“Accidents” is a broad category representing auto accidents, truck accidents, bike accidents, motorcycle accidents and more. In fact, it doesn’t need to be moving vehicle accidents. Accidents happen all over society. Elevator accidents happen. So do construction accidents. Broadly, the term is used to represent when another person caused harm.
If you are searching for a lawyer for an accident, Injury Lawyer Database has the statistics. Both auto and motor vehicle accidents are categories we can and do keep statistics on. The ILD stats are for circuit court, meaning the larger, more serious injury cases.
Let’s give a specific example of someone else’s hypothetical experience.
Alex R. was driving on a somewhat major Maryland road. The road had two lanes on either side, was relatively flat, and had traffic lights roughly every half mile or so. The weather was grey, but not raining. It was 11am and it had rained earlier in the morning, though most water had dried. Ahead Alex saw a light turn yellow. He began decelerating, bringing himself to a stop at the appropriate spot. He was the first car at the light, there were no car next to him, or across from him coming the other way. Alex looked up to see the front of a truck bearing down on him. The truck slammed into him.
Alex awoke in the hospital, having been airlifted to Maryland Schock Trauma. He had a slight compression fracture of his vertebrae. In addition, he had what some might generally refer to as whiplash. There was numbness and tingling of the legs. The neck pain was significant. Although surgery was contemplated for the back, eventually it ruled out by the Shock Trauma Team. Surgery was performed by Andy Egleseder to fix a broken ulna and lunate bone. Recovery time was expected to be at least four months. Alex was in healthcare himself as an X-Ray tech. It would be some time before he could go back to work. Even more time until he could go back without pain.
Alex’s first call was not to a lawyer, of course. It was to a number of buddies to relate what had happened. (25 year old Alex’s parents had been called by police from Alex’s cell phone. Alex’s parents had called his girlfriend Caitlin.) In fact, Alex thought he might not even need a lawyer.
Alex received a call from an insurance company (name not to be disclosed). The representative, a woman we will call Jill, suggested the injury needed appropriate attention and she hoped he was resting. She was incredibly friendly. Although she didn’t actually say it, she really seemed to give Alex an indication she would take care of him. Briefly, Alex felt pretty good. Caitlin told him they needed to call a lawyer, but Alex didn’t think so. At least not yet.
On their third conversation, only five days removed from the accident, Jill said she was excited to be able to give Alex a check for $18,000. “It’s really going to help you get back on your feet.” Caitlin was able to talk him into trying to find a lawyer. The best way to find an accident injury lawyer is to review statistics based on real cases, such as from the Injury lawyer Database. The statistics helped give Caitlin and Alex an idea of the best accident injury lawyers. Eventually, in order to really make the best decision, they reached out and asked to be put in touch with the best accident lawyer for their case.
When all was said and done, Alex had medical bills of $42,000 and lost wages of about 17,000. His car was totaled, costing over $14,000. It was only much later that Alex even found out it was a dumptruck accident. The dump truck that hit him was owned by a local waste management firm. The firm had significant insurance, having been through other dumptruck accidents before. The settlement was confidential, but $120,000 would not be out of the realm of possibility.
The links below go to specific articles and information on various types of accidents.