I, Fredhsu, Tobu World Square New York Accident Scene 1, CC BY-SA 3.0
An automobile accident is the last thing you wish to cope with in New York. Yet occasionally, you have to. After an accident, a convoluted process involving legalese and esoteric injury compensation procedures begins.
However, you can simplify matters by gaining additional knowledge and seeking legal counsel from the finzfirm.com/car-accident-lawyer/. Here are some fundamentals you should know to understand better the procedure for receiving personal injury compensation and what it means to you to fight for it.
A fault or no-fault state?
For auto accidents, New York is a “no-fault” state. In a no-fault state, you can directly file an insurance claim with your auto insurer to receive compensation for your accident. This is known as a first-party claim. According to these decisions, you typically cannot seek compensation by submitting a third-party claim with the insurance carrier of the other drivers. Instead, you must rely on your insurance to help you recover financial damages up to the policy limit, and you can only deviate from the “no-fault” system in certain instances discussed below.
What are the circumstances for filing a car accident lawsuit in a New York court?
You are qualified to bring a civil case against the person who caused the accident if the injuries you incurred in an auto accident are severe enough to lead to temporary or permanent disability, paralysis, disfigurement, and other catastrophic symptoms. However, this window of opportunity won’t last forever. The statute of limitations in New York is three years for property damage and personal injury lawsuits. This is the period within which one may file a lawsuit.
What if you share the fault of the accident?
According to New York’s “comparative fault” laws, the car accident compensation amount is divided according to who was more to blame for the accident. For instance, if your accident caused $10,000 in damages but you were held 20% accountable because you neglected to indicate a turn, you can only seek compensation from the other driver for $8,000. But remember that you must have a New York car accident lawyer on your side. This is due to the lengthy nature of these lawsuits and the often-complicated legal processes.
What is the value of your compensation?
The answer to this issue is complicated since it relies on the severity of your wounds and how they have affected your body. The problem is that it can take some time before the total cost of an automobile accident is known. For instance, you might assume you’re okay if you’re rear-ended and your only initial symptoms are minor, like backache.
However, back discomfort may indicate a severe underlying injury, such as harm to the facet joints that link your spine’s vertebrae or spinal discs. Such wounds can impair your capacity to work and generate revenue by causing chronic discomfort and irreversible incapacity. Ultimately, you should receive compensation for all of your accident-related expenses, including immediate and long-term expenses.
The bottom line
Getting a knowledgeable attorney who vigorously defends your rights at every stage of the procedure is the best way to maximize automobile accident compensation.