Gordon Fenderson is an attorney in Jacksonville, Florida specializing in personal injury accident claims and DUI defense. After receiving a degree in Political Science from Appalachian State University, Fenderson went on to earn his J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law. He is currently the owner of the Fenderson Law Firm, and a member of the Florida Bar, Jacksonville Bar Association, Middle District of Florida, and Florida Justice Association. In this article, he helps to explain how you can determine whether to sue or not after getting in an auto accident.
In general, you can sue for anything—so obviously suing for the pain or injury caused during a car accident would fall into that category, since there is no bar to going up there and filing a lawsuit or starting a case.
On a more general basis, however, I would tell those who were involved in a car accident that if it was not your fault and you were hurt, then you can file a lawsuit with the help of a qualified attorney. Likewise, if the accident was not your fault and you were not hurt, then you can still file a lawsuit. The difference is just that you won’t get anything awarded to you, financially speaking.
What you are generally being compensated for when filing a personal injury lawsuit due to an auto accident is a financial recovery from the injuries that you sustained. So what that means is that although medical bills obviously fall into that category, you may or may not get any sort of financial recovery for the cost of repairing the damage to your vehicle. Whether or not you are able to recoup the repair costs depends largely on insurances and things like that, so it can vary greatly from case to case.
If you in an auto accident, and anyone in your car has been injured in any way, you should contact a lawyer who specializes in personal injury cases right away to determine your options. Filing a police report immediately after the accident has taken place is not a requirement to file a lawsuit, although it can be helpful to your case. But like I said, it is not necessary when you’re looking at going forward with an auto accident case.
Getting a hold of a lawyer who specializes in personal injuries and auto accidents is your best way to begin the process of recouping the cost of your medical bills and lost wages. There is no need to search for an attorney who says that he or she specializes in auto accident specifically, since generally if a lawyer does personal injury cases then car accidents are likely to be the most prevalent type of case he or she handles. In fact, you are probably not going to find a personal injury lawyer who does not handle car accidents, just on a general basis.
An example I have use a rear end collision. If you were hit in your car from the rear, and that collision knocked you out into the road and hurt you in the process, then you certainly have a case for personal injury. In a situation like that, hiring a qualified attorney can really help you maximize the amount of damages you will be able to get back.
Although the amount you can recover from the damage done to your vehicle during an accident will vary greatly depending on insurance issues, most people who file a personal injury claim due to an auto accident are looking more at recovering the costs of economic damage—in the past and in the future. These kinds of monetary damages include lost wages and medical bills—anything that can be quantifiable.
