Maison Law stands up for victims struck by careless merging drivers on busy Madera roadways. Our lawyers make sure the right motorist takes responsibility for medical bills, lost income, and the pain that’s left behind.
If you have been injured, please contact a Madera Car Accident Lawyer for a free case review. It’s an informative, no-strings-attached way to find out what your injury may be worth and how to hold a car insurance company fully responsible.
Figuring Out When You Need a Car Accident Lawyer
If your accident involves only some minor bumps or just a crumpled vehicle, you may be fine handling your claim yourself. And you always have the right to file a claim on your own.
But if your injuries are more serious, the need for a skilled lawyer becomes clear very quickly. The doubling and tripling of hospital bills and lost paychecks will scare you, and they’ll make insurance providers nervous, too. The increased costs will prompt insurers to look for ways to blame you for what happened. They may also downplay your injuries as an excuse to write you a tiny settlement check.
An injury that’s more severe will require full compensation, perhaps for months or years, and a skilled lawyer fights to make sure you receive everything you need for recovery.
Your lawyer can help with cases involving these types of injuries and more:
- A Traumatic Brain Injury, including a serious concussion
- A broken arm or leg, or a fracture of any kind
- A hip injury
- A knee injury
- A back or vertebral injury
- A neck injury, including a serious case of whiplash
- Facial lacerations or damaged teeth
An experienced lawyer’s full investigation will provide powerful evidence as to what happened in the accident and who was at fault. Maison Law also works with accident reconstruction teams to make sure the blame stays in the right place.
This evidence becomes very important when the California Highway Patrol (CHP) doesn’t realize that an accident involved a merging driver or if a merging driver tries to change the story.
Schedule a Free Legal Consultation
Figuring out if you have a case or not, and if an insurer should be supporting you, can be difficult. If you still have questions, there’s a great way to find answers without any risk.
Maison Law offers a free, confidential case review with no obligation. It’s available to all Madera County accident victims and their families. Let’s go over what happened to you and who should be held responsible.
We are also happy to go over your case if you’ve already filed a claim and realized an insurer isn’t going to offer you anywhere close to what you require to recover. As long as you haven’t signed off on a settlement, Maison Law can help you be sure you are receiving everything you need for the future.
Car Accident Compensation
Victims in merging accidents on busy routes like Highway 99 can suffer life-changing and life-threatening injuries. They must receive enough in compensation to pay for the best medical care available for as long as necessary.
That must include the cost of any surgeries needed. It should pay for any physical therapy that victims require to strengthen a damaged limb or to re-learn how to use a damaged limb. They may need to restore flexibility in a damaged body part to simply allow them to get back to the lifestyle they once enjoyed.
A lawyer is often key in making sure these needs get attention and full funding.
Your Madera Maison Law attorney would demand these benefits and more:
- Support to pay medical bills for as long as necessary.
- Estimated costs for a lifetime of care and support for a permanent physical disability.
- Support to cope with the physical pain endured in recovery and any chronic pain and arthritis developing in the future.
- Support for the emotional trauma suffered with a major injury. Depression and anxiety can affect victims who may suffer a loss of enjoyment of life in recovery. Crash victims can also suffer PTSD symptoms stemming from the moment of impact.
- Past and future lost earnings and benefits while victims are forced to miss work hours.
- Money for a new vehicle or vehicle repairs.
California Law Regarding Merging Vehicle Accidents
California Vehicle Code clears up any misunderstanding about who is responsible for an accident when drivers are trying to merge onto a highway.
The law says that drivers already on the highway have the right-of-way. Merging drivers are responsible for making safe lane changes to join traffic, but only when there’s enough room to do so safely.
“(a) The driver of any vehicle about to enter or cross a highway from any public or private property, or from an alley, shall yield the right-of-way to all traffic, as defined in Section 620, approaching on the highway close enough to constitute an immediate hazard, and shall continue to yield the right-of-way to that traffic until he or she can proceed with reasonable safety.”
The merging driver will almost always be found guilty of a failure to yield or failure to merge or an unsafe lane change violation. This leaves them liable for the damages and harm a collision causes.
Those already traveling the highway are encouraged to show courtesy in letting vehicles in safely. They can switch lanes or slow down to allow space for a motorist. But they aren’t legally required to take action. The merging driver bears the responsibility.
Whether it’s a giant produce truck from a local farm or a family SUV, merging drivers must travel at or just below the speed of traffic and find a way to join other drivers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my Family Earn Support If a Loved One Is Killed in a Highway Accident?
Families can earn support after losing a loved one in a tragic Madera accident through a wrongful death claim. The support can cover the cost of burial and any remaining ambulance and hospital bills. Families should also seek help for the future to cover the loss of the income the deceased would have contributed in the years to come. They can also earn support for their emotional trauma and the loss of guidance and love in the coming years.
How long do I have to file a car accident claim in California?
You’ll have up to two years to file your accident claim. It’s the same for families who are filing a wrongful death claim. You shouldn’t wait, though. Acting quickly to secure fresh evidence and track down witnesses will help you build a strong case and earn what’s fair in compensation.
What type of documents should I bring to the first meeting with a Madera car accident attorney?
You’ll want to provide your attorney with copies of your receipts from doctors and hospitals. If you have medical charts detailing your injuries, allow your attorney to make copies. Bring pay stubs showing the income you’ve lost while out of work. If you have requested a copy of a collision report, you should bring it to. You can also turn over any photos you took at the scene and any contact information from witnesses you took down.
Contact a Madera Car Accident Attorney
If you’ve suffered a serious injury, and a merging driver was to blame, it’s a good sign that you could earn more with a lawyer’s help. Contact us to set up a free consultation with a real lawyer to go over your options.
We are ready to answer questions for any injured Madera County accident victim in a free, no-obligation case consultation. If you don’t end up needing our help to earn justice, we can still send you in the right direction for winning a fair settlement on your own.
If you would like our help, we are there, but you don’t have to worry about finding the money to pay a lawyer. We work on a contingency basis. It means we don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then, our fee comes out of the settlement check that an insurance company must write for you.
