision happened might help us determine what went wrong and what evidence might be available. Common evidence in car accident cases might include photos you took after the crash, witness testimony, and records of your injuries.
Premises Liability
When a person is injured because of hazardous conditions on someone else’s property, the owner may be held liable in a premises liability claim. Exactly what this means varies based on how you were injured and what the property did or did not do to create the unsafe conditions on the premises.
One example of a premises liability claim is negligent security. Certain places must have security measures in place to protect guests. If security measures are inadequate or nonexistent, the property owner may be held responsible. For example, suppose someone is being mugged or robbed late at night because a beach club down by Atlantic Beach had next to no security despite having a history of violent incidents. In that case, the club owner may be held liable for the victim’s injuries.
Slip-and-fall accidents are also common examples of premises liability cases. For example, if you slip in a spilled drink while out to dinner, the restaurant may be responsible for your injuries. People often underestimate slip-and-fall accidents, but they can be severe, and you should speak to an attorney as soon as possible.
Defective Products
When we buy brand new goods and products, we should be able to expect them to work as intended and in a safe way. Unfortunately, this does not always happen. People are often hurt because a recently purchased item malfunctioned and caused injuries. Suppose you fire up a brand new blender only to be cut by the blades as they were defective and unsecured in the machine. You deserve fair compensation for your painful injuries, medical bills, and suffering. The manufacturer of the defective item may be held responsible, and so might others in the chain of sale, like retailers. Be sure to keep the defective item that injured you, as it might be the key evidence in your case.
Types of Damages Available in Hempstead Personal Injury Lawsuits
You may be entitled to compensation if you suffered damages because of another person’s negligent behavior. However, the damages available can vary depending on the harm you suffered. Our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers can help determine which of the following types of damages may be available in your case:
Medical Expenses
Personal injury victims may recover damages for medical expenses incurred because of an accident. Medical expenses cover all medical treatment related to your injuries, from initial consultations to post-operative rehabilitation. These damages are usually established by producing medical records and bills.
Lost Wages
Personal injuries often force victims to miss work. Accordingly, victims may also recover damages for the cost of lost wages incurred because of an accident. Lost wages will typically be calculated using your average weekly income.
If a personal injury inhibits your ability to work in the future, you may also recover compensation for the loss of future earning capacity. However, more complex evidence may be required to establish such damages. Our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers can help gather the evidence required to recover lost future income related to your injuries.
Property Damages
Plaintiffs in Hempstead personal injury cases may also recover property damages related to an accident. Property damages are usually suffered after car accidents. In such cases, plaintiffs may be compensated for the cost of repair or replacement of their vehicle.
Out-of-Pocket Expenses
Out-of-pocket expenses are another type of damages that may be recovered in Hempstead personal injury lawsuits. In some cases, victims may seek damages for various financial costs outside of medical expenses, lost wages, or property damages. For example, plaintiffs may be compensated for the cost of transportation to and from their medical appointments. Our Hempstead personal injury lawyers can help determine which out-of-pocket expenses may be sought in your case.
Pain and Suffering Damages
Personal injury victims may also recover financial compensation for the physical pain and emotional anguish they endured because of another person’s negligent acts. The effects of some injuries may never fully subside. However, financial compensation can help personal injury victims endure the numerous hardships they face.
Quantifying damages for pain and suffering can be difficult. Compensation can depend on the severity of an injury’s effects and how long the effects last. Expert medical testimony will likely be required to support a claim for this type of damages. Therefore, the assistance of our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers can be immensely helpful when pursuing damages for pain and suffering.
Loss of Enjoyment of Life
Furthermore, plaintiffs in Hempstead personal injury lawsuits may also recover damages for their lost enjoyment of life. Some injuries can inhibit victims’ abilities to enjoy the same daily activities as they did before their accident. Accordingly, victims may be awarded financial compensation for their depleted quality of life.
Loss of Companionship
In some cases, injuries may affect a victim’s relationships in regard to emotional or intimate connections. Accordingly, our Hempstead personal injury lawyers can help victims recover for the loss of companionship incurred because of another person’s careless behavior.
Punitive Damages
Occasionally, punitive damages may be awarded. Punitive damages punish a defendant while discouraging similar behavior. To recover punitive damages, a defendant’s conduct must have been especially egregious and grossly negligent. Our Hempstead personal injury lawyers can help determine if punitive damages may be available in your case during a free case review.
Different Kinds of Vehicle Accident Cases in Hempstead
Vehicle accidents represent a very large percentage of the total number of personal injury cases filed each year. While we do not think of the road or highway as particularly attractive destinations, we spend a lot of time there, whether we realize it or not. As such, accidents on the road are very common. Since so many different vehicles must share the road, there is a wide variety of accidents, and each might need to be handled differently, at least from a legal perspective.
Car Accidents
Ordinary car accidents are very common. They happen nearly every day. If you have not been involved in a car accident, you probably know someone who has. Car accidents might happen for a number of reasons. Some common ones include distracted drivers, drinking and driving, and violations of the traffic code.
All drivers are required by law to have auto insurance. In New York, this also means that drivers must have no-fault insurance, also called personal injury protection insurance. According to I.S.C. Law § 5104(a), drivers must file claims with their own no-fault insurance rather than file third-party claims with the other driver’s insurance. You may be covered by your no-fault insurance without having to prove who actually caused the accident. However, you may not sue the other driver unless you suffered a “serious injury.”
Under § 5102(d), serious injuries include severed limbs or body parts, death, loss of a fetus, significant disfigurement, broken bones, and the loss or limitation of bodily functions or systems. Alternatively, you may be considered seriously injured if you have a medically determined, non-permanent injury that stops you from doing normal daily chores and tasks for no less than 90 days out of the 180 days after the accident.
While many of these injuries sound severe, even something as simple as a broken arm may trigger this rule and allow you to file a civil case. Additionally, most vehicle accident cases adhere to this rule, with the exception of motorcycle accidents.
Truck Accidents
A truck accident is arguably one of the most dangerous vehicle accidents a person might experience. While trucks come in varying sizes, they all tend to be much larger and heavier than ordinary cars. Many trucks are big-rig eighteen wheelers or semi-trailers. These trucks have very long trailers full of heavy cargo, and they may cause severe and extensive destruction in an accident.
People in truck accidents often suffer very serious injuries. Some do not survive. Those that do might have painful, long-term complications or even disabilities. Spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, and other severe injuries are common in truck accidents.
Often, the truck driver is responsible for the accident, although they might not be the only one. Under the legal doctrine known as respondeat superior, if an employee (i.e., the trucker) negligently causes injuries while in the course of normal job duties, their employer (i.e., the trucking company) may be held vicariously liable. In short, the trucking company that employed the negligent trucker may be responsible for your damages. This can be very helpful, as your damages might be substantial, and the trucking company might have greater financial resources.
Bus Accidents
A bus accident is also extremely dangerous because a bus is much larger than a standard car. Not only are drivers in other vehicles at a high risk of injury, but so are the passengers on the bus. If you were a passenger on a bus during an accident, you and others might have been violently thrown about the bus. Many buses do not come with seatbelts, and it is easy to get hurt.
Again, bus drivers may be held responsible for negligently causing the accident, but so might their employers. Private bus companies, like charter or tour buses, may be held responsible in much the same way as any private entity. However, if the bus accident involved public transportation, the case might be a bit different. Buses that are part of public transportation networks may be considered part of governmental entities. Suing the government is not impossible, but it can be challenging. Talk to a lawyer right away if you were involved in an accident with a public bus.
Motorcycle Accidents
If you are in a motorcycle accident, your injuries might be especially severe. Motorcycle riders do not enjoy the protection offered by enclosed vehicles. They are usually exposed to the elements and their only protection is a helmet and whatever protective clothing or gear they are wearing. While helmets and protective gear should always be worn, serious injuries are still possible.
Motorcycle riders sometimes get an unfair reputation for being risky or dangerous on the road, and they are sometimes unfairly blamed for accidents. The truth is, many motorcycle accidents are caused by negligent drivers in cars who cannot be bothered to look out for motorcycles. Motorcycles are smaller and more easily overlooked, but this is also why motorcycle riders are so vulnerable. Their vehicles are smaller, and it takes less force to cause a major accident.
Remember, motorcycles are excluded from New York’s no-fault laws. If you want to file an insurance claim, you must file a third-party claim with the negligent driver’s liability insurance.
Drunk Drivers
Unfortunately, drivers choose to get behind the wheel and drive home after having too much to drink. Others might consume controlled substances. Either way, driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs is extremely dangerous and highly illegal. Every year we hear tragic stories about innocent drivers struck by drunk drivers. If something like this happened to you, an attorney can help you aggressively seek fair compensation for your injuries.
We might need to work closely with law enforcement, as they will likely investigate the crash and arrest the other driver. We also need the evidence that they might uncover. Chief among this evidence is the other driver’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) measurement. This should tell us if the other driver was intoxicated at the time of the crash. However, we should also gather other evidence, such as witness testimony and dashcam footage.
Determining Who Should Be Held Responsible for Your Personal Injuries in Hempstead
Knowing how your accident happened is only half the battle. We must also determine who is responsible for it. The defendant might be an individual, multiple people, a business, or even certain governmental entities. The defendant’s identity may determine how we approach the case and what kind of legal strategies we employ.
Individuals
In many cases, one person or a group of people is responsible for the plaintiff’s injuries. This is often the case when plaintiffs are injured on someone’s private property, in a car accident, or because of some negligent act by another person. For example, if you are hurt in a car accident, the other driver may be held liable. Alternatively, if the accident involved multiple cars, more than one driver might be held responsible for your injuries if they all somehow contributed to the collision.
When accidents happen on private property, the property owner may be held responsible. A neighbor or other homeowner could be sued if someone was invited onto their property before being hurt by some hazard or unsafe condition.
Businesses or Organizations
Accidents that happen on a business’ property or because of a negligent employee are not uncommon. You might fall while shopping at a grocery store or be hit by a delivery driver. In such cases, the business may be held responsible for the accident and your injuries. Even if the business is not directly responsible, it may be vicariously liable. If an employee, while engaged in their normal job duties, negligently causes injuries, their employer may be held vicariously liable.
Governmental Entities and Agencies
Under certain circumstances, governmental entities or employees might negligently cause injuries. In many cases, these governmental entities may be held legally responsible. However, you and your attorney should check the Tort Claims Act in New York to make sure the governmental entity in your case is not shielded from liability by governmental immunity. Additionally, there are certain legal requirements unique to these cases. For example, plaintiffs suing governmental entities must submit a notice of their claims to the appropriate entity within 90 days, according to G.M.U. Law § 50-e(1)(a).
Dealing with Insurance Companies in Hempstead Personal Injury Lawsuits
One of the more frustrating and stressful aspects of any personal injury claim involves dealing with insurance companies. Defendants’ insurance companies may use various tactics to avoid paying the full value of your claim. Our Hempstead personal injury lawyers can assist in the following ways when dealing with insurance companies in your case:
Gathering Evidence
Damages in Hempstead personal injury cases will be awarded based on a percentage of fault. Accordingly, insurance companies may hire defense lawyers, doctors, and private investigators to try and shift blame in your case.
Large amounts of evidence may be required to disprove a defendant’s claims and establish fault. The following are common examples of evidence that may be used to prove that a defendant caused or contributed to your injuries:
- Physical evidence from an accident scene
- Photo evidence from an accident scene
- Eyewitness testimony
- Expert witness testimony
- Accident reports
- Surveillance footage
The process for gathering the aforementioned evidence can be difficult. Our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers can provide help when collecting the evidence necessary to win your case.
Negotiating
Insurance defense attorneys may employ several tactics to entice low settlement agreements. Accordingly, it is crucial that you understand the true value of your case so that you can identify inadequate settlement offers. Our Hempstead personal injury lawyers can lean on years of experience to help assess the full value of your case and negotiate for fair compensation.
If You Were Injured Because of Another Person’s Negligent Actions in Hempstead, Our Lawyers Can Help
If you were injured because of another person’s negligence, seek guidance and support from our experienced Hempstead personal injury lawyers by calling The Carrion Law Firm at (631) 910-7493 for a free case review.