Maison Law helps victims hurt in highway accidents involving a careless merging driver. We stand up to an at-fault driver’s car insurance provider to ensure that victims receive full support while they are down with an injury and unable to work.
If you have been injured, please get in touch with a Turlock Car Accident Lawyer for a free case review. It’s an informative, no-string-attached way to find out what your injury may be worth and how to hold a car insurance company fully responsible.
When You Should Have a Lawyer for Your Car Accident Case
If you’ve suffered a serious injury, and a merging driver caused your accident, it may be wise to turn your case over to a skilled attorney. A serious injury can include any broken bone, head trauma, or a neck or back injury, or any other injury that changes your lifestyle.
With a serious injury, the medical bills keep coming, and the soaring costs can send insurers searching for ways to skip out on helping you. Insurance adjusters might try to change the facts of what happened and place the blame on you. They may question how badly you are hurt, or even claim you already had your injuries from a previous accident.
Maison Law can fully investigate your case, collecting the evidence needed to push back on these weak insurance tactics. A lawyer can also often earn you much more in support than if you tried to take on a giant auto insurance provider yourself.
A Free Consultation with a Lawyer
It’s natural to doubt the strength of your case and your chances for securing compensation. Is it worth the hassle? There’s a great, no-risk way to find out.
Maison Law offers a free case consultation that comes with no obligation to you. It’s a chance to determine what evidence you’ll need to file a strong claim and how a car accident attorney can help you protect your interests. It’s also a good way to learn what your injury may be worth before insurers try to convince you it’s worth very little.
Compensation for Merging Accident Victims
One of the factors in your decision to file a claim should be what you may earn in accident support. A personal injury case can help victims with more than just their financial hardships.
The medical bills should be covered. But victims can also endure a lot of pain and a lot of mental anguish. And the very real difficulties with things like chronic pain and PTSD symptoms from a collision can last far longer than the bills.
A skilled attorney would make sure these hardships and more were covered in a settlement check:
- Medical costs: This includes the costs of the emergency response and ambulance fees. Support should cover a hospital stay, surgery, physical therapy, medical equipment, medication, and any ongoing treatment required.
- Pain and suffering: Not every cost is financial. This covers the physical pain and emotional stress caused by the accident.
- Loss of enjoyment of life: This is another emotional damage. If your injuries prevent you from participating in your favorite hobbies or even family activities, you should be able to recover damages for these losses.
- Lost wages: If your injuries force you to miss work, you should receive reimbursement for every hour of income you lose. This can include a lifetime of support if a physical disability keeps you from ever going back to your old job.
- Property damage: The cost of repairing your vehicle so it’s a reliable and safe ride again. The cost of replacing a totaled vehicle.
- Wrongful death: If you lost a loved one in an accident caused by a merging driver, California law allows certain family members to file a claim for funeral expenses, lost financial support, and emotional suffering.
Which Driver Is Responsible for a Merging Accident?
California holds the driver trying to merge onto a highway liable for most accidents that might occur. California Vehicle Code CVC 21804. explains that the motorist already on the highway has the right-of-way. They aren’t required to move or slow down to allow the merging driver in. It’s up to the merging driver to safely find a place to join traffic.
A driver using an on-ramp along Highway 99 through Turlock bears the responsibility to merge onto the route safely. Motorists already on the highway can switch lanes or slow down to be courteous and make room, but it’s not a legal requirement.
A merging driver can make many mistakes in this “duty of care” to other drivers.
These are a few of the errors in judgment that can cause accidents:
- Going too fast. The California Driver’s Handbook explains that drivers should match the speed of traffic or get somewhere close.
- Hitting the brakes. The handbook also instructs drivers to never come to a complete stop unless it’s absolutely necessary.
- Failing to check blind spots and mirrors. Distracted drivers might skip this step and make a dangerous lane change where a motorcyclist, car, or SUV is already occupying the lane.
- Changing lanes before the merge lane starts. Drivers should avoid jumping on the highway by crossing a solid line.
- Drivers failing to use blinkers.
A merging driver causing an accident might be slapped with “failure to yield” or “unsafe lane change” citations. This would also usually lead to being found at fault in a personal injury claim for the damage they cause and the injuries inflicted.
Contact a Turlock Car Accident Attorney
After getting hurt in an accident caused by a merging driver, take advantage of a free case review with a real Stanislaus County lawyer. This evaluation comes with no obligation to you or your family. Find out what your injury is worth and how to make insurance companies pay what’s fair.
Martin Gasparian, the founder of Maison Law, has a long track record of winning substantial support for area accident victims. With decades of experience, he knows when insurance companies should be providing more support for you. He can help you reject any “low-ball” settlement offer and demand full compensation.
Remember, if you need our help to earn more, you never need to stress about how you’ll pay a lawyer. Maison Law works on a contingency basis for Turlock victims. It means we don’t get paid unless we win the case. If we win for you, our fee comes out of the settlement check a car insurance company must write for you.
