Accidents happen all the time, but most people never stop to consider how traumatic and life-changing they can be to those involved. Over 30 million people in the United States are injured in accidents annually. Nearly 10 percent of these reported accidents, along with untold numbers of injuries resulting from unreported accidents, require hospital care. Most accidents are due to someone’s bad behavior –negligence, recklessness, or worst of all intentionally unsafe actions. If you are injured due to another’s bad behavior, there are ways you may hold them liable for your injuries. Nearly 400,000 personal injury suits are filed for just such a reason every year, and if you have been injured in an accident you should contact a Hemet Personal Injury Attorney to learn if you may be eligible to receive compensation for you injuries by filing a similar claim.
Hemet, a growing town of 84,000, has a number of risk factors which make it more likely someone in the area will be involved in an accident than in most other parts of the country. There are 3 major freeways – the 15, the 10, and the 215 – that surround the city, as well as California State Routes 74 and 79 that run directly through it. Additionally, over half the residents with jobs commute to other cities for work regularly, and Hemet’s home county of Riverside is a main throughway for truckers hauling commercial cargo in the state. The city has also seen a plethora of new construction to accommodate new residents and boasts hiking trails and the Ramona Amphitheatre to draw in tourists to the area. These factors come together to make Hemet a multi-dimensional town, but a town full of risk factors that could lead to accidents, injuries, and even deaths on any given day.
What Situations Allow for Personal Injury Claims in Hemet?
Anyone who is injured by someone else’s bad behavior, whether the actions were negligent, reckless, or intentional, can bring a personal injury claim to recover damages from the wrongdoer. The injuries do not have to be physical or even proven by concrete evidence such as receipts or paystubs; emotional, mental, psychological, financial, and physical injuries all count as damages for purposes of personal injury claims. Common situations giving rise to personal injury claims include:
- Accidents involving motor vehicles, trucks, motorcycles, pedestrians, and/or bicycles;
- Slip and falls;
- Dog bites;
- Brain injuries;
- Premises liability;
- Wrongful death actions;
- Survival actions;
- Nursing home abuse and neglect; and
- Construction site accidents.
It’s wise to contact a Hemet Personal Injury Attorney to learn if the circumstances of your accident may allow you to file a personal injury lawsuit.
How Do I Win My Personal Injury Case?
Personal injury victims usually try to recover under the legal theory that another’s negligence resulted in their injuries. To prove negligence, you must prove it is more likely than not that:
- Defendant owed you a legal duty of care;
- Defendant breached their duty by act or omission; and
- Defendant’s breach caused you harm.
If these elements can be shown, a defendant is legally presumed negligent and, unless they can raise a valid legal defense, will be responsible for damages the victim suffered.
Negligence is always a valid way to recover personal injury damages, but in some cases easier avenues to establish liability exist. Some personal injuries, such as dog bites, adopt the less stringent strict liability standard for establishing liability. Others, such as truck accidents, allow a presumption of negligence through negligence per se if defendant’s injurious actions broke a law, rule, or regulation. To understand how best to proceed and if any special circumstances apply in your case, contact an experienced Hemet Personal Injury Attorney to learn more.
What Can I Recover for My Personal Injury Claim?
It’s common to wonder what your Hemet personal injury claim is worth. If you can prove a defendant’s negligence caused your injuries, they are liable for injuries you can prove in court. You may receive compensatory damages, which are designed to address economic and noneconomic harms caused by defendant’s negligence. Economic harms often include lost wages, property damages, and medical expenses. Noneconomic harms, on the other hand, compensate for less concrete injuries like loss of consortium, scarring, and mental anguish.
If some cases victims may also be eligible to receive punitive damages designed to punish a defendant’s reprehensible behavior. Because of the higher burden of proof, as well as the additional elements regarding defendant’s state of mind that must be present, these damages can be tricky to secure and should be approached with the help of a skilled Hemet Personal Injury Lawyer to avoid legal missteps and potentially losing out on a lucrative damage award.
What If I am Partly Responsible for The Accident?
California employs the theory of comparative negligence, so even if you were partly to blame for the accident that injured you, you may still recover some damages. Once a court review the facts, they assign each party involved a percentage of fault. Any award you were given is reduced by the percentage of responsibility you bear for the accident.
What Should I Do If I am involved in an Accident in Hemet?
No matter how minor they may seem, accidents can be traumatic and make the thought of being proactive immediately afterwards seem daunting. Though it may feel overwhelming, taking a few small steps can make a big difference for your physical health as well as the health of any personal injury claim you may file in Hemet. Additionally, California requires you to file a personal injury claim for recovery within 2 years from the date of your injury or else you are barred by the statute of limitation and permanently forfeit the right to recover damages in court.
Seek Medical Attention
Get medical care as soon as you’ve been involved in an accident. Besides receiving treatment for obvious injuries, you need to be evaluated for injuries you may not know you sustained because symptoms have not yet presented. Besides preventing further damage to your health, getting medical treatment and abiding by treatment plans can also strengthen personal injury claims you make in the future.
Document Your Damages
If you have been involved in an accident, you want to gather evidence to substantiate the harms you’ve suffered so you can prove them later in court. If possible, photograph the accident scene and your injuries. Get contact information for any witnesses. If law enforcement responds to the accident, cooperate and get a police report from the local police department, local courthouse, or your insurer. Keep copies of all medical records related to your injuries, as well as all receipts, paystubs, or other evidence showing expenses you incurred as a result of the accident and your injuries.
Contact a Hemet Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one was hurt in an accident, contact the experienced Hemet Personal Injury Attorneys at Walton Law today. Our team of attorneys has years of experience delivering customized, comprehensive representation for victims just like you and securing millions of dollars in compensation for their injuries. Contact us 24 hours a day, 7 days by calling (866) 338-7079 or using our Contact Us page to schedule your risk free, confidential case review today. The initial consultation is free, there is no obligation, and you do not pay until we win your case. Let our knowledgeable Walton Law attorneys evaluate your situation, answer your questions, and help start you on the path to maximum possible recovery so you can get your life back on track after being injured.