Serious accidents, including automobile collisions and employment incidents, can have a terrible impact on a person’s life. In addition to thousands of dollars of medical bills, victims face persistent pain and lost wages. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a Harnett County car accident, you should be aware of your rights. You have the right to ask for fair compensation. This means the amount of money needed to fully restore you or your family to the position you were in before the injury, not just what the insurance company claims is fair. The Harnett County personal injury attorneys of Maginnis Howard can help. We attempt to resolve all of our clients’ cases without litigation, but we will bring your case to trial if necessary. To discuss your case, call the firm at (919) 526-0450 or use our contact page to tell us about your situation.
Determining Liability
The first question in any personal injury case, including automobile crashes, is “who is liable?”. Put more simply, who was at-fault for the accident? In many cases, this may be obvious. For example, if you are waiting at a stop light and are suddenly rear-ended, liability is likely clear. In other cases, it may not be so obvious. Imagine a scenario where both you and the other driver claim you had a green light in the intersection. If the insurance company questions, you likely need the assistance of an attorney. Insurance companies will take every opportunity to deny compensation. This is particularly true in North Carolina, where we still operate under the contributory negligence doctrine. This rule holds that if you are even 1% at-fault for your injuries, you may not recover compensation (with some exceptions).
Assessing Damages
Once it is determined who is at-fault, the next question is “what are the damages?”. This involves an analysis of the different elements of recovery a jury would be entitled to award you. In total, these are the amounts necessary to put you back in the position you would have been in had you not been injured. For example, you should be able to recover medical and pharmaceutical expenses, as well as, lost wages. In most cases, you are also able to recover compensation for the physical and mental pain and suffering you endured. In cases involving drunk driving, racing, and other blatantly dangerous conduct, you may be able to obtain “punitive” damages. These are amount available to you as a punishment for the defendant’s willful and wanton conduct.
Insurance Coverage
The final question in most automobile cases is, “what is the available coverage?”. You may have $100,000.00 in damages but if only $30,000.00 of insurance coverage is available, you recovery may be very limited. For this reason, it is always best to consult with an attorney when you have a significant amount of damages. Often times, there are insurance coverages available which you may not even think about. The analysis always starts by looking at the liability coverage provided by the at-fault driver’s automobile policy. There may, however, be additional policies under which he or she may be covered. Also, in some situations, you may be able to proceed against the Underinsured Motorist coverage under your own policy or the Uninsured Motorist coverage if you were uninjured by a hit-and-run driver or a driver without automobile insurance.
Contact Our Attorneys
Maginnis Howard is a North Carolina personal injury law firm helping hurt North Carolinians across our state with claims against insurance companies and other big corporations. We represent our injured clients on a “contingency fee” basis, meaning that you pay no attorneys’ fees unless we settle your case or obtain a trial verdict. All consultations with our attorneys are free of charge and we’ll travel to meet with you in Harnett County.
If you or a family member has been injured in a Harnett County car accident, contact us at (919) 526-0450. You may also send an email inquiry using our contact page. Aside from automobile accidents, our Harnett County injury attorneys also regularly litigate cases involving motorcycle, pedestrian, and trucking injuries. We accept these cases from around Harnett County, including Lillington, Buies Creek, Dunn, Erwin, or Angier.
