The most important things to do immediately after your auto accident are to contact an Indianapolis car accident lawyer, call 911, obtain medical treatment, talk to no one except the police about what happened, and notify your own insurance company. Take photographs of the vehicles, the scene, and your injuries if you can.
Fountain Injury Law, P.C. can help you recover compensation after your accident. Our Indiana car accident lawyers are available 24/7 and offer free case evaluations. Call our local Indianapolis office (317) 917-7873 or our toll-free number (888) 242-4878. You can also detail your car accident claim by filling out our online contact form.
As an Indianapolis personal injury lawyer, I, Merry Fountain, will personally provide you with a free legal consultation based on your police report. I will not delegate our consultation to someone else. I will help you deal with your car accident claim quickly and offer free legal advice during your consultation.
If I represent you, I will:
When the negligence of others causes injuries in motor vehicle accidents, Indiana law entitles victims to compensation for the damages they sustain. While in many instances these cases resolve without a lawsuit, anyone hurt in an accident should retain a car attorney as soon as they can. To schedule a free case evaluation with Indianapolis car accident attorney Merry Fountain, call our office today or send us an email through our online contact form.
Although drunk driving remains a leading cause of fatal collisions, according to recent distracted driving statistics shared by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 3,450 individuals were killed by a distracted motorist in 2016. More and more people are texting and driving and multi-tasking in other ways, sometimes with fatal consequences. Drivers can exhibit many forms of negligence behind the wheel, and many common traffic violations cause serious accidents that leave victims with injuries that can damage them for weeks, months, or even the rest of their lives. Common causes of car crashes, in addition to drunk and distracted driving, include:
In some cases, poor vehicle design, manufacture, or a failure on the part of the manufacturer to warn consumers about an easily mitigated risk result in accidents. In these instances, victims may recover compensation from the vehicle manufacturer.
Similarly, failure on the part of a private party or government agency to design safe roads or adequately maintain them can cause accidents. Hazardous road conditions that may result in negligence on the party of the person or entity responsible for the road include potholes, inadequate drainage, missing or inadequate signs, overgrown vegetation, and inadequate lighting. When these hazards result in accidents, however, the law typically gives victims much shorter time periods in which to file claims. Consequently, anyone hurt in an accident caused by a hazardous road condition should speak to an Indianapolis auto accident lawyer immediately.
Accidents resulting from unreasonably dangerous roads or vehicle defects often involve single vehicles, but people hurt in single-vehicle accidents often do not even think that someone else could have caused their crashes. For this reason, talk to a lawyer after an accident, because failing to recognize the cause of an accident within a certain amount of time could result in the inability to recover compensation for your losses. Keep in mind that because we offer free consultations, you risk nothing by reviewing the facts of your case with an attorney—but doing so could result in you obtaining significant compensation.
In order to determine who is liable for the injuries that result from an accident, it is necessary to determine the cause of the auto accident. An experienced Indianapolis car accident lawyer will know where to look to find evidence of fault, and can help victims obtain the maximum possible settlement or award for their injuries. Below are some of the more common sources of legal liability in a car accident claim or injury claim.
If you are involved in an auto accident in Indianapolis, follow these tips:
People injured in car accidents may experience significant losses, both economic and noneconomic damages. These tend to include medical expenses, vehicle repairs, pain and suffering, lost income, and lost quality of life, just to name a few. In many instances, these losses can continue accruing for years, particularly in cases in which victims cannot return to the work they did before their accidents or if they require ongoing medical care. In accident cases involving catastrophic injuries like traumatic brain injuries or spinal cord injuries, the compensation victims obtain can rise well into the millions of dollars.
Because of these potentially significant losses, car accident injury victims must do everything they can to protect their legal rights. Car accident victims can protect their legal rights in the days and weeks after an accident by:
Fountain Law Firm’s Indianapolis car accident attorneys will help you maximize your compensation, call us today, we are available 24/7. We offer free consultations, and will not charge unless we win or settle your case.
If an insurance company is trying to make any of the above assertions or has offered less than you need, you should never accept an offer. Once you accept any settlement from an insurer, you are giving up your rights to ever seek compensation for those injuries again. Therefore, if you later realize that your settlement does not cover future medical treatments, medical bills or other losses, you will be responsible for covering those costs yourself.
Be sure to discuss your case with an auto accident lawyer before filing your injury claim. There are several reasons why you should call an auto accident attorney before you file an insurance claim. First, it can be difficult to know the full value of your damages if you are unfamiliar with car accident cases. An attorney can look at all of your past and potential future losses to determine how much you truly deserve. Additionally, insurance companies often will not cover losses such as pain and suffering or emotional distress. If you sustained a serious injury that resulted in severe pain and trauma, an insurance claim may never be enough to cover your losses. A skilled lawyer can advise when filing a legal claim is a better course of action to protect your rights as an accident victim.
Insurance companies are constantly trying to limit liability since they are concerned about their profits like any other type of business. This means that they will find ways to limit an offer whenever possible. The following are only some ways an insurance adjuster can limit the value of your offer:
You can call my office 24/7—my consultations are always free, in-depth, and given by me personally. I will meet with you in your home if that is more convenient than my office. And I never charge a fee until you win your personal injury settlement.
Call our toll free number at (888) 242-HURT (4878) for a free, immediate consultation with an experienced Indianapolis accident lawyer.
“Merry is a very good attorney. She gets back with you right away when you call. I definitely feel you can count on Merry. This is the 2nd time I had called on her to represent me, and I have no complaints. If I ever need her services in the future, I am confident she will be there for me.” -Terri A.