Hiring a Prince William County Car Accident Attorney

Being involved in a car accident can be a harrowing experience. In the immediate aftermath, it can be difficult to gather your thoughts and consider your safety and that of your passengers. It is important for all people to remember that the most important thing someone can do after getting into an accident is to seek professional medical attention. Should you suffer injuries as a result of the accident, then it is time to consult an experienced Prince William County car accident lawyer to discuss filing a claim against the negligent party involved in the accident.

Contributory Negligence in Prince William County

Contributory negligence is a very important concept in Virginia. Essentially, the concept says that if you are partially at fault, you are barred from recovery. This is in direct contrast to the doctrine known as “Comparative Negligence” in which you have the ability to recover deducted proportionally by the amount that you are at fault. Virginia, like Maryland, D.C., and a very small minority of other states, follows contributory negligence in that if you are partially at fault you are unable to recover.

How this comes into play in car accident cases in Prince William County is that if you are driving in a manner that you violate safety rules or traffic rules, such as speeding, failure to obey the right of way, and failure to follow the signs, as a result, you may be barred from recovery even though the other driver was “more” at fault than you were.

Important Things to Remember About Car Accident Claims

Car accident cases in Prince William County are handled very seriously. They are taken seriously by the Prince William County Police Department and the Virginia State Police who investigate the accidents. They are taken seriously by the defense attorneys that represent insurance companies. And they are taken seriously by your counsel if you choose to hire an attorney. For this reason, it is important to consider a car accident attorney with experience in Prince William County if you are injured there.

There are certain nuances to Prince William County’s local General District Court and Circuit Court procedure as to how the cases are filed, how they are placed in the docket, and discovery rules that everyone should be aware of. It may not be the first thing that comes to mind to other counsel that does not practice in Prince William County on a regular basis.

Counsel that work in Prince William County on a regular basis will know the judges trends as well as the jury trends if the case were to proceed for a jury trial. Knowing how judges and juries may handle the cases is important because even though your case may not lead to a verdict by a judge or a jury, what can potentially happen will obviously have an influence on the adjustor’s evaluation of the case and the defense attorney’s strategy and evaluation of the case.

Reasons to Contact a Prince William County Car Accident Lawyer

There are many reasons why you should contact an experienced Prince Williams County car accident lawyer for car accident cases. The number one reason is to have someone on your side. Insurance companies have good exposure in the motor vehicle industry; they are constantly there. Everyone sees their ads on TV and their cute mascots smiling and promising to be there for you.

However, as soon as you are injured as a result of someone else’s accident and one of the popular insurance companies is on the other side, you can rest assured they are interested in protecting their bottom line. An insurance company makes money by collecting premiums and paying out claims. If they collect more premiums than the claims that they pay out, they make money. It is that simple. So it is in their interest to pay out as little claim as possible based upon your injury.

When you have an attorney on your side, their interests are aligned with yours. Prince Williams County car accident attorneys are aligned with your interests in that their goal is to achieve a resolution that maximizes your recovery so that you can be compensated fully for something that wasn’t your fault.

Why is An Attorney So Important?

It is important to contact a Prince William car accident lawyer early in a case for several reasons. Insurance companies have a lot of resources. They have insurance adjustors, investigators, and claims adjustors who are all to try to minimize the money the insurance company pays out on your claim. Those people may approach you shortly after the accident and ask for statements or simply enquire how you are feeling, trying to settle the case in a prompt manner.

In some cases it is appropriate to resolve the case expeditiously. However, if you are seriously injured as a result of someone else’s negligence, the insurance company of the at-fault driver is not your friend. They are out for their own best interests, and by their very nature, they are very adverse to you and your interests. That is why it is important to have someone on your side, like an experienced attorney who is your advocate and your counsel, and comfortable in handling car accident cases in Prince William County.