Each year, approximately 45,000 people are killed on the nation’s highways. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of people are injured ranging from very minor to catastrophic paralysis, dismemberment or brain injury. Cars and trucks are very dangerous instrumentalities that must be operated with caution and maturity or bad things will happen.
Likewise, cars and trucks may be defectively designed and manufactured, they may have been negligently maintained by the mechanic, the roadway may have been designed or maintained negligently.Weather and inattention by other drivers may also have caused severe injury or loss of life.
Immediate consultation with an attorney skilled in car accidents and product liability is the next most important thing to do after receiving proper medical attention. The sooner a lawyer is consulted, the better your case will be prepared. The better you will also know where you stand. Do not talk to an insurance adjuster or investigator prior to consulting with an attorney as there are numerous pitfalls in talking to them which may hurt your case later. They are skilled and trained to attempt to have you say things which will diminish your injuries or make whatever happened all your fault.
Be careful in talking with your doctors as they will write down in their medical notes things that you may have said without thinking. Things like “I’m fine” or “nothing hurts”. You may still be in shock or not really knowing whether you’re hurt or not till later.
Defective automobiles and trucks are designed and manufactured all over the world by both American and foreign manufacturers. Suing a foreign manufacturer involves a specialized knowledge and skill by the attorney who is experienced in that field. Foreign manufacturers insulate themselves to people in the United States by various levels of corporations designed to prevent them being subject to United States laws. This is not fair since they sell their products in this country, take the money and then try to avoid responsibility for defects.
Collisions with other vehicles can likewise not just be the fault of the other driver,they may involve the deffects in the other drivers car or in the crashworthiness of your vehicle. For instance, if you are injured during the rollover of a vehicle, the roof is not supposed to be designed to collapse causing injury to your neck and possible paralysis. Likewise, airbags and other safety devices are supposed to work not just in protecting you in a collision, but also to allow you to get out of the car to avoid any fire or other dangers afterwards.
Roadways designed, constructed and maintained by governmental entities are required to be safe for travel under foreseeable conditions including weather and traffic volume. Even though a collision may have occurred with another vehicle, the actual cause may have been the roadway and its design or maintenance.
If you are injured in a motor vehicle or truck accident, it is important that photographs of the accident site, your vehicle and your injuries be taken as soon as possible after the collision. Also, if you can get the names and addresses of witnesses. You cannot rely on the police departments and others to do the job right. Over the course of time, the conditions will change and the true cause of the collision may then not be able to be determined.
In selecting an attorney for car accident look for experience, knowledge and background in the areas of engineering, biomechanics, accident reconstruction, defective products and trial experience. A car crash may not be a simple case and you want the best to represent you.
