In 2023, there were approximately 62 million preventable injuries that required medical care in the United States. Many of these were the result of another party’s negligent or wrongful conduct. When that happens, the victim can explore their legal options and try to recover the losses they’ve sustained. One of these options is to file a personal injury claim.
An experienced personal injury attorney can help you understand how personal injury claims work and answer your questions about the process. Learn more about these claims, including why a Florida attorney can make a difference.
Can I File A Claim Against The Other Party After A Car Accident?
It depends on the cause of the accident and the severity of your injuries. Florida is a no-fault state for traffic collisions. For minor injuries, you can file a claim against your own personal injury protection (PIP) insurance to cover your expenses. Your PIP will pay for some of your medical care and lost wages up to your policy limits.
If you suffer a serious injury in a car accident, your policy might not cover all your losses. Florida then allows you to step outside of no-fault laws and pursue a claim through the other party’s insurance provider. You also have the right to file a lawsuit.
What Do I Have To Prove In A Personal Injury Claim?
In most personal injury claims, including traffic collisions and slip and fall accidents, you must demonstrate that the other party was negligent. Establishing negligence requires that you show the other party owed you a duty of care and that they somehow breached it, resulting in injuries for which you can be compensated.
Product liability claims are a little different. In this type of personal injury case, you don’t have to show that a product was defective due to negligence; you only have to prove that the product didn’t function as it should have and injured you.
What Damages Am I Entitled To?
You can receive economic and non-economic damages if you have a viable personal injury claim. Economic damages cover your financial losses, including medical expenses and lost wages. If you’ll need future care, you can ask for those costs to be included, along with compensation for loss of earning potential if you won’t be able to work.
You can also receive non-economic damages to cover the nonfinancial losses you suffered. These include physical and emotional distress, as well as loss of enjoyment of life. If a loved one dies in the accident, you may also claim loss of consortium.
Are There Deadlines For Filing Personal Injury Lawsuits?
Yes, Florida has deadlines for filing a personal injury lawsuit. For most lawsuits, you have two years from the date of the accident. There are exceptions, however.
For example, if your case involves a government employee or agency, you have less time because you’ll first have to send a notice that you’re planning to file a claim. Another exception is if you don’t realize you suffered an injury until later. In that case, the discovery rule means that the statute of limitations starts running when you notice the injury and not when you suffered it.
Other exceptions include if the negligent party took steps to hide that you suffered losses if they left the state or if you were a minor or incapacitated when the injury happened.
Can I Recover Losses If I Was Partly To Blame For The Accident?
Yes. Florida’s comparative negligence laws allow you to recover losses even if you were partly responsible for the accident. Your share of fault must not exceed 50%, however. The percentage of your liability will be subtracted from your recovery.
How Much Does Hiring A Personal Injury Lawyer Cost?
Personal injury lawyers work on contingency, which means that they don’t get paid unless you do. This means that you don’t have to worry about upfront fees.
The attorney will keep a record of all expenses accrued and their fee and then take a percentage of your compensation as payment. The fee percentage will vary, but you can ask for details during your consultation.
Contact Our Experienced St. Petersburg Personal Injury Lawyers
After suffering injuries in a St. Petersburg accident that was the result of someone else’s wrongful conduct, you could have a valid personal injury claim. However, many injured people discover that the legal system is too complicated to deal with on their own. By hiring an experienced attorney, you can focus on healing from your injuries while they handle your claim.
At Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group, our team of Florida attorneys can help you fight for fair compensation. Contact us online or call (772) 569-8155 to schedule a free consultation.
