An accident can occur at any time. In the blink of an eye, you may get into a car crash because someone ran a red light, suffered a burn from a defective product, slipped and fell on a wet floor, and so much more. Just think: personal injuries rank fourth among the most common causes of death in the United States.
Accidents can result in injuries of vastly different severity, with some potentially having life-altering consequences. They can also cause property damage and lead to trauma and other emotional issues.
What’s important to understand is that you’re not alone if you’ve gone through an injury that occurred because of someone else’s negligence. The Paradise Valley personal injury attorneys at Torgenson Law can help you get the compensation you need to pay for hospital bills, repair bills, and any other types of damages you have suffered.
Personal injuries refer to any type of injury to a person’s body, reputation, emotions, or property. Negligence is the most common basis for personal injury claims. If a person fails to behave with the level of reasonable care that is expected by law and society, they can be liable.
Strict liability is another basis for personal injury claims. This refers to holding someone liable for an action regardless of what their intention or mental state was when committing it. One example of this is when a product causes injuries. The manufacturer didn’t intend for those injuries to occur, but they are still responsible. By contrast, intentional wrongs result from a deliberate act that causes harm.
Personal injury claims can arise because of an injury done to the body, including:
Claims can also come about as a result of emotional distress.
Have you suffered a personal injury and would like to file a claim? If so, you need to turn to a personal injury lawyer.
Personal injury lawyers provide guidance from the start, including by assessing your case. As they evaluate it, they can help you in putting a number on the damages that you can claim.
Personal injury lawyers are an objective party as well. An accident can leave you with emotional and physical pain. As a result, you could have a harder time making the right decisions in regard to insurance settlements and much more.
You may even be so traumatized you’re willing to accept a low-ball offer just to be done with the problem. When you turn to an attorney, they can help you understand the benefits you could gain by negotiating and fighting your case.
Lawyers know the law and how it applies to your case. No matter what the other party claims, they’ll know how to best advocate for your rights. Unless you have legal knowledge, you likely won’t be able to do this yourself.
Insurance companies are notorious for trying to prevent people from getting the compensation they deserve after an accident. They use all manner of tactics to get you to cave and accept low settlements. In many instances, they may even threaten not to pay for any damages at all.
When you have a lawyer helping you, you can depend on them to negotiate with insurance companies. They know just how to get insurers to the negotiating table. If the company doesn’t agree to pay you what you deserve, personal injury lawyers are also ready to take your claim to court and litigate it there.
Personal injury lawyers also have the right tools and contacts to investigate your claim and gather evidence. Many of them know expert witnesses who can help with accident reconstructions, for example, which could be critical for proving your claim.
Another benefit of hiring a personal injury lawyer is that they don’t charge fees upfront because they work on a contingency basis. In other words, if you don’t get paid, neither do they. This means there’s one less thing you have to worry about when dealing with medical bills and emotional trauma.
One of the first steps in the process is knowing whether you have a personal injury claim at all. Just because you’ve been injured in an accident doesn’t mean that you automatically have a case.
There are three basic requirements to prove. The first is to show that the responsible party was negligent. One example of this is if someone ran a red light and hit another car. In that case, the driver who ignored the law by not stopping is at fault.
The next step is to prove that the negligent action caused the injury. In the example above, if the person in the other car suffered a traumatic brain injury because of the collision, the negligent driver caused the injury.
Then, you must demonstrate that the injury resulted in compensatory damages. In the example, if the injured person went to the hospital and got extensive treatment, they can claim those costs as damages that resulted directly from the accident.
Are you unsure whether you have a personal injury claim? If so, the best thing you can do is turn to a personal injury lawyer for an assessment.
It’s not always easy to understand the compensation you may be able to seek if you’re filing a Paradise Valley Personal injury claim. However, there are several potential types of compensation available, depending on the circumstances of your case.
An accident that results in injuries usually means going to the hospital and even getting ongoing care. For severe injuries that require rehabilitation and even nursing care, you can file a claim to help you get compensation to cover those bills.
Medical expenses can cover many areas, including the following:
It’s important to remember that medical expenses should cover not only the treatments you’ve already received but those you’ll need in the future as well. This is essential if you have long-term conditions and disabilities.
If you suffered property damage of any kind as a result of the accident, you may have a right to get compensation. The most common type of property damage in personal injury cases is vehicle damage, but you can claim electronics and anything else that was damaged, too.
If the item is a total loss, including a totaled car, you can file a claim. This gives you the chance of receiving the market value of the item as it was before the accident occurred.
If you suffered injuries that sent you to the hospital or that required you to attend treatment sessions, you may have missed work. In turn, you likely lost wages.
Sometimes, people assume that because they were able to use sick or vacation days, they shouldn’t claim these losses. That’s not the case. If the accident hadn’t happened, you wouldn’t have wasted those days in the hospital or attending treatments. As a result, you deserve to get compensation for them.
Lost wages can include salaries, commissions, and even bonuses. In some instances, it can also include lost benefits.
People who sustain disabling injuries and can’t return to work can also claim future wage losses. Perhaps you can work, but your injuries prevent you from doing what you used to do or working for as many hours as before. In those cases, you can file a claim for diminished earning capacity.
People don’t often think about other financial losses that you may have suffered as a result of the accident. Think about what it costs to travel to and from the hospital. It may not seem like a lot if you do it just once, but what if you have to make that trip several times a week? Those parking fees and gas expenses add up.
If you have children, you might also need to pay someone to watch them as you go to get treatment. That’s another type of out-of-pocket expense that you can claim.
Some people might have disabilities because of the injury and can’t take care of their home or even cook for themselves. They might need to hire someone to do all of this for them, which is another cost you can claim.
The cost of sustaining an injury extends beyond the physical difficulties it causes. It also involves dealing with pain and suffering.
Many times, people assume that these damages are included in the medical expenses, but that’s not so. The challenge with pain and suffering, however, is that it’s very difficult to put a number on what you’ve experienced when dealing with emotional damage.
People who go through a traumatic accident can develop PTSD, depression, anxiety, or other types of mental health concerns. Pain and suffering compensation goes beyond providing monetary compensation to cover therapy sessions — it further tries to compensate you for the challenges of living with those conditions.
To calculate what you can claim for pain and suffering, there are two main methods lawyers and insurers use: the multiplier method and the per diem method. The multiplier method requires totaling your economic damages. These include medical expenses, property damage, and lost wages.
Then, you multiply this by a variable. The variables are usually between 1.5 and 5. The variable depends on:
Alternatively, the per diem method decides on a dollar amount and multiplies it by the number of recovery days. The per diem also depends on the severity of the injuries and how they affect your daily life.
If the injury you suffered is disabling or doesn’t allow you to live your life in the same way you did before the accident, you can claim loss of enjoyment of life as damages. Emotional distress can also count.
For example, perhaps you used to love running, but your injuries have prevented you from doing so. In that case, you could ask for compensation for that loss.
This relates to any kind of relationship loss as a result of an accident. If you can’t provide love and support to your family, you could secure loss of consortium damages.
At Torgenson Law, we accept a variety of personal injury cases in Paradise Valley and throughout Arizona. Motor vehicle accidents are very common causes of personal injury claims. They include car, truck, bicycle, motorcycle, and pedestrian accidents. You can even get help if you are a passenger in the vehicle. We also accept boating and aviation accidents.
Workplace accidents are another common issue that can result in severe injuries, especially in the construction industry. Most workers’ compensation covers injuries sustained at work, but it doesn’t cover all damages. If you’ve sustained non-economic damages, you may be able to get help by turning to us.
We also represent premise liability and slip and fall cases. When you walk into a building, the owner has a duty of care regarding your safety. If they fail to alert you to dangers like wet floors or uneven pavement, you may be able to claim damages.
We represent product liability cases as well. If you were injured because a product malfunctioned or didn’t work as it was supposed to, you have the right to file a claim to get compensation.
Furthermore, if a loved one died as a result of any kind of negligence, we can help. Any type of personal injury case can become a wrongful death claim if the victim dies from their injury.
Medical malpractice is another area we offer help with. If you’ve suffered an injury because a healthcare provider gives substandard medical care, you could be compensated for your losses. These kinds of cases can include instances of:
To help with these cases, we rely on medical expert witnesses.
If you’re unsure of the types of cases we offer, we’re always ready to conduct a consultation to help assess whether you have a claim.
Dealing with hospital bills, repair costs, and pain and suffering can significantly impact your life. You shouldn’t have to struggle through all this on your own and without support.
At Torgenson Law, we offer help for people who’ve suffered injuries because of someone else’s negligence. You should never attempt to file personal injury claims on your own because of the complexities of your case.
To have the best chance of receiving the compensation you deserve, you need seasoned lawyers on your side. That’s what we offer. With over 20 years of experience, we are here to provide the guidance that you need.
Don’t wait to get started fighting for your rights. The moment your accident occurs, turn to our team. Contact Torgenson Law today.