Car accidents can upend your life in an instant. Suddenly, you’re having to deal with painful injuries, extended time away from your job, expensive medical bills, and lost income. You could also be suffering from emotional trauma.
Car accident victims in Arkansas do not have to accept this. They can pursue compensation from the negligent party who caused their injuries. An experienced car accident attorney from Horton Personal Injury Lawyers can explain your legal rights and options for holding other drivers accountable after they cause injuries. Contact us today for a free case review.
How Our Fayetteville Personal Injury Lawyers Help After a Car Accident
While there is no law requiring you to hire a lawyer after an auto accident, it is in your best interest to do so. You’re already dealing with enough between your injuries and trying to coordinate your return to work while scheduling medical appointments and tending to your other life responsibilities. You don’t need a complex legal claim on top of all of that.
An experienced attorney can use their knowledge of the law to protect your rights and fight for a fair outcome. When you hire Horton Personal Injury Lawyers, we:
- Explain your legal rights and options under Arkansas law during a free case evaluation
- Investigate the case to determine how the accident happened
- File your legal claims and the necessary paperwork
- Handle communications with the insurance company
- Assemble information about the full extent of your injuries
- Negotiate for maximum compensation
- Adhere to the applicable statute of limitations if it’s necessary to file a lawsuit in your case
Call us today to arrange your free consultation.
Arkansas Laws on Car Crashes
Arkansas is an at-fault state for car accidents. This means that the driver determined to be at fault for the accident is responsible for paying for the damages they cause. This is usually completed by filing a claim against the at-fault driver’s liability insurance policy. Liability insurance covers the damages a driver causes to someone else due to their negligence.
Minimum amounts of liability insurance in Arkansas are:
- $25,000 for bodily injury per person per accident
- $50,000 for bodily injury for more than one person in an accident
- $25,000 for property damage per accident
In Arkansas, if you contributed to the accident, you may still be able to recover compensation for your injuries. While some states like North Carolina follow a strict contributory negligence rule that prohibits accident victims from recovering any compensation if they contributed to an accident to any extent, in Arkansas, they can recover compensation for their injuries if they were not as much at fault or at fault to a greater degree than the defendant. However, their compensation is reduced by their degree of fault.
Arkansas law requires that any traffic accident resulting in injury, death, or apparent property damage of $3,000 or more be immediately reported to the police.
Common Causes of Car Wrecks in Fayetteville, Arkansas
Unfortunately, there is no shortage of reasons for auto collisions in Northwest Arkansas. Driver error is a leading cause of car crashes, as are the following:
- Speeding
- Distracted driving
- Driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or prescription medications
- Fatigued driving
- Running red lights or stop signs
- Failing to yield
- Dangerous lane changes
- Aggressive driving
- Following too closely
- Reckless driving
- Mechanical failures
- Vehicle defects
- Poor road maintenance
- Failing to adjust speed or driving in adverse weather conditions, or while in school or construction zones
If you were injured in a car accident that you suspect was caused by someone else’s negligence, contact our law practice today to schedule a free consultation with a compassionate Fayetteville car accident lawyer.
Common Types of Car Collisions
Car accident cases can take many forms, based on how the accident occurred, who is responsible, and the type of insurance involved. Our personal injury law firm can handle a wide variety of accident types, including:
- Head-on accidents: Head-on collisions occur when drivers traveling in opposite directions collide head-on. These accidents are often due to driver impairment, fatigue, or distractions.
- Rear-end accidents: Rear-end crashes occur when the trailing driver hits the rear of the vehicle in front of them, usually because they are distracted or tailgating.
- Distracted driving accidents: Distracted drivers are a major safety concern today. Drivers can be distracted because they are texting, calling, or emailing with their cell phone, eating or drinking, grooming, talking to passengers, or engaging in other activities that take their focus off the task of driving.
- T-bone collisions: T-bone or side-impact collisions occur when one vehicle’s front hits the side of the other vehicle, forming the letter “T.” These accidents often happen when a driver disobeys traffic laws, such as failing to yield the right-of-way.
- Multi-car crashes: Pile-up accidents involve many vehicles striking each other at different points. Because liability insurance may be limited, it may be difficult for all injury victims to recover fair compensation.
- Hit-and-run accidents: Sometimes, rather than remaining at the accident scene, reporting the incident to law enforcement, and exchanging information with the other driver, a driver will flee the scene, leaving the accident victim behind with injuries and confusion about how to receive compensation for their damages.
- Pedestrian accidents: Car accidents involving pedestrians, bicyclists, or other road users often cause severe injuries due to the lack of protection these personal injury victims have against large and heavy vehicles.
- Uninsured motorist crashes: If the at-fault driver is not insured, you may need to file a claim with your own uninsured motorist coverage policy.
- Rideshare accidents: Lyft and Uber accidents can involve different legal complexities, whether you were a passenger, another motorist hit by a rideshare driver, or a pedestrian.
- Defective product accidents: Sometimes, car crashes occur because a defective vehicle component causes a mechanical failure. These cases involve complex product liability laws and legal theories to hold the part manufacturer responsible for resulting injuries.
Common Car Accident Injuries
While some car accident victims can leave the scene with a few minor scrapes and bruises, many others are not as fortunate. They may suffer from serious injuries, such as:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Neck and back injuries
- Amputations
- Internal injuries
- Severe burns
- Broken bones
- Soft tissue injuries
- Psychological injuries, such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
If you have suffered any of these injuries, seek medical attention immediately. Your health is the most important priority.
Evidence That Can Help Establish Fault in a Traffic Accident
Under Arkansas personal injury law, the accident victim has the legal burden of proof. They must show that the other driver caused the accident and is legally responsible for it. You will need strong evidence to prove these things, and our auto accident attorneys can help with the evidence-gathering process, obtaining compelling information, such as:
- Police reports: If law enforcement responded to the scene, they may have prepared an accident report that memorializes the other driver’s statement, road conditions at the time of the accident, the presence of skid marks (or lack thereof), whether the other driver was issued a traffic citation, and other critical information.
- Automobile damage: Often, the location and extent of property damage can help reveal how the crash occurred. For example, if one vehicle has damage to the front-end while the other has damage to the back, this may indicate a rear-end collision.
- Video footage: Various cameras could have recorded the accident without you even realizing it, such as traffic cameras, dash cams, or surveillance cameras. This footage could help prove how the crash occurred and who is legally responsible.
- Accident scene photos: Pictures that you or law enforcement took at the accident scene could reveal how the crash happened.
- Witness statements: Objective witnesses, such as other drivers or people on the side of the road who observed the accident, could explain what they saw.
- Electronic evidence: In today’s modern age, a lot of information is automatically recorded and stored digitally. For example, many vehicles have event data recorders in them that record a vehicle’s speed, brake patterns, GPS location, and other critical data immediately before a crash.
- Reports from an accident reconstructionist: Accident reconstruction specialists use objective data to create visual representations of how the accident likely occurred.
Types of Financial Compensation You Can Recover After a Car Accident
Car accidents can have a dramatic effect on the lives of victims and their families. Arkansas personal injury law allows victims to seek compensation for the economic and non-economic damages they sustained because of the accident. Economic damages include direct financial losses caused by the accident, such as:
- Medical bills you initially incurred when you sought emergency medical treatment, diagnostic imaging, and ambulance rides
- Payment for ongoing medical care
- Anticipated future medical expenses
- Lost wages and reduced earning capacity
- Property damage to repair or replace your motor vehicle
Economic damages can often be demonstrated by medical bills, lost wage statements, and auto mechanic receipts.
Non-economic damages are less tangible and involve harm that is more difficult to quantify, such as:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Permanent disability or impairment
- Reduced quality of life
An experienced attorney can help gather evidence of these and other losses and fight for fair compensation for them.
Statute of Limitations for Car Accident Lawsuits in Arkansas
Statutes of limitations are the time limits that people have to file a lawsuit after legal grounds for one arise. In Arkansas, you have three years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault driver or other responsible party. If you miss this deadline, you can be barred from recovering compensation for your losses.
What to Do After a Car Accident in Fayetteville, Arkansas
If you were injured in a car crash in Fayetteville, take these steps to protect your health and legal claim.
- Check for injuries: Check yourself, your passengers, and the occupants of the other vehicle for any injuries.
- Call 911: Call emergency services to report the accident and request an ambulance if anyone was injured.
- Exchange information: Ask the other driver for their name, address, telephone number, and insurance information with the other driver.
- Take pictures: If possible, use your cell phone camera to take pictures of the damage, the accident scene, road conditions, weather conditions, and your injuries.
- Talk to witnesses: Ask any witnesses for their names and contact information.
- Be careful what you say: Be polite when talking to the police and the other driver, but be careful what you say. Don’t admit fault or dismiss the severity of your injuries.
- Seek medical attention: Obtain medical care as soon as possible. Some injuries may appear minor at first but worsen over time, so don’t dismiss symptoms of injury. Follow all of your doctor’s orders and limitations. Keep all of your medical records, as they can serve as critical evidence later.
- Do not talk about the accident: Avoid posting about the accident on social media or talking about it to anyone other than your lawyer.
- Contact an experienced car accident lawyer: A car accident lawyer can investigate your case, protect you from insurance adjusters and deceptive tactics, and fight for the compensation you deserve. Look for a lawyer with trial experience, as this can give you greater leverage when trying to negotiate an insurance settlement.
Schedule a Free Consultation with an Experienced Car Accident Lawyer
If someone else’s negligence caused your injuries, don’t hesitate to contact Horton Personal Injury Lawyers. We have extensive experience dealing with insurance companies and accident investigations. We can fight for the money you deserve while you focus on your recovery. Call us today to get started with your personal injury claim.
