Suing for a personal injury can be the best way to get compensation for serious injuries and harms that you suffer after an accident. Car accidents might be covered by auto insurance, and slip and falls might be covered by homeowners or liability insurance, but insurance does not always pay the damages you need in full.
If you or a loved one was injured in an accident, contact an attorney before accepting any payments. The Grapevine, Texas personal injury attorneys at The Queenan Law Firm can represent you in your claim against the at-fault party and help you understand what your case is worth. With our help, you can avoid accepting settlements that are too low compared to what you might be entitled to. For help with your case, contact our law offices today to schedule a free, confidential consultation on your claim. Our number is (817) 476-1797.
What is My Personal Injury Case Worth?
It is difficult to determine what your injury might be worth without discussing your case with a personal injury lawyer. Looking at stories about similar cases might help inform you of what basic damages you might be entitled to in your case, but each case is unique. Talk to an attorney for help understanding what your injury case might be worth. Regardless, the following guidelines might be able to help you start to understand what your claim could be worth and why filing a lawsuit might be preferable to filing through insurance.
Damages for medical expenses are common in personal injury cases. If you went to the emergency room or saw a doctor because of your injury, you incurred medical expenses that you would never have faced if it were not for the injury. The at-fault party can be held liable for any medical expenses you needed as reasonable treatment for your injury, including the total costs of things like X-Rays, MRIs, ambulance transportation, surgery, hospital stays, doctor’s visits, rehabilitation, and physical therapy. Ongoing and future medical costs should be covered as well.
If you were injured enough to miss work or lose your job, you might be entitled to compensation for lost wages. Any work you missed or reduced earning capacity you faced because of the injury should be compensated since it is the defendant’s fault you had to miss work at all. If your injuries prevent you from returning to the workforce or you must take a lower-paying job with reduced work tasks, you may be entitled to damages for lost future wages as well as wages lost during your recovery.
The pain and suffering from a serious injury can be debilitating. In many cases, these damages are not covered by insurance, so filing an insurance claim may mean missing this area of damages entirely. These damages can be some of the most substantial you receive in an injury lawsuit, so it is vital to claim these damages in court.
If you take your case to court, these damages can be covered in full. Insurance companies typically only cover a portion of these damages, so filing an insurance claim may mean missing out on the maximum damages you could be entitled to.
Proving Fault in a Texas Personal Injury Case
Fault is determined in a personal injury case by establishing how the accident happened and who caused it. In most injury cases, the injured party seeks to claim that the at-fault party injured them through “negligence.”
Negligence occurs when an individual or a business entity owes the victim a duty, but they fail to uphold that duty, leading to injuries. The clearest example of this is the duty for a driver to stop at a red light. If the driver runs a red light and hits another car, causing injuries, that driver should be held liable for any injuries they caused by running the red light. Similar duties exist for property owners to keep their property safe for guests, drivers to follow the rules of the road, employers to follow safety and training requirements, and doctors to provide reasonable medical care.
Some accidents are purely accidents – but more often than not, someone is responsible for the “accident.” In some cases, multiple parties may be partially at fault for the crash, and sometimes, even the victim contributes to causing the accident. In Texas, the jury divides blame among all parties involved, potentially including the victim. Each party is responsible for their share of the damages, meaning that you may actually collect compensation from multiple parties. Any share of blame the victim is responsible for is not paid by the defendants. Victims can still recover damages even if they are as high as 50% liable for their own injuries, recovering the other 50% of the total damages from the at-fault parties.
Evidence used to prove an injury case can take the form of testimony, photos of the accident, medical records, and other evidence that demonstrates how the accident happened, who is at fault, and what damages resulted from the accident.
Personal Injury Lawyer Offering Free Consultations for Injury Victims in Grapevine, Texas
If you or a loved one was injured in an accident, or if you lost a loved one to wrongful death, contact an attorney today. The Grapevine personal injury attorneys at The Queenan Law Firm may be able to take your case and fight to get you the compensation you deserve. To set up a free consultation with our lawyers, call us today at (817) 476-1797.