Accident on 80Car Accidents Suck
Let’s be honest for a minute. Car wrecks suck. They really do. They hurt our bodies. They destroy our property. We miss time from work. Insurance companies. Hospital bills. Rental cars. Rehabilitation. Did I mention insurance companies? Because they suck, too.
Hold on a second….
Sorry, I just went and asked an associate who was in an accident last August and she confirmed it. Accidents suck. See, its unanimous.
Also, according to a national study done by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s updated 2015 report of the societal impacts of car accidents (which studied the overall impact of accidents nationwide for the year 2010), that in 2010 the national economic and societal impact of car accidents was about $850 billion dollars per year. Per year! So, not only do they suck on a personal basis, they hurt the economy as well, and that sucks.
What we have noticed in our main office in Forney and our office in Rockwall is that the number of accidents is picking up in the area. Both Forney and Rockwall have experienced large scale commercial and residential growth, which has put a strain on roadways. Basic logic says that the more people there are, the more accidents there will be, and that is exactly what we are seeing. We are receiving more and more calls per week where local Forney and Rockwall residents have been hurt in accidents involving commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles, and a lot of the time, we are seeing that these accidents involve more than two vehicles at a time. We have seen as many as 6 vehicles involved in some of our new cases. Accidents involving more than two vehicles make the claims process that much more difficult. So the question then becomes, what should you do when you are involved in an accident.
So, What Should You Do When You Get In An Accident?
After you have received any and all necessary medical treatment, you need to speak with an attorney. You do. If you don’t, you are most likely going to fall for the insurance company’s spiel and settle for far less than your claim is worth. I spoke to a potential client last week who was offered $500 by the insurance company when her emergency room visit (not including MRI’s, CAT scans, etc..) was for far more than that. Had she settled, she likely would have put herself in a real pickle with her hospital bills. She would have had to pay them. That is not right. So, when we spoke, I advised her “don’t take that settlement”, and then I told her why, and I told her what we can do for her. So, what I really mean when I say you should speak to an attorney amounts to you the client asking the attorney “how can you save my butt?” Then we give the person advice on how we or another attorney may be able to save their butt. That is what it amounts to when boiled down. We also go after the other party. If I was a cursing man, I’d say, we go after their a**. But, I’m a gentleman, so I’ll say “we go after their butt”.
One question that I would like to ask the reader is: have you ever been in a car wreck?
I don’t mean a fender bender where everyone drives away and maybe you have some back soreness. If you have been in a legitimate car wreck, as in your car is a wreck and so are you. I mean an wreck where you are transported to the hospital with injuries like a broken arm, ribs, or ankles (ankles are very common), or a head injury. In those types of accidents, you have “recovery” and I’m not just talking about monetary recovery. I am talking about time spent in the hospital, rehab visits, time-off from work, modified job duties, and mounting hospital bills. That is a wreck.
On top of all that, you have to deal with every day life. Accidents like I am talking about create additional stress. There is a lot to getting better after you were hurt in a car wreck than just healing wounds. If you were stressed out before the accident, you don’t even know the word in English to describe what you are now. Bills are piling up, doctor/rehab appointments every couple days, and people calling you about settling or getting statements from you, etc… Oh yeah, and you’re constantly having to drive around the metroplex right after having a scary car wreck. I know that feeling really well. Anxiety while driving after an accident is a horrible feeling and happens to a lot of people. I have had clients call me and talk to me on the way to their doctor’s appointments. No joke.
The next question I would like to ask you is: Have you ever successfully handled a personal injury claim or lawsuit?
Some people have. Kudos to them because it is not easy. But even if you have handled a claim with the insurance company, did you make sure you got enough to pay your bills, make up for lost wages, etc… and walk away with some additional cash for your pain and suffering? If so, another kudos to you, maybe you should think about going to law school. You have a real future. However, that is not the likely case.
A lot of times, and we have seen this very recently, the insurance company will draw the claim out for a long time. About two years to be exact. Coincidentally, there is a two-year statute of limitations on personal injury lawsuits in the state of Texas. Then, once you’re up on the limitations period, they will present you with a bunk offer that barely covers your liens, doesn’t take into account your future losses, loss of income, and any potential future medical treatments. Then, you are forced to settle or file suit because if you don’t your claim dies!
Well, I don’t mean to brag, but I have handled a lot of personal injury claims and lawsuits in my day. It’s sort of my job. Part of my job is taking all the stress that I can from you when we take your personal injury case on. That is what lawyers do. We take our clients problems and stresses onto ourselves and find a way to obtain the resolution our clients seek. For our personal injury clients, that is a recovery that makes them whole after they’ve been injured. That is our goal every single time. No claim is more important than another because they’re all important to us. We aren’t a case mill like most of the larger personal injury firms you hear about on the radio or on TV in between soap operas and day-time talk shows. We take on your case and we work it. We don’t use claims adjusters to handle our cases for us. We have real attorneys working on your case because that is our job and that is what you want when you sign with a law firm to handle your case. A real attorney. Not some claims adjuster who has no formal legal training. I went to law school. So did my associates. So did my awesome law clerk who took the Texas bar in February. We know the law and we will use it to fight for you. Period.
If you have any questions or would like to set up a free consultation, don’t wait, call us today. We have assistants standing by to take your call at (972) 564-4644.
About Our Firm:
Guest and Gray, P.C. is an experienced litigation team serving all North Texas counties. We are the largest and highest rated law firm in Rockwall and Kaufman County. We regularly pursue and defend various civil litigation claims and personal injury claims. Our practice is quickly growing with offices now located in Dallas, Rockwall and our main office in Forney, Texas to provide convenience to our clients. We are longtime faces in our community and we love what we do. We seek to provide an air of calm and confidence for our clients during a difficult time. We believe that makes us a little bit different from everybody else, and we like it that way.
For more information, or if you are seeking legal advice, give us a call at (972) 564-4644
Sources:
https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812013
