Month: January 2022

Frequently, drivers refer to such multi-car accidents as a pile-up.  Whatever name gets used for such an event, that same event has been linked to some specific features.

Conditions that favor the creation of a pile-up.

Most take place on a highway, where vehicles travel side-by-side and move at a high rate of speed. Poor visibility can make a multi-car crash more likely to happen. That is because drivers struggle to see when traveling in fog or rain.

High winds can increase the chances of a multi-vehicle accident, especially if the wind-hit vehicles happen to be speeding down a highway.

Listing of features that have become associated with a pile-up

Skidding: The drivers do not have time to make a decision. Consequently, each of them tries to make a last-minute move.  

Swerving into another lane: That new lane could be one that carried oncoming traffic.

Questions of liability that could arise, following a multi-car accident, might be resolved in a courtroom.

The factors that could contribute to the formation of an answer receive a more intensive investigation when questions related to a given case get decided in court. Litigation provides the disputing parties with better access to minds that can offer guidance and a possible judgment. A judge and jury could suggest an appropriate compensation for the plaintiff.

All courts must follow the rules of the state, where the courthouse is located.

Most states have a no-fault rule for multi-car accidents. Still, victims with severe injuries should consult with a lawyer, regarding the wisdom behind suing the other driver.

The amount compensated to an injured party would reflect the elements of the situation, the one in which the driver has been injured.

-If the state has adopted the principle of contributory negligence, no one that has helped to trigger the accident’s occurrence has a right to seek compensation.

-If the state follows the principle of comparative negligence, the proportion of each party’s contribution to the factors causing the crash determines the size of the same party’s compensation.

-If the state follows the principle of modified comparative negligence, compensation goes only to those parties that did not contribute to 50% of more of the factors that caused the pile-up. The size of the compensation reflects the extent of the given party’s contribution to the accident’s occurrence.

Situation not covered by online information about multi-vehicle collisions

In each state, the rules that apply to such a collision focus on the driver’s condition. The posted rules do not include details on how a driver would be compensated if he or she were carrying a passenger, and that passenger was injured. In such a situation, the case would almost certainly get decided in court. Still, the involved drivers could use guidance.

To get legal assistance, call on Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group at 772.247.5306. We are here to help you.

Some of the defective parts that are found on automobiles can cause serious injury. True, it does not require the presence of 4 defective tires to produce a decided risk. Still, a defect in even one tire could prove capable of causing a serious accident.

The danger introduced by an underfilled tire:  In the absence of sufficient air, there could be too much pressure on that rubber part that surrounds the wheel. When subjected to that excessive pressure, the same part fails to function properly.

The danger associated with an overfilled tire:

The chances for a blowout increase, if there is too much air pressure on the rubber that surrounds any one of the car’s wheels.

Dangers introduced by tires made from old rubber:

Sometimes that old rubber starts to dry out. That dried-out material does not demonstrate all the qualities of a wheel part that has just come from the manufacturing plant.

At other times, that old, rubbery material tends to develop cracks. The presence of cracks reduces the tire’s ability to hold up under the pressure from the air that is inside it. In other words, the cracks can increase the chances of a blowout.

What could happen if a tire’s tread has evidence of separation?

A driver might go for several miles before the presence of tread separation. However, that would only be true, if the same motorist chose to travel at a modest rate of speed. Once, though, the tires had been forced to turn at a faster rate, the tread would have more frequent contact with the road. Consequently, the higher speeds would encourage the development of more tire-related problems.

The degree of risk that has been created, if a tire’s materials are defective:

Any road changes over time. It becomes quite hot in the summer. It could get covered in ice during the winter months. An older road could be full of ruts. A top-grade material should allow a tire to withstand its exposure to the elements. Rubber that contains a defective substance would not be capable of withstanding that sort of exposure.

It helps to learn the nof for a given tire’s manufacturer. In that way, the consumer that has gone shopping for tires should have the ability to seek out testimony, regarding the performance of parts that have come from that particular manufacturing plant.

Understand what resources create defective materials. Those are poor-quality chemicals, which could get used during the manufacturing process. Seek out facts about the chemicals that have been used during the production of any purchased item, including those that could get placed on a car’s wheels.

At Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group, we have helped innumerable accident victims get justice and the entitled compensation, over the years. Call us 24/7 at 772.247.5306 and let our experienced lawyers be of assistance to resolve your accident claim.

An injured victim that has filed a personal injury claim does not have to present a perfect argument. He or she only has to put together a reasonable argument, one that should be included in a demand letter.

Factors that could aid the composition of such a letter

A claimant’s familiarity with driving rules should make it easier to prepare that written demand. If the defendant has broken any of those rules, then he or she is at least partly responsible for the accident.

If a driver were to disobey any rule-of-the-road, then that could be pointed to as evidence of the same driver’s negligence. No claimant could win a personal injury claim without producing proof of the defendant’s negligence. Yet no court would label a defendant as negligent in the absence of all the required elements.

What are the elements of negligence?

• Evidence that the defendant had a duty of care towards the plaintiff
• Proof that the defendant had breached that duty of care
• Proof that the defendant’s breach had caused the event that resulted in physical harm to the plaintiff
• Evidence to support the claim that the plaintiff had suffered measurable losses, as a result of the accident.

What would happen if the victim were found partly to blame for the accident?

The way that such a decision would affect the size of the victim’s compensation would depend on the accident’s location. Most states adhere to the principle of comparative negligence. Some use the traditional principle, while others have chosen to adopt the modified principle.

According to the traditional principle, the amount of the victim’s compensation should correspond inversely to the percent of the same victim’s contribution to the accident. In the modified version, no victim can be compensated, if he or she has contributed to more than 51% of the factors that caused the accident.

What is the rule in a system that follows the principle of contributory negligence? In that system, a victim has no right to seek compensation for accident-related injuries, if he or she made even the smallest contribution to the factors that triggered the accident’s occurrence.

That seems like a rather harsh system? Yes, it is. That is why only a few states have chosen to adhere to the principle of contributory negligence. As a rule, the legal system always strives to be fair to both sides, during any effort to resolve a legal dispute.

Lawyers recognize that fact and try to use it when advocating for a specific client. Judges, too, try to be fair, when asked to issue a decision. Still, every judge must follow any of the relevant rules in a given state’s legal code.

At Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group, we understand that you are frustrated with your injuries and looking to settle quickly. Call 772.247.5306 today and let us help you.

Once the injured victim of an accident has filed an injury claim, he or she should expect to get a call from the insurance adjuster. Claimants that are prepared for that same call should find it easier to steer those negotiations towards the desired goal—that of obtaining a fair settlement.

Steps to include in preparation

Get some paper and a pen or pencil; put those close to the phone. Use that pen and paper to obtain noteworthy information, after answering the expected call

• Takedown the name of the person at the other end of the line.
• Takedown the name of the company that has employed the person at the other end of the line.

Guidelines to follow when speaking with the adjuster

Limit the number of facts that are shared with the adjuster; promise to provide more information in a demand letter. Do not accept the first offer.

Insist that the number of future contacts is limited; carry out that step in a manner that could be described as polite and calm. Take notes; write down any of the adjuster’s requests. Record what information was given to the caller.

Tips on the  creation of demand letter

Collect the available evidence. Gain insight into how the adjuster will arrive at the value of his or her initial offer; adjusters usually use a multiplier, a figure between 1.5 and 5, depending on the severity of the reported injuries.

Try to form in your mind the number that should represent the lowest acceptable offer once the negotiations have started.

Working with a lawyer, compose the demand letter. The amount demanded should be more than the lowest acceptable offer.

Use caution, if presented with improper comments at any point during the negotiations

If you have received a payment from a health insurance provider, the adjuster should not tell you that you have no reason for demanding reimbursement of the money that was used to cover your medical expenses. If you have hired a lawyer, then that same attorney should arrange for repayment of the health insurance provider, once you have received your compensation.

If your employer has granted you paid medical leave or paid vacation time, that fact should not become a “green light” to the insurance company. That fact cannot be used as a reason for refusing to consider a demand for compensation for lost wages. All victims deserve such compensation because their injury has kept them from going to their workplace and earning a salary.

Hire a Professional

Instead of dealing with negotiating yourself. Hire a professional attorney at Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group by calling 772.247.5306. We are available 24/7 and offer a FREE Consultation.