PROTECTING YOUR RIGHTS WHEN YOU A LOVED ONE ARE INJURED
Car Accident Attorneys in Mount Vernon, IL
Car accident attorneys in Mount Vernon, IL. Injuries from car accidents create unanticipated economic, mental and physical hardships. You need a tenacious Mount Vernon, IL car accident lawyer that you can trust to be made whole again. Speak to Burger Law‘s car accident attorneys today at (779) 800-HURT or fill out our online form for a complimentary case review.
If you were injured in a car accident in Mount Vernon or any other part of Illinois see how much your claim may be worth by completing our free personal injury calculator.
You have been injured in a car accident and now you are wondering what to do. If you are not sure, you are not alone. You might not be certain whether or not you should get medical treatment, how to file a claim and how to secure the sense of justice you deserve. Call the police, then get medical attention. Then call Burger Law.
When you have been injured in a car accident, you should be focused on healing and getting your life back on track. Your compensation should be guaranteed and taken care of, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. If the responsible party refuses to do right by you, you need a competent and aggressive attorney to fight by your side. The Mount Vernon, IL car accident lawyers of Burger Law take car accident claims extremely seriously and are devoted to getting you the money you are owed.
We know it seems like no one will treat you fairly. Speak to an attorney at (779) 800-HURT or complete our online form now. Our auto accident law firm, does not take any fees until you have your settlement check or verdict in hand, and we always fight to ensure our clients get 100 percent of the recovery they need. Do not settle for less than you are owed.
Mount Vernon, IL Car Accident Attorneys That Get Results
With any kind of tort claim, the outcome matters. You want to know that you are giving your case to an attorney who can handle it, and that they will not back down until you get 100 percent of the recovery and compensation you deserve. Any personal injury lawyer can say they will fight for you, but not all of them can prove it. Below are several of our car accident results:
What To Do After a Car Accident in Mount Vernon, IL
Car Accidents are traumatic events. Knowing what to do when one happens can absolutely make the difference in your case, however, a lot of people have never had to go through the injury claims process before. Below what you need to do both immediately after a crash, and in the ensuing weeks:
Get to the side of the road if possible — If you can move and your car can drive, get out of the way of oncoming traffic. If your vehicle is not working, put on its emergency lights and wait to exit your vehicle until there is no oncoming traffic. Moving can make some injuries worse. Look to see if anyone else involved in the accident is injured. Render aid if you are able and know how to.
Call 911 or a police non-emergency line — If someone needs EMTs and/or an ambulance, call 911 immediately. Either way, call a non-emergency line and request for police to come so they can make a report. Police are trained to determine liability in a crash and a police report is invaluable when making a claim. If you are not sure whether you should call 911 or a non-emergency line, always call 911 and let the operator decide how to proceed.
Exchange information with other driver — After it is safe to do so, communicate with any other driver involved in the crash. Make sure to get a copy of their insurance card and their contact info. If the other driver apologizes, ask a few more questions to try to get them to admit what happened. You do not have to be confrontational, you are just trying to find out what happened.
Never admit liability — In conversations with police, the other driver and an insurance company, you can give a brief description of how things occurred from your perspective. But never say it was your fault. There may be contributing factors you do not know yet, and admitting fault will make it very hard to get a recovery.
Gather whatever evidence you can — Take pictures of both vehicles and the surrounding area, including any skid marks or any other property damage the accident caused. If there are eyewitnesses, get their name and phone number so they can back up your version of events when you make a claim.
Seek out medical attention — If you did not need an ambulance, get to urgent care quickly, or make an appointment with your general practitioner as soon as you can. Medical treatment is not only necessary to ensure you recover physically, but you will need proof of an injury and your treatment to get compensation for your injuries.
Consult with Mount Vernon, IL car accident attorneys — If you were injured because of another driver, chances are a lawyer is the only way to get the full recovery you are owed. Have a list of questions ready to ask them, such as what their fee structure is, if they have won your type of case before, what they think the value of your injuries is and if they are ready to fight for you in a courtroom.
Continue medical treatment — Get the full medical treatment you need to recover, whether that means surgery, physical rehabilitation or chiropractic appointments. This is important not only so you can achieve maximum medical improvement, but can get the full extent of your damages once pain and suffering is taken into account. You read about how pain and suffering is calculated on our blog.
Most people in Mount Vernon, IL have never had to make a personal injury claim before, and we help guide them through the entire process. Get in touch with our car accident attorneys immediately at (779) 800-HURT if you have any questions about what the next steps are after an accident.
What Kind of Complications Come Up In Mount Vernon, IL Car Accident Claims?
In a perfect society, the negligent driver’s insurance company would have enough coverage and the willingness to fairly compensate you for your injuries. But, unfortunately, it is not uncommon to see that complications arise and the insurance adjuster refuses to do the right thing. Several of the issues our car accident attorneys see most frequently in Mount Vernon, IL are:
The negligent party has no insurance —Illinois has minimum insurance requirements for all motorists. But some people are irresponsible and do not pay for it, and that can cause doubt about how to proceed. Our car accident attorneys now how to file uninsured motorist claims in the event that a negligent driver does not have insurance . However, filing a claim is not made easier because it is the insurance company you have been paying into – you still need a lawyer to fight for your rights.
The insurance policy does not cover your full damages — Depending on the policyholder’s policy limits, they may not have enough to fully compensate you. If your damages exceed the at-fault driver’s coverage, we can pursue a underinsured motorist claim against your own insurance. We can also look for other insurance policies that may cover your accident.
The negligent driver denies doing anything wrong — Unfortunately, it is not surprising that some negligent people refuse to take accountability for their wrongdoing. If the other driver is trying to pin your injuries on you or somebody else, we will gather evidence and take sworn depositions so their negligence is no longer in doubt.
The insurance company is offering something far below a fair settlement —Insurance adjusters utilize a lot of deceitful tactics to avoid paying out claims, and most times an attorney is needed to get them to be fair. If they continue to lowball you after we send a settlement demand package, we will not hesitate bring a claim against them in court, litigate the case and prepare to present your case to a jury. Often, once they know our car accident attorneys are on the case, it is enough to get the insurance company to make an offer that is truly fair; they know they will not get a favorable outcome if they make us go in front of a judge and jury. We have gotten a lot of great settlements right before a trial is set to begin.
Our car accident attorneys always try to settle a case as soon as possible. However, if there are issues at play and the negligent driver and their insurance company do not want to do the right thing, we are prepared to take them all the way through trial. We fight for our Mount Vernon, IL clients until there is nothing left to fight. We have dealt with all of these issues and more hundreds of times and have won countless Illinois car accident cases in jury trials.
Car Accident Attorneys in Mount Vernon, IL — Resources to Help With Your Car Accident Claim
Our team has literally written the book on car accidents claims, which you receive for free by filling out the form below, reference to have a better understanding of how what to expect. You can also check out our FAQs and legal glossary for more information.
Causes and Types of Car Accidents in Mount Vernon, IL
Each car accident is unique, and they can happen for any reason, at any time or place. However, most causes and types of accidents can be broken down into a number of distinct categories. Some examples are:
Backup Accidents — Based on research from the National Safety Council, 25% of collisions can be blamed on improper backing procedures, and those crashes cause more than 500 fatalities and 15,000 injuries each year, many of them to pedestrians.If someone else backed into your vehicle, the insurance adjuster will probably dismiss your claim, as the vast majority of rear to front accidents are the fault of the rear driver. Knowledgeable car accident attorneys can find the evidence needed to prove the front driver’s negligence.
Carpool and Rideshare Accidents — In general, accidents involving drivers from companies like Uber or Lyft are not substantially different from most auto accidents. However, carpool companies have more insurance coverage, when making a claim you will be going up against a large corporation instead of just an adjuster. A car accident lawyer will stand up for you and defend your rights.
Fatal Car Crashes — There is nothing as tragic as having a loved one taken away by a careless driver. While nothing can truly compensate you for your loss, a wrongful death claim can bring a feeling of recognition, and cover the finances related to their funeral and the loss of a provider.
Head-on Collisions — Head-on collisions are especially dangerous because both vehicles are going fast, and the driver and front passenger are susceptible to debris and being flown from the car. They make up just two percent of all auto accidents, but are responsible for one out of 10 driving fatalities. Beyond fatalities, they can lead to catastrophic injuries.
Multi-Vehicle Accidents — Multi-vehicle accidents are often “chain reaction” accidents where multiple drivers are responsible. Because of that, each driver’s insurance will try to pin liability on the others. Burger Law’s Mount Vernon, IL car accident attorneys will ensure that every liable party is held accountable.
Road Construction Accidents — Construction companies have a responsibility to make sure their construction sites are safe for drivers, meaning there are proper warnings and that dangerous locations are cordoned off. In addition to another driver, we can make a claim against a construction company if they failed in that duty and you ended up injured.
Burger Law’s Mount Vernon, IL car accident attorneys have seen claims involving any conditions and circumstances imaginable — and won them. We know how to investigate accident cases and prove how the other party injured you.
How Is Compensation Calculated in Mount Vernon, IL Car Accident Claims?
Financial recoveries in car accident claims generally compensate you for two things: economic damages, such as medical expenses and lost wages, and non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering and emotional anguish An important aspect of any car accident attorney’s job is properly calculating every dollar someone is owed. We will make sure the other side understands just how much their negligence has affected you, and demand they compensate you for all of it.
To determine the full extent of your damages, we first need to total all of your economic damages. This includes:
Lost wages and lost earning potential
Any medical appointments, surgeries, medications and/or tests
Assistive devices such as braces
Future medical expenses, such as additional procedures, replacement assistive devices, or eventual replacement of artificial joints
In the event of future economic damages, we work with economic experts to value how much those will cost in the future, and adjust our settlement demand to incorporate expected inflation.
After knowing the full extent of your economic damages, we will put a monetary value on the less tangible ways your life has been affected. Usually, that is done by multiplying your economic damages by a number between 1.5 and five.
For example, if you have $30,000 in economic damages, and your injuries caused you have limited independence for a month or more, your car accident attorney might decide your economic damages should be multiplied by three. Therefore:
$30,000 X 3 = $90,000
Your total damages would be calculated as $120,000.
Most claims use a multiplier of three, and higher multipliers are usually only for more serious injuries that greatly affect someone’s physical comfort, state of mind and their independence.
What Kind of Things Affect How Much My Claim Is Worth?
More serious injuries result in more compensation. Things that increase or decrease your compensation include:
The type and severity of your injuries
How much medical treatment you needed, and if you will need more treatment in the future
If your injuries resulted in disfigurement or mental or physical impairment
Your wage loss damages
If you can no longer earn a living as you used to and have lost earning capacity damages
If your injuries affected your quality of life and independence
If you bear partial responsibility for your accident
Often, insurance adjusters try to devalue claims by saying they only have to six weeks of treatment, you waited too long to get treatment, they do not need to pay wage loss damages if you had sick leave available or by blaming your injuries on you. We fight back against bullies so they know that will not work. In our more than 30 years of experience fighting back against insurance adjusters, and to date have recovered over $200 million for our clients.
How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Claim in Mount Vernon, IL?
Each state has its own statute of limitations for injury claims. Pursuant to 735 ILCS 5/13-202, Illinois’ is relatively short at just two years. There are three noteworthy exceptions:
For wrongful death claims you have two years from the date of that loved one’s death – not the date of the accident.
If you or your loved one was a minor when the accident occurred, you have until their 20th birthday.
If you or your loved one was under a “legal disability” at the time of the accident, you have two years from the date the disability was removed. If you came under a legal disability after you were injured but before the statute of limitations ran out, that time does not count against the statute of limitations. In Illinois, “legal disability” means:
Someone who, either by mental or physical impairment, is not able to manage their person or estate
A person with a mental illness or developmental disability that keeps them from managing their person or estate
Someone who, because of “gambling, idleness, debauchery or excessive use of alcohol or drugs,” cannot manage their estate to the extent that it causes them or their family to “want or suffer”
Two years may sound like a long time, but the clock starts ticking the second your accident happens. Do not wait to call a car accident attorney right away after your accident. If you are wondering if any of the exceptions apply to you, speak to an attorney at Burger Law today at (779) 800-HURT to go over your case in detail.
Other cases we get great results for in Mount Vernon, IL include:
Speak to Our Mount Vernon, IL Car Accident Attorneys Today
Burger Law’s car accident attorneys are committed devoted to getting justice for our Mount Vernon, IL clients. You did not want to be put in this situation, and you should not have to pay for another person’s mistakes. We will stand by your side throughout the duration of your claim. To start on your true road to recovery, speak to Burger Law‘s car accident attorneys now at (779) 800-HURT or contact us online for a no-risk, no-obligation case review.
This law firm is absolutely amazing. They took on my case, when nobody else would! They fought hard for me when it seemed there was no hope. They kept me informed and always asked for my input before making decisions on my case. Gary puts himself into every case unlike most law firm owners. Gary and his team really care about every one of their clients, and fights hard to get you a fair settlement. They actually won my case out of court, and then reduced my fees to make sure I could get my car fixed and be able to get back to some normality. I would recommend Burger Law over and above any other firm! If you go somewhere else you aren’t getting the best!
Genevieve and Laura have assisted me in my personal injury claim and have made the process so much less stressful. They are extremely knowledgeable, professional, and attentive. Laura is always on top of everything and very sweet. I had no idea how to navigate this process and they have made me feel at ease and like they truly cared about the outcome.
Cara Barton
It has been a long 4 years, but it is finally over! Burger law did a great job handling my case. Grant Doty answered all my questions, promptly returned my phone calls, frequently kept me updated and insured me that he was fighting for me. Jennifer Zini also did a wonderful job, great customer service. It was pleasure getting to know the Burger Law team!
S. Alred
After a driver unexpectedly pulled out right in front of my motorcycle & I suffered injuries, the at-fault driver’s insurance company offered me a $10,000 settlement. I hired Burger Law & they won a $109,000 settlement. I was very happy with the outcome. They were easy to work with & fully explained each step of the process & kept me informed along the way.
At Burger Law | St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer, we are a team of personal injury attorneys who have earned many distinctions and peer-reviewed awards for our civil litigation and trial work in Missouri and Illinois. A few of the honors we have earned include the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, Top 100 Trial Lawyer Award, a Martindale-Hubbell AV rating, Super Lawyers selection as one of the top attorneys in the field of personal injury and board certifications in Civil Litigation.
Personal injury lawyers who demand justice in Southern Illinois. The role of a personal injury lawyer in Southern Illinois should be more than just getting you a great settlement…