The civil law system exists in Virginia to make sure accident victims are made “whole.” Put simply, a motorist who is harmed through no fault of their own should not suffer financially because of the accident. Instead, the driver who is to blame should bear the financial burden. For this reason, our clients can often receive compensation for medical care, lost wages, property damage, and pain and suffering following a Virginia car accident.
Unfortunately, not every accident victim receives full compensation, and there are some common reasons why. Our auto accident lawyer in Virginia looks at the top 6 reasons.
Virginia still recognizes the defense of contributory negligence. Under this doctrine, a victim cannot receive compensation for an accident if their own negligence contributed even a little to the accident. For example, you might have been struck by a car going through an intersection, but your own car was over the line. Or you could have been sideswiped by a negligent motorist, but you failed to use your turn signal.
The contributory negligence rule is very harsh, and most states have done away with it. However, as long as it is on the books, many accident victims will not receive a penny that they are owed.
Fortunately, we can step up and try to minimize any negligence that our clients might have committed. It is vital that you meet with an attorney as soon as possible and not give a recorded statement to the insurance companies. They are often searching for admissions to use against injured victims, so it is best to use an attorney as your spokesperson.
You should receive 100% of the cost of reasonable medical care to treat your injuries. Nevertheless, countless people receive less because they have not documented either the severity of the injuries or the cost of treating them.
To protect yourself, remember the following:
Without the above documents, it will be much harder to maximize the amount of compensation you receive.
Any settlement should have a generous amount to compensate for pain, suffering, inconvenience, and emotional distress. However, jurors are traditionally skeptical about these non-economic losses. It is too easy to exaggerate or lie, and jurors might disbelieve your claim that your injuries are causing serious distress.
To document this invisible suffering, we recommend the following:
We might also meet with your friends and family to bolster your claim that the injury has upended your life.
Some people try to diagnose their own injuries by using websites and then take a fistful of aspirin to blunt this pain. This is a mistake—and you could cost yourself compensation.
For one thing, you can make yourself worse, not better. Prompt, professional medical care will facilitate recovery. For another, the defendant could claim that you are partially to blame for why you feel so terrible. He might argue that you would have felt less pain and inconvenience if you had simply gone to the doctor after the wreck.
Most settlements and jury verdicts are paid out of the at-fault driver’s insurance policy. However, many drivers do not carry enough insurance to cover the full amount of your loss.
Virginia only requires that motorists have the following minimum insurance coverage:
Given the cost of medical care, $25,000 will not stretch very far for someone with a serious injury (or even several moderate or minor ones). For example, a person who needs surgery to set a broken bone is looking at close to $10,000 in costs alone. Add in lost income and pain and suffering, and the minimum insurance policy is quickly exhausted.
Fortunately, many of our clients carry underinsured motorist coverage, which can kick in and pay for losses above the at-fault driver’s policy limits. In some situations, you might also sue the driver personally.
Breit Law PC offers a free consultation to injured members of the public, where we can discuss your injuries and the circumstances that surrounded the crash. Call us today to get started.
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Attorney William Breit takes the time and effort to understand your personal injury case, and strategize for the best outcome. William Breit is a distinguished trial lawyer who has been at the forefront of major personal injury cases in Hampton Roads, Virginia for over 36 years. Our practice areas include personal injury, medical malpractice, auto accidents, brain injury, wrongful death etc.... View full business profile here: William Breit
