Austin Car Accident Lawyer

Understanding Your Rights After a Car Accident in Austin

In Texas, several factors can significantly impact your auto accident claim and your right to compensation. Key considerations that can influence the value of your case can include:

Modified Comparative Negligence:   Texas is a fault-based state. Injured parties are entitled to recover damages if they are less than 51% at fault, though compensation will be reduced by the percentage of fault they are assigned. Parties considered more than 51% at fault are barred from recovering compensation.

Severity of Injuries:   The value of your case is typically tied directly to how badly you were hurt. Severe injuries typically require more medical treatment and result in greater damages. Catastrophic njuries that require long-term care, disability, and extensive medical treatments demand substantially higher compensation. Bigger injuries typically mean bigger settlements.

Statute of Limitations:   In the state of Texas, the statute of limitations for motor vehicle accidents is two years from the date of injury. Accident victims must take legal action or file a personal injury suit within the deadline or risk losing their right to compensation. Car accident claims brought against the state government must be filed within 180 days and some municipalities limiting the time to file to as few as 60 days after the accident.

Litigation:   Most car accident claims in Texas reach a fair settlement without needing to go to court. In most cases, the insurer knows they are going to have to pay, but will fight on how much. If the insurance company won't pay what your case is worth, we can file a lawsuit and try it in court.

Every car crash case is unique. Share the details of what happened with our legal team to learn your legal options.

Common Personal Injuries in Austin Accident Cases

If you've been involved in a car accident in Texas and sustained injuries due to someone else's negligence, you may be entitled to claim various damages to compensate for your losses.

• Orthopedic Injuries: This can refer to any accident-related damage to the musculoskeletal system. Commonly sustained in car crashes: fractured arms, legs, broken ribs, pelvic fractures, spinal fractures, dislocated shoulders or hips, and herniated discs.
• Whiplash Injury: Whiplash is a neck injury that happens when a sudden force snaps the head forward and back in a crash. It strains muscles, discs, and ligaments and can trigger pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility.
• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBIs): Blows the the head in a collision can damage the sensitive tissues of the brain and disrupt normal brain function. Brain injuries can range in severeity from mild concussions to severe brain damage.
• Herniated Discs: Herniated discs are common in crash cases because the impact compresses your vertebrae and ruptures the cushioning between them, and the resulting pressure on the nerves causes shooting pain down your legs, numbness, and weakness that can last months or require surgery.
• Internal Injuries: Internal bleeding and organ damage from severe car crashes are silent killers. Ribs fracture and pierce organs. Victims suffer aorta tears. Organs and bowels perforate. The trauma can rupture blood vessels causing internal bleeding. These injuries are life-threatening if not diagnosed quickly.
• Soft Tissue Damage: Whiplash, muscle strains, torn ligaments, ruptured tendon, contusions, stiffness are typical in crash injury cases and can result in substatial pain and mobility loss.

You must seek medical treatment and receive a professional medical evaluation in order to substantiate your injury claims. Document your injuries to protect your right to full compensation under Texas's comparative negligence rules.