Miami Car Accident Lawyer
When a driver chooses to engage in reckless driving habits like speeding, using their cellphone, eating or adjusting their appearance, they endanger everyone around them. When actions like these cause you to suffer a serious accident, you should not be the one who has to pay the costs.
At [nap_names id=”FIRM-NAME-1″], our lawyer can help you pursue the compensation you deserve after your car accident. He has been providing personal injury representation for more than 30 years, and he can guide you through your personal injury claim. Call for a free consultation: [nap_phone id=”LOCAL-CT-NUMBER-1″].
What To Do After A Car Accident
A car accident can leave you in pain and in shock. In the moment, you may not be thinking too clearly about what you should do next. The following steps are a reminder of what actions you need to take to protect your health and your legal claim for the future:
- Seek medical care – Your well-being is the highest priority after a crash. If you can stay safely on the scene to report the accident, you should. If your injuries require urgent attention, call an ambulance. Either way, go to a doctor as soon as you are able. Some injuries seem minor at the scene but build over hours and days. Early intervention can make a difference in your recovery.
- Report your accident – Florida law requires that drivers involved in a crash must report the accident to local law enforcement as quickly as possible if the accident resulted in the injury or death of any person or property damage of at least $500.
- Trade insurance information – Gather information about the other driver, including their insurance information. This will be important for filing your claim later.
- Collect evidence at the scene – If you are physically able, gather information to support your claim of personal injury. Take photos of the cars and your injuries, talk with witnesses and write down your own memory of the event.
- Contact our office – Although contacting an attorney is not the most important thing you do after a crash, the sooner you contact our office, the sooner we can begin building your case. Evidence is quickly lost after an accident and we can often find helpful pieces of information at the scene.
We understand that most clients calling our office have already sustained injury in an accident and may or may not have followed all of these steps. To discuss what steps you took after your accident and what you should do next, call our office at [nap_phone id=”LOCAL-CT-NUMBER-1″] for a free consultation.
Get Full And Fair Compensation For Your Car Accident Injuries In Miami
It is common for insurance companies to try and convince accident victims to accept a lowball settlement offer. Additionally, insurers also will negotiate to reduce the result you receive. Thankfully, you can rely on us to combat these types of tactics.
We know how to identify all the costs of your injuries, including:
- Past, present and future medical costs
- Lost income
- Property damage
- Permanent scarring, burns or disfigurement
- Loss of life enjoyment
The catastrophic injuries and wrongful deaths that can come from a motor vehicle accident can be devastating enough to change the life of the victim and their family. As your personal injury lawyers, our goal is to help you find a swift and fair outcome to your injury claim. We take the time to sit with you and understand the unique details of your claim to help build your strongest possible claim for compensation.
Car Insurance And Lawsuits
Florida has no-fault insurance, which means that in most cases, people involved in crashes will need to collect compensation from their own insurance companies, regardless of who was at fault. This public policy can be helpful when injuries and property damage are relatively minor, but, often, insurance coverage is insufficient to cover the costs of serious and catastrophic injuries.
Florida’s minimum required auto accident coverage is only $10,000 for personal injury protection (PIP) and $10,000 for property damage coverage (PDC). Furthermore, the state does not require private drivers of passenger vehicles to carry bodily injury liability (BIL) coverage.
If your injuries were extensive and you were involved in a crash with an at-fault driver who had minimal insurance coverage or no insurance at all, you will need the help of an experienced, skilled personal injury lawyer to evaluate the possibility of filing a lawsuit to get the compensation that you need.
High-Risk Locations Of Crashes In Southern Florida
According to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), approximately 120,000 cars per day travel on Interstate 75 in Miami-Dade County. Accidents can happen there or anywhere, of course, but certain areas in and near Miami and throughout southern Florida see more than their share of accidents, including fatal crashes. These roads include:
- I-95 Express Toll – Little River
- I-95 in North Miami
- NW 79th Street – West Little River
- NW 54th Street – Miami
- Okeechobee Blvd. – West Palm Beach
These are some of the most dangerous roads statistically, but certainly not the only problem areas in southern Florida or even in Miami. According to GoMapper, the following streets are among the busiest in Miami:
- Biscayne Boulevard
- South Dixie Highway
- Southwest 8th Street
- West Flagler Street
- North Kendall Drive
- Southwest 40th Street
- Northwest 2nd Avenue
- Northeast 2nd Avenue
- Southwest 88th Street
- Coral Way
- Northwest 7th Avenue
- Northwest 27th Avenue
- West Dixie Highway
- Northwest 72nd Avenue
- Brickell Avenue
- Southwest 72nd Street
- Southwest 137th Avenue
- Bird Road
- Southwest 107th Avenue
Your auto accident may have happened right in front of your house, on one of these busy streets or on one of the region’s expressways, such as the Airport Expressway (State Road or SR 112), Palmetto Expressway (SR 826), Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) or Florida’s Turnpike Homestead Extension (SR 836). Some crashes on these and other well-traveled roads in the Miami area occur at high speeds; others occur in slow-moving highly congested traffic.
Statistics Showing Florida’s Traffic Hazards
Looking more broadly at the entire state’s traffic accidents, we can gauge hazards with a glance at some numbers, as follows:
- FDOT typically tallies more than 3000 traffic fatalities per year, including 3763 in 2021.
- An online organization known as SmartAsset has reported that Florida’s number of traffic deaths per year is about 1.4 per 100 million miles of driving.
According to SmartAsset, Florida’s percentage of traffic deaths is among the highest in the country. This organization also ranks Florida’s drivers as the fourth worst in the nation, based on multiple measures. (See source).
Types Of Accidents; Sources Of Compensation
Crashes vary greatly in their configurations, including:
- Head-on collisions
- Rear-end collisions
- Sideswipes
- Crashes involving fatigued, distracted or drunk drivers (DUI accidents)
- Intersection collisions
- Crashes affecting bicyclists and pedestrians
- Car-motorcycle crashes
- Commercial truck accidents
- Crashes involving high speeds, running red lights and other traffic violations
- Crashes resulting in serious, catastrophic and fatal injuries
A prompt investigation is critical to protect injured people’s rights to recover compensation from their own insurance, other drivers’ insurance or grossly negligent drivers themselves. Sometimes, auto manufacturers or government agencies (such as municipalities) may be held accountable for defective car parts, signage or road maintenance.
Common Injuries After A Car Accident
Car accidents can result in many different types of injuries or end in fatalities. Some injuries are more common than others, such as:
- Whiplash and other neck and back injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Fractures and amputation
- Lacerations and bruising
Understanding your injuries, the medical treatment you need and your prognosis for the future are all critical to your personal injury claim. We will pursue compensation based on your injuries and your future medical needs.
Call Our Car Accident Attorney In Miami To Maximize Your Claim Today
A car accident only takes a moment to change your life forever. If you or a loved one suffered injuries due to someone else’s actions, let us help you fight to maximize the compensation you receive for your injuries.
Contact our Miami office by calling [nap_phone id=”LOCAL-REGULAR-NUMBER-1″] or emailing us to schedule your free initial consultation today.
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