If you were injured in a crash caused by another driver, you may be eligible to seek compensation. Alabama is known as a fault state, because drivers who cause crashes can be held financially liable for damages from those collisions. Victims have the right to seek compensation from the at-fault driver’s car insurance policy.

You should contact a licensed attorney to discuss what happened and find out if you may have a case. We need to review the details of the accident, your injuries and other factors to determine if you can file a claim or lawsuit.

As the victim you have the burden of proof, which means you must provide evidence of the other driver’s negligence. Negligence is a legal theory that has four separate parts, including:

• Duty of Care: Your lawyer must establish that the other driver owed you a duty of care, such as the duty of care to follow traffic laws or avoid drunk or distracted driving. A duty of care is a legal obligation to act the way a reasonable person would in a similar situation.
• Breach of Duty of Care: Once your lawyer establishes that you were owed a duty of care, he or she must also prove the other driver failed to uphold the duty. Drivers often breach a duty of care through their actions. However, they could also breach a duty by failing to act, such as by failing to stop at a red light.
• Causal Link Between the Crash and Your Injuries: Your car accident lawyer in Mobile, AL must prove the other driver’s breach of a duty of care directly caused your injury. In other words, you would be unharmed but for the other driver’s careless actions.
• Damages Were Suffered: Victims are required to provide evidence that their injuries created damages, including the cost of medical care, lost wages, pain and suffering and more.

We know you may be unsure if you have a valid case. You should not make any assumptions without first contacting an experienced law firm like Andy Citrin Injury Attorneys. An initial consultation is free of charge.

The insurance company may try to convince you that your injuries are minor or that you are to blame for the crash. They are only saying those things to avoid paying out compensation. Our attorneys help crash victims like you every day. Contact us for an honest review of your potential claim.

If we determine you have a case, and you hire our firm to represent you, we can pursue compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance company. Once you reach maximum medical improvement, we can send a demand letter to the insurance company with a detailed breakdown of the compensation we are seeking.

We would be filing a claim against the other driver’s liability insurance, which is required coverage for every driver In Alabama. Drivers must carry a minimum amount of liability coverage, which pays for damages from accidents they cause:

• $25,000 for bodily injury
• $50,000 for bodily injury to two or more individuals per accident
• $25,000 for property damage

While these are the minimum requirements, many drivers purchase more than the minimum coverage.

Some crash victims may be able to seek first-party coverage from their own car insurance. These are some examples of first-party coverage that may apply to your crash injuries and damages:

• Medical payments coverage to help pay for your medical bills, including funeral costs, in the event of your death.
• Comprehensive coverage, which pays for repairs to your vehicle after it is damaged by a natural disaster, fire, falling objects or vandalism. Comprehensive also replaces your vehicle if it is stolen.
• Collision coverage covers the cost of replacing or repairing your vehicle after a crash.

You can file a claim against the uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) in your auto insurance. This coverage is for situations where the at-fault driver cannot cover your damages, either because his or her coverage ran out or he or she had no coverage to begin with. This coverage is often used after hit-and-run accidents when the police could not find the at-fault driver.

UM/UIM coverage not only extends to you but may also cover a passenger in your vehicle at the time of the accident.

Another important aspect of UM/UIM coverage is called stacking. Alabama allows you to stack UM coverage based on the number of vehicles on your policy. If you have two or three vehicles on your policy, you can double or triple your coverage after an accident with an uninsured driver.

Our Mobile car accident lawyers are fully prepared for these types of cases. We can review the available insurance coverage and determine how best to pursue the compensation you need.

Yes, there is a statute of limitations in Alabama to file a lawsuit after a car accident. Alabama law states that you must take legal action within two years of the date of your accident.

In some cases, the deadline may change, giving victims more or less time. It depends on your specific situation. For example, if the victim is under the age of 18, the two-year clock does not start running until the child turns 18.

There are other considerations that may change the statute of limitations for your accident, but speaking with an experienced car accident lawyer during a free case review will help determine how much time you have.