Moses Lake Car Accident Lawyer
Being involved in a car crash can leave you with severe injuries and major damage to your vehicle. Medical and repair bills will skyrocket quickly, leaving you wondering what to do when the accident was not your fault. Trying to heal and get your car replaced puts tremendous stress on you and your family that you should not face alone.
At Calbom & Schwab, we know you are overwhelmed and in need of expert legal guidance from a superior Moses Lake car accident lawyer. You do not have to handle the insurance companies and legal burdens by yourself when you schedule a free consultation in our office today.
Calbom & Schwab Will Build a Robust Case for You
Washington is an at-fault state when it comes to automotive insurance. This means the person who caused the accident must pay for the injuries and damages they caused to others. Your first step will be to file an insurance claim, but working with insurance adjusters can be frustrating and stressful.
If your bills exhaust the other driver’s policy coverage, you will need to consider filing a personal injury lawsuit to recover the compensation you deserve. Facing the legal system without a trusted attorney is confusing, and you risk having blame put on you by aggressive defense lawyers. To avoid all these concerns, turn your case over to Calbom & Schwab.
Our Moses Lake auto accident lawyers will listen to your story during a free case evaluation, then discuss your options. When you hire us, we begin an in-depth investigation to identify all at-fault parties, how the crash happened, and how your injuries have affected your life. We make your case courtroom-ready from the start and show our opponents that we will fight hard for you.
How Our Car Accident Lawyers Manage Your Claim
In Moses Lake, WA, and across the state, we focus on providing excellent service to all our clients. For nearly 70 years, we have offered ethical, compassionate, and detailed legal representation to our fellow citizens. We treat every case as if it were our only one, and we help you rest easy while we handle the legal battles.
In addition, we offer you the chance to pursue your car accident case without worry based on our services.
We Determine Who Is at Fault
A key task for our car accident attorneys is examining all aspects of the wreck so we can determine all potentially responsible parties. Auto manufacturers, government agencies, repair shops, and even nearby homeowners could have contributed to the crash that caused your suffering and loss.
We will research all avenues for securing the maximum compensation available for you.
We Assess Your Injuries and Other Damages
When you hire our team, you gain access to our network of medical and other experts who can advise us on your case. We can connect you with doctors to treat your injuries and provide an estimate of your future treatment costs. We have relationships with auto shops that provide repair estimates and fix your vehicle quickly. We can even hire an independent accident reconstructionist to help us explain the crucial events in your crash.
All this information supports our claim of negligence and your right to be reimbursed for your damages. We create a list of demands that includes every penny of how the accident affected you. Our Moses Lake car accident lawyers work tirelessly to secure a full financial recovery for you.
We Push Back Against the Bad Faith Tactics of Insurance Companies
Insurance providers like taking in money from premiums but do not like paying it out for claims. They will use many sneaky tricks to delay responding to you, offer you too little money, or shift the blame to you. Your auto accident lawyer from Calbom & Schwab will fight back and negotiate fiercely on your behalf.
We will ensure that they meet our demands. We keep you from accepting lowball offers that do not pay all your bills. If they do not provide a satisfactory settlement, we are ready to proceed to court. In addition, if they genuinely operate in bad faith, we will help you file a claim against them to hold them accountable.
We Prepare Your Moses Lake, WA, Car Accident Case for Court
Although our Moses Lake car accident attorneys boast an excellent track record of negotiating insurance settlements quickly, there are times when you must take your case to court. Our team focuses on planning for a trial from the time you hire us, so we are prepared when the moment arrives.
We customize a strong approach tailored to the details of your accident and needs. We will take every step needed to present the most convincing arguments, including visiting the accident scene to gather evidence and obtaining all relevant reports supporting your claim.
Our Car Accident Lawyers Handle All Kinds of Crash Claims
Your crash may have involved only one vehicle or could have been a multi-car pileup. No matter what the details of your wreck are, you likely need help from a reputable car accident attorney to sort out the details of who is to blame.
Our team has managed cases involving crashes such as:
- Rear-end collisions: These accidents are very common and occur when one vehicle strikes another from behind. Usually minor, they can sometimes be deadly.
- T-bone collisions: Second most common after rear-end crashes, T-bones usually happen when someone turns left in an intersection.
- Head-on collisions: The rarest but deadliest type, this crash involves colliding with another vehicle or an object with the front of your car. Occupants often experience significant injuries, trauma, or death.
- Rollover accidents: Vehicles that tip over onto their sides or roofs put their passengers at high risk of injury. SUVs, RVs, large pickups, and overloaded vehicles are prone to this type of crash.
Many of these accidents are caused by inattention or poor driving choices of other motorists. They may engage in distracted driving, drunk driving, reckless or aggressive actions, speeding, and failure to obey traffic laws and signs.
However, not every accident results from a driver’s negligence. Traffic lights or signals may malfunction, poorly repaired brakes may cause someone to lose control, or icy roads can all contribute to your crash. Establishing the details is best done by an experienced car accident lawyer.
Insurance Settlements May Not Fully Cover Your Losses
Washington is an at-fault state and requires all motorists to carry a minimum amount of liability insurance. This insurance is used to pay for injuries and damages that the driver causes when they are liable for an accident.
The minimums are quite low and will rarely pay for all your losses unless the crash is relatively minor. You can claim all your economic damages (those with a price tag), but it is difficult to successfully secure all your non-economic ones (such as pain and suffering) in an insurance claim.
Drivers are only required to carry the following amounts:
- $25,000 to pay for injuries or death of one person
- $50,000 to pay for injuries or death total per accident
- $10,000 for property damage
A serious accident requiring ER and ICU treatment, surgeries, and rehabilitative therapy will outstrip these coverage amounts in no time. If your car is totaled, $10,000 may be a drop in the bucket when you need to replace it. One approach is to identify every party who may be liable and file claims against them all. In addition, you can file a personal injury lawsuit naming each of those to blame as defendants.
Our auto accident lawyers will ensure that you fully understand the options. While we can advise you, we always leave the final decisions up to you.
Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit After a Car Crash
Just like handling an insurance claim, attempting to navigate the complicated legal system without help can overwhelm you when you are trying to heal. You can reduce your stress, worry, and frustration by trusting in a Moses Lake car accident attorney from Calbom & Schwab.
We will develop your case for the best chance at success, using our evidence to prove liability and support your damage claims. Our team will ensure every deadline is met and all your paperwork is in order. Above all, we will work to minimize any part you may have played in the crash and demonstrate how the defendants were negligent by:
- Establishing that the defendants owed you a duty of care
- Proving that they failed to uphold that duty
- Showing a direct connection between their failure and your injuries
- Indicating how you have incurred expenses related to your injuries and property damage
We will identify all potentially liable parties, such as:
- Drivers who may have caused the accident but were not involved
- Trucks or other vehicles that lost cargo or debris on the road
- Commercial truck drivers or their trucking companies
- Government agencies who failed to maintain the road
- Homeowners who did not keep their landscaping clear of road signs
- Auto manufacturers who produced poorly designed or assembled vehicles
- Repair shops that used substandard parts or did shoddy work
- Hit-and-run drivers
Determining who is at fault is just one area where our auto accident attorneys can strengthen your case. Your Moses Lake car accident lawyer will fight to show who is responsible and hold them accountable. We believe you should not pay for the consequences of someone else’s careless actions without compensation from them.
Our Auto Accident Attorneys Depend on High-Quality Evidence
Your Calbom & Schwab auto accident attorney will investigate your case by first asking for any materials you collected before your meeting. If you have insurance and contact details for the other drivers, we begin there and collect documentation from other sources such as:
- Interviews with witnesses
- Repair estimates from auto shops
- Cell phone records for all drivers
- Testimony from various experts
- Accident reconstruction analysis
- Photos of your injuries, the damage, road conditions, and the weather
- Your medical records and receipts
- Video from traffic cameras, dashcams, security cameras, and witnesses
- Police accident reports
- Recall notices from vehicle manufacturers
- Driving histories for all drivers
- Records from drivers’ GPS units, safe driving apps, or private vehicle tracking devices
Many people are unaware of how much technology tracks us each day, but this information can be invaluable in proving your case. If a driver insists that they braked before rear-ending you, but their onboard vehicle safety device does not support this, your auto accident lawyer will make sure this is highlighted.
The Potential Value of a Moses Lake Car Accident Claim
There are very few accidents that leave a person completely unscathed. Rear-end collisions are notorious for causing whiplash or other soft tissue injuries. Head-on accidents often result in traumatic brain injuries. No matter how you are hurt, you must get fully evaluated by a physician to understand the extent of your injuries.
The same holds true for your automobile. Depending on the size and weight of the vehicle that hit you, you could have damage to the frame or electrical harness of your car. This could lead to continuing problems down the road, and once your claim is settled, you cannot go back and ask for more.
Your claim could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars if you are permanently disabled or catastrophically injured. You could lose a limb, be blinded, suffer a traumatic brain injury, or become paralyzed after a crash. Treating these conditions will be expensive over the course of your lifetime, not to mention the emotional distress and anguish you will suffer.
Types of Damages You Can Claim
The circumstances of each case will be unique, so it is difficult to estimate what your claim could be worth before we meet with you. However, thorough discussion and investigation by your car accident lawyer can provide you with an appropriate value for your claim.
Remember, you can claim economic and non-economic damages. Some specific examples include:
- Economic losses:
- Lost wages while you are out of work
- All hospital bills
- All doctor bills
- Emergency transport costs, such as ambulance or helicopter fees
- Prescription medications
- Travel expenses for medical appointments
- Repair or replacement costs for personal property
- Repairs for your vehicle
- In-home private nursing costs
- Rehabilitation facility costs
- Physical therapy bills
- Renovations to your home if you are permanently disabled
- Non-economic losses:
- Amputation
- Anxiety or depression
- Disfigurement
- Loss of intimacy with your partner or spouse
- Lost ability to enjoy hobbies and activities
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Scarring
- Isolation and embarrassment
- Loss of personal and professional reputations
Your Calbom & Schwab Moses Lake car accident attorney will ensure that all your costs are included. We collect your past and present bills and estimate what your future care will require. We have formulas for calculating your subjective losses so you are fully compensated for every harm done to you.
When Tragedy Strikes, We Can Help With a Wrongful Death Claim
Rollover and head-on collisions are some of the most horrific kinds of accidents. Drivers and passengers can be killed instantly. Even if a victim survives being transported to the hospital, they often remain in critical condition and can still succumb to their injuries. When this happens, their families need help filing a wrongful death lawsuit.
Those left behind must still address the bills that have come in for medical treatment and property damage, but now they face dealing with burial arrangements and their grief. A compassionate car accident lawyer can easily assist you with a civil suit for wrongful death in addition to your car accident claim.
The team at Calbom & Schwab will handle all the legal issues to allow you and your family time to mourn. If there are criminal charges against the defendant, our car accident lawyers will work with the prosecuting attorney to take advantage of any relevant evidence for your civil case.
Washington Statute of Limitations for Car Accident or Wrongful Death Lawsuits
One of the key factors to pay attention to is how long you have to file your car accident or wrongful death case. Washington’s statute of limitations allows only three years to file your lawsuit. For car accidents, it is three years after the date of the crash. For wrongful death, the clock starts on the day the person dies.
Three years will go by quickly as you attempt to handle insurance claims. If you try to manage a lawsuit by yourself, you could run out of time before the deadline arrives, losing your chance to seek compensation. This is when you can benefit from turning it all over to a Moses Lake auto accident attorney at Calbom & Schwab.
Meet With a Moses Lake Car Accident Lawyer to Discuss Your Claim
When you have been injured in a crash, you need help understanding what has happened and how to proceed. Just as you trust your healthcare providers to take care of your physical needs, you can trust a Moses Lake car accident lawyer from Calbom & Schwab to handle your legal needs.
Trying to manage bills, insurance companies, and filing a claim will only increase your headaches and problems while trying to recover. Instead, hand over these concerns to our highly-skilled team and rest easy. We are committed to supporting you as your return to your daily life by seeking the best achievable outcome for your case. Contact us today and schedule a free case evaluation to discuss your options.