When you sustain a serious injury in a collision, it can upend your life and place a financial strain on you and your family, but you have the right under your insurance contract and personal injury laws to demand restitution for your losses. While taking this step may not put you in the exact position you were in before the incident, it can allow you to claim what is rightfully yours. The process is complicated, so you should consider working with an experienced personal injury attorney who could handle the legal issues while you focus on healing.
A Richmond car accident lawyer at Maze Law Offices could help steer negotiations so you get a fair settlement and identify all the ways for you to receive compensation under applicable insurance policies and liability laws. We could craft a strategy to connect you with funds to pay your bills and repair or replace your damaged vehicle.
As Kentucky Revised Statutes Annotated § 189.580 explains, after a wreck, a driver needs to stop their car and exchange information with everyone else involved, such as a hurt passenger, pedestrian, bicyclist, or motorcyclist. They may have to help the injured person by calling emergency services to address the person’s physical injuries or hailing a tow truck to help remove a damaged vehicle. When the incident occurred on a major highway or ramp and no one was hurt, the driver should also move their truck out of the way of traffic to avoid further harm to others while remaining on the scene.
When someone is killed or wounded during impact, the driver is required to notify the local authorities immediately, but they may not have to do this right away when they do not have access to a working phone or their physical injuries prevent them from calling. A driver or passenger who does not report the collision to the authorities right away must do so within a reasonable time afterward or, in some cases, talk to the Kentucky State Police within 10 days.
A Richmond car accident lawyer understands how to use police reports when dealing with the insurance company and the negligent motorist, and they could also show the insurer is liable to pay compensation to the injured person because they were in an insured vehicle at the time of the incident.
Under Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 304.39-040, an injured party typically receives some form of compensation regardless of blame, meaning the injured person may be entitled to a settlement package for their economic losses, such as medical bills, up to a specific limit based on the circumstances and terms of insurance coverage. To claim these offerings, they need to prove they qualify under the policy and submit their request within a specific amount of time.
Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 304.39-230 describes some filing deadlines that apply to claims for damages made under an insurance arrangement. In most situations, an injured person has to file within four years after the accident or two years after they realize they were hurt in the crash, whichever is earlier, but when they receive basic reparation benefits from the insurer, they may have to request additional compensation within two years from the date of payment.
There are exceptions to these filing requirements that account for other circumstances, such as someone passing away because of their injuries from the collision. An injured person or their surviving family could work with a car accident lawyer in Richmond to identify what deadlines they need to meet to maximize their settlement.
When you are in a fender bender, rear-end crash, or T-bone collision, you deserve compensation for your troubles, including reimbursement for lost wages, repairs, and hospital expenses. By submitting a claim to the insurance company, you gain access to these critical funds, equipping you with what you need to rebuild.
When you are hurt in an auto wreck, reach out to a Richmond car accident lawyer at Maze Law Offices and set up a free consultation. We do not charge our clients any legal fees to handle their claims.
