Advantages to Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer

Auto accidents can be one of the most arduous financial hardships you ever face, depending on the amount of damage done to you and your car. For this reason, many people simply go through the legal process without consulting an attorney. A car accident where you were not a fault but were injured appears to be as straightforward as a lawsuit can get. But hiring a lawyer could help you in the long run.

Getting an Adequate Settlement

This is the most obvious advantage to hiring an Auburn personal injury attorney: having someone on your side who knows the ins and outs of personal injury litigation and knows how to negotiate in court can get you a much bigger settlement. In fact, the difference in settlement that you get with a lawyer on your side can be more than enough to justify the cost of hiring one.

Having Access to More Resources

Lawyers know people, and hiring a personal lawyer means they can help you get in contact with the medical professionals you need. These professionals can then serve as witnesses for your case, giving you additional evidence to support your demand for a bigger settlement. Additionally, many personal injury firms have medical professionals on staff that can serve as witnesses and evaluate your medical records to help strengthen your case.

Dealing With Insurance

One of the most difficult parts of any personal injury case, even when you are clearly not at fault, is dealing with insurance companies. Insurance lawyers are trained to find workarounds that allow the insurance company to pay as little as possible in damages. Taking them on on your own can be a lot to deal with, especially when dealing with an injury from an accident. Having an injury lawyer on your side can help deal with this obstacle.

After a car accident, it can be tempting to just follow the process and get it over with. But hiring an injury lawyer can help you get more money and resources to help you recover.

The Danger of Pedestrian Crashes

More and more people nowadays are choosing to make walking a part of their regular routines. Whether it be for commuting purposes or purely recreational reasons, walking has become more popular and is thought of as a healthy and “green” alternative to motoring everywhere.

Unfortunately, being a pedestrian comes with its own dangers. The Governors Highway Safety Association recently issued a estimating that 6,227 pedestrian fatalities occurred in 2018. This is the highest number of pedestrian deaths since 1990.

Of course, motorists have a duty under the law to drive in a reasonable and safe manner at all times. If a pedestrian is struck and injured by a negligent driver who is breaching this standard of care, then the pedestrian may seek compensation for injuries stemming from the collision. With the help of an attorney well versed in personal injury tampa, an injured walker can obtain compensation that is deserved.

There are a number of reasons behind the tragic increase in pedestrian fatalities. The primary factors are examined below.

More Walking

As noted above, walking has increased in popularity in the past few decades for a variety of reasons. The more walkers near roadways increases the possibility of motor vehicle accidents involving people on foot. The higher level of exposure leads to more serious injuries and deaths.

Larger Vehicles

Anyone who drives at all has seen firsthand the rise of much larger, more powerful vehicles. Indeed, SUVs, large trucks with extended cabs, and minivans with third row seating dominate to the highways. These automobiles are not just longer, but also significantly heavier. This has the effect of inflicting more severe, even life threatening, injuries to pedestrians who have virtually no defense.

Distracted Drivers

The proliferation of smartphones has led to a corresponding increase in levels of distracted driving. Talking, texting, FaceTiming, and apps lead the parade of nearly endless ways that a smartphone can distract a driver who is reckless enough to engage in these frivolous activities while operating a motor vehicle that can weigh multiple tons. Tech devices draw the operator’s eyes away from the road, cause the driver to remove hands from the steering wheel, and lessen cognitive focus on surroundings, including pedestrians.

Other Unsafe Driving Behaviors

There are a plethora of other unsafe actions that drivers engage in that have contributed to the rise in pedestrian fatalities. These include speeding, driving while drowsy, and the scourge of alcohol impaired driving.

If you or someone you love is ever injured by a motorist while walking, an experienced injury attorney can help determine whether the vehicle operator failed to remain alert at the wheel in violation of the law.