According to a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 71% of the reported crashes in 2018 were non-injury. Making a total of over 4.8 million crash cases that year.
A non-injury car accident, as the name suggests, is a crash case where no-one sustains an injury. However, sustaining no injury is not equivalent to sustaining no damages.
It is noteworthy that even a minor scratch or dent to any party involved in the crash can be claimed in the court of law. And particularly, the case would be ruled under the class of non-injury car accident.
If you’ve been in such a crash, then you probably want to know who you can hold liable for the crash and whether a personal injury law firm may be able to help you make a claim to get some financial compensation to help towards vehicle repair costs, medical bills, etc.
Keep reading to learn more.
First Things First…
Being in a car crash is a distressing situation in itself. You might not feel any pain or injury right after the crash. However, it is possible that you may start to feel physical or mental problems a few days or weeks later.
The very first thing that you ought to be doing right after the crash is investigating the crash site. You must make sure that you or your fellow passengers, or even other road users are not injured. If anyone is, you must immediately seek medical attention.
Once you ensure that everyone is fine and well conscious, you must try to figure out the fault. Of course, there can be plenty of reasons for a road crash. For example, you might have aced your driving test, but you can never be sure about the other drivers on the road. It could be either the other driver’s fault. Or there could be other environmental factors at play.
Establishing Fault…
When you start to investigate the case, you must make sure that you involve the police as well. Perhaps, you’ll need a report from the officers to make your case in the court of law.
It is quite important that you speak unbiased truth when filing the case with the police. You should also inform your non injury car accident lawyer about the crash and seek their assistance as soon as possible. Your lawyer would also suggest that you speak carefully and do not try to mold the facts for your own convenience.
Moving further, you should also try to collect as many pieces of evidence as possible. For when you’ll be filing for the claim, you’ll need all the evidence to prove your case.
Holding Liability…
Once you have hold of all the pieces of evidence, you must be able to establish the at-fault party. And it needs no mention that you should file your claim against the at-fault party, for they are to be held responsible for the damages.
Now, it is also noteworthy that there might be instances where you cannot hold any individual liable for the crash. For example, if there are no proper markings on the road, the other driver has no fault in it. Likewise, if the road is damaged, which caused the cars to skid on the road, you cannot hold any driver liable for it.
In such cases, as your attorney would also suggest, you must file the claim against the negligent agency. For example, government agencies are responsible for maintaining the road condition. So, you can hold the agency(s) liable for the damages that you incur.
Filing the Case…
The last thing you ought to be doing is preparing to file the claim with the liable party. Technically, you’ll be filing the case with the insurer of the liable party.
When preparing your case, you must carefully include all the damages that you’ve incurred. For example, car repairs, which can be handled by the experts at Muskego Auto Collision Repair Services. It’s important to note, however, that since it is a non-injury claim, you cannot claim for any medical assistance that you may have sought.
The rules for compensating a non-injury claim is not exactly the same as those for processing a personal injury claim. So, most likely the procedure won’t also be the same. It is yet better that you consult with your attorney to help you with the filing procedure. After all, they know the best way to get you the rightful compensation for your damages.
To sum it up, establishing liability and filing the claim for a non-injury car accident are relatively easier as compared with a personal injury claim. However, it is still advised to have an experienced non-injury car accident lawyer by your side, just to ensure that you are not denied your rightful compensation.
