If you suffered a serious injury or lost a loved one in a car accident through no fault of your own, you might qualify to receive compensation for your medical expenses and other damages. Call Ramsey Law Group to speak with a compassionate, understanding Sugar Land car accident attorney who will review your accident claim and advise you of any legal options available in your circumstances.
Ramsey Law Group is a Texas law firm with a nationwide reputation for excellence in personal injury law. Our Sugar Land auto accident attorneys work tirelessly to protect the rights of the injured and want to do the same for you.
Ramsey Law Group’s car accident attorneys are:
Contact us today for answers to your legal questions. At Ramsey Law Group, we can take the stress of your legal claim off of your shoulders, allowing you to focus on healing.
As the victim of a car accident, you should seek the advice of an experienced attorney. At Ramsey Law Group, we estimate the value of your claim to make sure any settlement will cover both your current and future accident-related costs. Our car accident attorneys handle all of your paperwork, insurance company correspondence, creditor calls, and settlement negotiations.
Throughout this process, Ramsey Law Group keeps you informed of your case progress and provides you with timely answers to your calls, texts, and emails. We will continuously build your claim for compensation up to and through the following:
Most car accident claims settle before a trial. However, at Ramsey Law Group, we will take your case to trial if that is the best option for your compensation. The sooner you contact Ramsey Law Group, the faster we can secure compensation for your injuries.
Auto accidents are all too common on Texas roadways. The leading cause of car accidents is distracted driving. Anytime a driver’s attention is diverted from the task of driving, the driver is distracted.
There were nearly 96,000 distracted driving crashes in Texas during 2018. Distracted driving may include:
Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, another typical cause of car accidents, leads to reduced reaction times, falling asleep behind the wheel, and unnecessary risk-taking while driving. In Texas, not only is an impaired driver potentially liable in a car accident claim, but so is any establishment that over-serves an already intoxicated patron who goes on to hurt or kill another person.
Aggressive driving, speeding and tailgating are dangerous activities that limit the ability to stop or react if there is a change in traffic conditions. In 2018, speeding caused approximately 9,400 fatalities. Stay clear of speeders and other aggressive drivers and call the police if these drivers continue driving dangerously.
Sometimes a part, not a person, is responsible for a crash. Defective or dangerous equipment on a vehicle like brakes or airbags can cause serious car accident injuries. When they do, car parts manufacturers and car companies can be liable for the damages that result.
Even a government agency can be at-fault for a car accident. When governments neglect roads or create poorly designed intersections that cause car accidents, they may be liable for accidents their poor planning causes. Victims should seek the advice of a Sugar Land car accident lawyer immediately if they suspect a government agency is responsible for their accident; there are strict guidelines and time frames to adhere to when suing any type of government entity.
There are numerous causes of car accidents, and some are simply unavoidable. The best way to avoid any car accident is to stay alert and focused while driving, obey any state and local traffic ordinances, drive appropriately for weather conditions and watch for distracted and aggressive drivers sharing the roadway.
Additional Information: Houston Car Accident Statistics
Car accident injuries vary according to the type of accident, speed of the collision, and kinds of vehicles involved in the crash.
An accident might involve any of the following scenarios:
Regardless of the type of car accident, victims involved in crashes may sustain catastrophic, life-threatening injuries, such as:
Car accident injuries can require lifelong care and costly rehabilitation. Victims may be unable to return to their previous occupations or work at all. Drastic changes in living can alter a victim’s life so profoundly that there is a need for psychological counseling to help with the adjustment. Although no amount of money can make up for severe trauma, when another party is responsible, victims do have the right to recover damages.
Damages is the legal term referring to the compensation car accident victims can recover in a settlement or award as reimbursement for their losses. The types of damages available vary case-by-case, but car accident compensation allows recovery for:
Compensation for actual financial losses, such as:
To recover economic damages, you must provide physical documentation of the expenses.
Non-Economic Damages
Compensation awarded for subjective losses rather than specific financial losses, for instance:
These losses are much more challenging to prove since they are not associated with an actual financial loss.
What Are Punitive Damages?
Punitive damages are available in some car accident cases but are rarely awarded. This type of compensation is only granted in cases involving an at-fault party who exhibited an extreme disregard for the safety of others. It is awarded with the intent to punish the defendant (at-fault party) and deter others from committing similar harmful acts. Examples of car accident cases in which punitive damages are often awarded involve drunk driving accidents and hit-and-run injury accidents.
Under Texas law, there is a cap on the amount of punitive damages a victim can recover. They cannot exceed $200,000 or twice the amount of economic damages plus an equal amount of non-economic damages up to $750,000.
Various factors can potentially impact a car accident case in Sugar Land by either increasing or decreasing its value. This is not an exhaustive list, but the most common factors include the following:
Severity of Injuries
An injury that results in a permanent disability dramatically increases a car accident claim’s worth, for instance, compared to a strain or a sprain that typically heals within a few weeks. The more severe the injury, the more expenses require reimbursement, plus the higher the level of pain and suffering for which you can demand compensation. ‘
A Gap in Medical Care
If you fail to see a doctor immediately after leaving the scene of your car accident or if there is a significant gap in your follow-up treatment that your physician recommended, your claim’s value can decrease. The at-fault party’s insurance company will likely use that gap to argue that your alleged injuries were not caused by the car accident or are not as severe as you state since you did not seek or continue medical care.
Pre-Existing Injuries
Although car accident victims with pre-existing injuries are still entitled to compensation if it is aggravated or exacerbated by a collision, it can ultimately devalue your claim. For instance, it may be challenging to demonstrate how your pre-existing condition has worsened and that the state you are in now is different from before, especially if you were already in treatment for your pre-existing condition.
Insurance Policy Limits
The at-fault party’s insurance policy will have limits to the amount of compensation that their insurer is willing or has to pay. For example, if they only have the minimum amount of car insurance required by Texas law, it would be $30,000 of coverage for injuries per person, up to a total of $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 of coverage for property damage. The insurance company does not have to pay the difference if your damages exceed policy limits.
Evidence Against You
Texas’s rule of “modified comparative negligence” will reduce your compensation if the responsible party denies liability and their insurance company can successfully blame you for the crash. Under this law, each party is assigned a percentage of fault for their contribution to the accident and lowers their compensation accordingly. For example, if you are awarded $100,000 and found 30 percent to blame, you will only receive 70 percent of the award or $70,000. However, if you are found to be 51 percent or more at fault, you cannot recover any compensation.
When it comes to car accidents, liability refers to being at fault for causing the crash and, therefore, responsible for paying for resulting damages. When an insurance company accepts liability for a collision, it means they are assuming legal responsibility for the property damage and your injuries. In other words, they determined their policyholder was at fault.
Before accepting liability, an insurance adjuster will investigate the accident to determine the following:
Even when an insurer accepts liability, that does not necessarily mean you have a strong case. There still might be limitations on what will be covered, and insurers do not have to pay compensation beyond the policy limits.
Texas is an “at-fault” state when it comes to car accident claims, not a “no-fault” state. This means the driver responsible for causing a crash or their auto insurance company must pay for damages. Accident claims can be filed directly with the at-fault party’s insurer or through a driver’s own insurance company, depending on their coverage.
The Difference Between Fault and No-Fault States
In at-fault states, there must first be an investigation to determine which party was at fault, and each party is assigned a percentage of the blame. If another driver is to blame, you have the right to seek compensation from their insurance company. You can file the claim directly with the at-fault driver’s insurer or under your policy, if you have collision coverage. If you file a claim under your auto insurance policy, you will be responsible for the deductible. Still, your insurer will seek reimbursement from the at-fault party’s insurer, and you may receive that money back.
In a no-fault state, drivers file an accident claim with their auto insurance company regardless of who was at fault. The driver’s insurance policy will cover their accident-related expenses up to the policy limits. In these states, there are a limited number of circumstances in which an accident victim can step outside the no-fault system and pursue a claim against the at-fault driver or their insurance company. Typically their injuries must qualify as “serious” under state law.
Although Texas law requires all drivers to carry liability auto insurance, many either do not comply or have limited coverage that may not be enough to pay for your damages. In fact, it is estimated that one in five drivers in Texas drive while uninsured. Since an at-fault driver’s insurance carrier is expected to cover the resulting expenses of an accident, if you are in a collision with an uninsured driver, seeking compensation can be challenging.
You do have the right to sue the uninsured driver personally, but they may not possess the assets to make the time and expense of pursuing a lawsuit worth it. Alternatively, you can file a claim under your policy if you carry an optional form of coverage through your auto insurer called uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM). If you do not carry UM/UIM but have collision coverage, you can still file a claim with your insurer but will have to pay the deductible.
To learn more about compensation for victims of car accidents, call Ramsey Law Group. There are state caps on certain types of recovery and time limits to file a compensation claim. Do not lose your opportunity to regain the costs of your car accident.
Ramsey Law Group will respond quickly to your questions, help you access the medical care you need, and provide you with the representation you expect from a top-tier legal firm. Call today and set up your complimentary consultation: (713) 489-7577. Or fill out our online contact form.