After an injury car accident, it’s often beneficial to seek legal assistance from a personal injury attorney who can explain your potential rights to compensation. While you are recovering from your injuries, your attorney can negotiate with the insurance companies and work to favorably settle your case and assist you in recovering funds to pay for medical bills or lost wages.

How Insurance Companies Determine Who is at Fault in a Car Accident

Because assigning the proportion of fault in a crash may determine whether and how much a party to an accident is paid, assigning fault in a car accident can become complicated. Insurance companies of any other vehicles involved tend to pull all available information and attempt to interpret it in a way that puts you at fault, rather than their client.

As personal injury attorneys, your accident will receive an in-depth analysis, leaving no stone unturned in finding ways that the other party or parties may be at fault for the car crash.

The tools that insurance companies and personal injury attorneys use to assign fault include:

  • Police report
  • Statements from the parties
  • Witness statements
  • Photos of the incident
  • Other forensic evidence
  • Expert testimony

Role of the Personal Injury Attorney in Connecticut or Rhode Island

There’s no question that a car accident can be one of life’s biggest stressors. You may be experiencing physical and psychological injuries that make the pressure of dealing with an insurance company even more traumatic and arduous.

The role of a personal injury attorney is to help you recover financially, while also taking the stress insurance company negotiations off your plate. At Messier, Massad, Burdick & Assoc. LLC, our attorneys help accident victims with the following:

  • Determining fault: If the insurance company attempts to claim you are at fault and you believe otherwise, you will receive help.
  • Medical treatment and billing: You can be connected with medical professionals that will accept payment after your settlement.
  • Negotiations: Attorneys negotiate aggressively with the insurance company on your behalf to seek maximum compensation for your injuries.
  • Pursuing payment: Once you have a settlement offer, the payer follow-up will be taken care of, to ensure that they write a check promptly.
  • Preparing for court when necessary: If there is a dispute with the insurance company or another party, a lawsuit can be filed to protect your rights.

In addition to the above, you’ll have an experienced legal advocate on your side to support you through the process. At Messier, Massad, Burdick & Assoc. LLC, we understand how traumatic and life-altering a car accident can be.

Because we handle these types of cases frequently, we have years of experience navigating the landscape and can guide you every step of the way. This can give you peace of mind, knowing that someone is handling your case.

Do You Need a Personal Injury Attorney?

One of the most common questions personal injury attorneys hear is whether an accident victim needs legal representation, or can they deal directly with the insurance company.

While there are no laws in Connecticut or Rhode Island that require you to seek legal representation, having an attorney on your side in a car accident case can make a big difference in how much (and even if) you get compensated.

For example, according to the Insurance Research Council’s report titled “Attorney Involvement in Auto Injury Claims,” victims with legal representation received 3.5 times more money than people who settled their car accident claim without the help of an attorney.

Why the difference?

The answer is simple: Insurance companies are not your friends.

Remember, even your own insurance company is in the business of making money and maximizing profits. This means that the more they pay you for your injuries, the less profit they receive. As a result, insurance companies are looking to pay you the bare minimum for your claim and will make every attempt possible to deny your claim if given the opportunity.

As attorneys, we are wise to the tactics that insurance companies deploy to reduce your settlement offer. In addition to having a skilled negotiator, you’ll have someone well-versed in legal matters to meet critical deadlines for filing paperwork, gathering evidence to support your claim, and documenting your injuries to preserve your case.

Potential Compensation for Car Accident Victims

Every accident is different, and the compensation you could be eligible for and what you can receive depends on the specific circumstances of the accident and your injuries.

Potential damage awards include reimbursement for the following:

  • Property damage
  • Medical bills
  • Ongoing treatment
  • Lost wages
  • Future lost earning capacity
  • Physical pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress (internal, psychological wounds)
  • Physical impairment and disfigurement
  • Loss of consortium (not having a personal or intimate relationship with your spouse)
  • Diminished quality of life
  • Leading Causes of Injury Accidents

While Connecticut and Rhode Island have relatively low fatality rates from vehicle collisions, injury accidents are still relatively common. The leading causes of car accidents in these states include:

  • Distracted driving, including eating, texting, multitasking
  • Drunk driving
  • Fatigued driving
  • Hit-and-run accidents
  • Rear-end and head-on collisions
  • T-bone and sideswipe crashes
  • Truck driving accidents
  • Uber, Lyft, and taxi accidents

Contact a Personal Injury Attorney Today

At Messier, Massad, Burdick & Assoc. LLC, our attorneys have a successful track record in achieving favorable outcomes for auto injury victims in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

If you’ve been injured in a car accident, it’s important to act quickly to preserve evidence, protect your case, and ensure that the statute of limitations does not expire. To find out how much your claim could be worth, contact us for a free case evaluation. Call 860-443-7014 (CT) or 401-385-3877 (RI) to schedule a consultation with a Rhode Island or Connecticut attorney from the law offices of Messier, Massad, Burdick & Assoc. LLC.

Frequently Asked Questions

What evidence can I gather to support my car accident claim?

Parties on both sides will gather evidence to prove the other driver is at fault. The following evidence can potentially be used to help your case:

  •  A copy of the police report
  • Evidence you gathered at the scene, including pictures, video, and witnesses’ contact information
  • Copies of medical records and bills, receipts for expenses, and any related invoices
  • Proof of income, including pay stubs and W-2s
  • Vehicle damage reports and repair estimates
  • An injury journal where you document how you’re feeling and how your injuries are impacting your daily life

Does it affect my case if I am partially at fault for the accident?

Depending on where you live and where the accident happened, laws vary by state. However, Connecticut and Rhode Island share more than merely a border, and many laws apply to both states. Our team is well versed in the laws of both states.

One of the key areas where Rhode Island and Connecticut are similar is in the area of comparative fault. Many clients are surprised to learn that even if they are partially at fault for an accident, they can still recover financial compensation from the other driver.

Personal Injury Attorneys

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