Areas Served
Motor vehicle accidents are among the leading causes of injury in Pennsylvania, including injuries to drivers, passengers, and non-occupants like pedestrians and cyclists. The injuries caused by vehicle collisions can be severe and result in long-term or permanent impairment. Fortunately, victims can seek compensation for their injuries through auto insurance claims and sometimes personal injury lawsuits.
If you were injured in a vehicle crash in Norvelt, PA, contact Stine & Associates, P.C., for a free case evaluation with a highly qualified member of our legal team. We’ll review the accident that caused your injuries and help you explore your options for seeking the compensation you need.
Types of Motor Vehicle Accidents We Handle in Norvelt
Our firm handles various types of motor vehicle accidents in Norvelt, PA, including:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
Motor vehicle accidents can also be broken down into different categories depending on how the accident occurred. These accident types are common:
- Head-on collisions often result in the most severe or fatal injuries due to the forces involved.
- Rear-end collisions are some of the most frequent and often cause neck and back injuries.
- Side-impact collisions include both sideswipe accidents and T-bone collisions.
- Rollover accidents are particularly dangerous and often lead to traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and crushed limbs.
- Single-vehicle accidents may be caused by poor road conditions or mechanical failures that cause you to lose control of your vehicle.
- Multi-vehicle accidents typically result in more complex cases, as multiple at-fault parties and victims fight over liability and compensation.
Motor Vehicle Accident Causes
Motor vehicle accidents can have many causes, most of which have to do with the negligence of a driver involved in the crash. Negligence simply refers to a party acting contrary to how a reasonable person in a similar situation would have acted. For example, a reasonable person knows that drinking and driving leads to auto accidents, and so they wouldn’t get behind the wheel of a vehicle while intoxicated.
In addition to drunk driving, driver negligence can also take the form of drowsy driving, distracted driving, aggressive driving, speeding, or driving too fast for conditions. If these actions contributed to the accident, you could hold the at-fault driver liable for your injuries.
However, not every accident is caused by a driver. Vehicle manufacturers can be liable if defective products, such as faulty brakes, cause accidents. Vehicle maintenance providers can be liable if poor maintenance contributed to a vehicle component failing. And government entities can be liable if poor road conditions, like large potholes or faded road lines, were contributing factors.
Common Motor Vehicle Accident Injuries
Injuries sustained in motor vehicle accidents can be devastating, sometimes resulting in lifelong impairment. Common and severe injuries seen in these cases include:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Whiplash and soft tissue injuries
- Broken bones
- Internal organ damage
- Lacerations and burns
- Psychological injuries
Seeking fair compensation for some of these injuries can be tricky, especially if they aren’t visible. For example, whiplash and other soft tissue injuries aren’t always visible to medical imaging devices, such as X-rays, so your lawyer will have to rely on medical professional testimony to establish the severity and extent of your injuries. Additionally, it can be particularly challenging to prove depression, anxiety, or other psychological injuries caused by a car accident without expert testimony.
Steps To Take After a Motor Vehicle Accident
After getting in a motor vehicle accident in Norvelt, PA, it’s crucial that you seek medical treatment, report the accident to the police, and notify your insurance company. However, you should also take these additional steps to strengthen your case after leaving the accident scene:
- Continue Medical Treatment: Follow up with your treatment until you fully recover or are not expected to recover further. This will help prevent the insurance company from claiming that your injuries aren’t severe because you didn’t take them seriously.
- Track Medical and Service Bills: Keep track of all bills related to the accident, including medical bills and vehicle repair bills. Your lawyer will use them when calculating the value of your case.
- Direct Insurance Adjusters to Your Lawyer: If an insurance adjuster contacts you for a statement about the accident, politely direct them to your lawyer. The insurance adjuster’s job is to get you to say something they can use to deny or devalue your claim.
- Keep Detailed Notes: Write down everything you remember about the accident, including when and where it occurred, the direction you were heading, and where the other vehicle struck you from.
- Contact an Injury Lawyer: One of the best ways to maximize your compensation is to hire a motor vehicle accident lawyer to handle your case while you focus on recovering from your injuries.
Seeking Compensation After a Motor Vehicle Accident in Norvelt, PA
Pennsylvania is a choice no-fault state for auto insurance, meaning drivers can choose to file a no-fault insurance claim with their own policy or a fault-based claim against the at-fault party’s policy, depending on the type of auto insurance policy they have. The minimum amounts of insurance that drivers must have in Pennsylvania are:
- $5,000 in personal injury protection for bodily injuries sustained by you or your passengers
- $15,000 for bodily injuries caused to another person
- $30,000 for bodily injuries caused to more than one person
- $5,000 for damage caused to someone else’s property by the accident
The two types of auto insurance policies available in PA are limited-tort and full-tort.
A limited-tort policy primarily focuses on claims filed with your insurance provider to cover medical bills and lost wages for you and your passengers, regardless of who was at fault for the accident. With this type of policy, you typically cannot sue the at-fault party for pain and suffering unless you sustained a “serious injury” as defined by your policy.
A full-tort policy lets you pursue compensation for pain and suffering and other non-economic losses through lawsuits filed against the at-fault party. Non-economic losses are the intangible impact your injuries have on your life.
How Long Do You Have To File a Motor Vehicle Accident Lawsuit?
Under Pennsylvania’s statute of limitations for personal injury cases, motor vehicle accident victims have two years to file lawsuits against the parties who are at fault for their injuries. If you miss this deadline, the courts will prevent you from recovering compensation through a lawsuit.
While this deadline doesn’t apply to auto insurance claims, it’s always important to keep it in mind in case a lawsuit becomes necessary. For example, you may need to file a lawsuit if the at-fault party’s insurance company refuses to accept your claim or doesn’t offer a fair settlement, or if you’re pursuing non-economic damages for a serious injury. If you miss the deadline and cannot file a lawsuit, you will have lost your best leverage in negotiations with the insurance company.
Contact Our Motor Vehicle Accident Lawyer Serving Norvelt, PA
If you were in a motor vehicle accident in Norvelt, PA, you need an injury lawyer who is committed to helping victims seek compensation for their injuries. Attorney Cindy Stine has been representing car, truck, and motorcycle accident victims in the Norvelt area for more than 30 years and has a track record of successfully recovering compensation through negotiated settlements and trial awards.
Contact Stine & Associates, P.C., for a free consultation with an experienced member of our legal team. We’ll review the accident that caused your injuries, explain Pennsylvania’s choice no-fault auto insurance system, identify whether additional parties could be liable, and answer any questions you have about your case.