What Are Personal Injury Claims?
Personal injury claims are the result of an accident caused by the negligence of another person or entity. Negligence is the failure to behave with a reasonable level of care, or with the same level of care that another person, given the same set of circumstances, would have done. While negligence usually consists of specific actions, under certain situations negligence can consist of an omission when there was a duty to act.
For the purpose of personal injury law, negligence almost always consists of a failure to behave in a reasonable manner. Since most personal injury claims are related to auto accidents, this failure to act could mean that the negligent party failed to obey traffic laws or the rules of the road or acted carelessly or recklessly. Running a stop sign, failing to yield, exceeding the speed limit, tailgating, or turning in front of an oncoming motorcycle or driver are all instances of negligent behavior. The four legal elements of negligence include:
- A duty of care was owed to the plaintiff by the defendant
- The defendant breached that duty of care
- The plaintiff suffered injuries as a result of the breach of duty of care
- The injuries led to specific damages for the plaintiff
If you have been injured through no fault of your own, it can be beneficial to speak to an experienced La Porte personal injury lawyer from the law firm of Sullo & Sullo.
What Are the Usual Damages Awarded in a Personal Injury Claim?
While every personal injury claim is unique, almost every personal injury claim will include three types of damages: medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Medical expenses include current and future anticipated medical expenses such as the cost of the ambulance, surgical expenses, physician costs, prescription drug costs, and the cost of current and future rehabilitative therapies. Lost wages can occur when your injuries prevent you from returning to work for weeks or a few months. Future lost wages apply when your injuries will prevent you from returning to work for many months, years, or ever. Pain and suffering damages cover actual physical pain as well as emotional pain and trauma.
How Can a La Porte Personal Injury Attorney Help with Your Personal Injury Claim?
Having a La Porte personal injury attorney from Sullo & Sullo can help ensure you receive the settlement amount you are entitled to receive. Unfortunately, insurance companies simply don’t care about whether your injuries have changed your life or made it impossible for you to do things you did prior to the accident. The goal of every insurance company is to pay you as little as possible and move on.
To this end, the insurance company of the at-fault party may offer you a quick, low settlement that will not even begin to cover your actual expenses related to the accident. Once you have an experienced personal injury lawyer from La Porte, TX on your side, the insurance company immediately gains respect for you because they know they cannot easily fool your lawyer.
Your La Porte accident lawyer will comprehensively investigate your claim and then evaluate your injuries, determining what your injuries and pain and suffering are worth. Your lost wages and lost future wages will be calculated, and the total will be presented to the insurance company. If they refuse to pay you a fair settlement, your personal injury claim will be filed in court and litigated.
What Are the Different Types of Personal Injury Claims Practiced by Sullo & Sullo?
While there are many different types of personal injury claims, including slip and fall accidents, dog bites and other animal attacks, work-related accidents, and medical malpractice claims, the majority of personal injury claims are related to auto accidents. The La Porte Personal injury attorneys at Sullo & Sullo can assist you with the following personal injury damages:
- Auto accident injury claims may include car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents as well as accidents involving bicyclists and even auto-pedestrian accidents. If you’ve been involved in an auto accident, it is important that you speak to a knowledgeable La Porte auto accident lawyer to determine what your claim is worth.
- Car accident injury claims occur every single day across the United States and in the state of Texas. There are many different types of car accidents. A high-speed collision can result in serious injuries and damages, as can drunk driving accidents or a head-on collision. A hit-and-run accident has its own set of challenges as does an uninsured motorist accident. A rear-end crash is often the result of distracted drivers who are focused on things other than their driving. Injuries may be moderate to catastrophic and can include airbag injuries, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, and even a seatbelt injury.
- Truck accident injury claims usually involve severe or catastrophic injuries due to the size disparity between a semi-truck and a passenger vehicle. Having an 18-wheeler lawyer who can guide you through the process and who understands the specific challenges of a truck accident lawsuit is essential. There may be more than one liable party in a truck accident, so having an 18-wheeler truck accident lawyer from Sullo & Sullo can make a difference in the outcome of your truck accident lawsuit.
- Motorcycle accident injury claims can also be more complex than an accident involving two passenger vehicles. In some cases, the motorcyclist may not have sufficient experience, or may not have taken a motorcycle training course, but more often, motorcycle accident injuries are the result of drivers who fail to properly look for motorcyclists.
Getting the Assistance You Need from a Harris County Personal Injury Attorney from Sullo & Sullo
Whether you are looking at a motorcycle accident injury claim, a truck accident injury claim, or a car accident injury claim, the highly respected accident injury law firm of Sullo & Sullo can help. Contact Sullo & Sullo today for the assistance you need following your personal injury accident.