San Antonio Car Accident Lawyers

What to Do After a Car Accident in San Antonio

If you were involved in a car accident in San Antonio or anywhere in Texas, then you must stop to handle the situation. Our car crash lawyers have handled countless car accident claims and found that drivers often benefit from going through certain steps after an accident.

• Check for injuries. First and foremost, look after your health and safety. If you believe you have been seriously harmed, do not try to move unless to avoid further harm. Wait as still as you can for emergency responders. However, if you have not been hurt or only have minor injuries, from what you can tell, try to get to a safe place.
• Call 911. Once you are safe and able to do so, call 911. If you are in the city, the San Antonio Police Department and the San Antonio Fire Department will respond. Or, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office or Bexar County Fire and Rescue may arrive on the scene. Whoever the responding officers are, you should cooperate with them. Provide your name and your statement. Be honest about what happened, but do not take responsibility. Do not admit fault or apologize.
• Document the scene. If you are able to, take pictures and video of the crash scene. Try to obtain photos of the damage to the vehicles and surrounding property. If there are marks on the ground from the accident, take pictures of those as well.
• Exchange information. You need to obtain the other driver’s name, contact information, and insurance information. This may be impossible to do directly if the other driver is taken away in an ambulance. However, the information should later be on the police report.
• Obtain witness’s information. Also, try to obtain witness’s names and contact information. Your auto accident attorney may contact them to obtain witness statements while investigating the motor vehicle accident.
• Notify your insurer. Finally, once you are safe and away from the scene, notify your auto insurer of the accident.
• Call an attorney. Then, call The Law Giant, Personal Injury & Accident Lawyers about the best next steps.

Investigating Car Crashes

One of the first priorities after being hurt in a car accident is undergoing an independent investigation of the wreck. You should not rely on an insurer to investigate and decide what went wrong. It would be nice if you could trust an insurer to come to the right conclusion and offer you a fair settlement. Unfortunately, more often than not you will have to dispute one or more of an insurer’s conclusions. You may even have to appeal a wrongly denied claim or assert they have engaged in bad faith insurance.

We will gather as much information as possible regarding the crash to determine why it happened, who is at fault, and who is liable for compensating you for your injuries. We may be able to obtain enough evidence without a lawsuit through an insurance claim. However, we may also recommend filing a personal injury lawsuit soon after the accident. This serves multiple purposes. Through the discovery phase of a San Antonio car accident lawsuit, we can request information and documentation from the other party. In some cases, this is the only way to obtain vital evidence of fault. Filing a lawsuit also shows the insurer that we are serious about obtaining maximum compensation for your injuries.

Evidence in Car Accident Cases

Our accident lawyers in San Antonio are here to thoroughly investigate the accident to gather evidence, including:

• The crash report;
• Your statement;
• Eyewitness statements;
• Photos of the cash;
• Video of the accident, such as from traffic, surveillance, and dash cameras;
• Records related to the driver and other vehicle;
• Physical objects;
• Medical records;
• Expert witness testimony.

Compensation in Car Accident Claims

The purpose of a personal injury claim after a car accident is to obtain the compensation that gives you the best chance at recovery. You probably experienced any number of financial repercussions from the accident, including getting your vehicle repaired or replaced, using a rental car, your medical expenses, lost wages, and more. You need a car accident settlement to compensate you for all of this and more.

At The Law Giant, Personal Injury & Accident Lawyers will fight hard for you to receive the most compensation possible, including your:

• Medical Expenses
• Lost Earning Capacity
• Physical Pain
• Mental Anguish
• Physical Limitations
• Disfigurement
• Property Damage

Ensuring the highest possible recovery requires thoroughly assessing your physical, emotional, and financial injuries. We will work closely with you to document all of your costs and losses. Your compensation should cover everything you have had to spend to deal with the accident and all of the money you lost being out of work. We will also detail, as best we can, how your physical injuries have caused you physical pain and emotional distress. We will work with you and any relevant professionals to record the various ways your injuries have impacted your life.

Related reading: How is Pain & Suffering Calculated in Texas?

Our lawyers will also review other important factors, including how insurers calculate damages for non-economic injuries, like your pain and suffering and mental anguish. Many insurers use a formula or multiplier. We will go over these calculations too, so you understand what an appropriate settlement amount for your case may be. This will also prepare you for the worst- and best-case scenarios.

Texas’ Statute of Limitations in Car Accidents

Texas has a two-year statute of limitations on car accident-related personal injury claims. This means, in most cases, you have up to two years from the date of the car crash to file a claim and pursue compensation for your injuries. If you file a lawsuit after that deadline, the court can dismiss it.

However, there are several exceptions to the statute of limitations. One exception, like the discovery rule, delays when the two-year period begins. Under the discovery rule, the clock does not begin to run until you are aware you are injured and that it was likely due to another person’s negligence.
Other exceptions may pause the clock, giving you longer than two years to file suit.

If you are worried about how long you have to file a lawsuit, contact our attorney right away.

Who can be Held Responsible for Your Car Accident

Whether or not you contributed to the accident matters a great deal. Texas law follows a modified comparative negligence rule. This means an insurer or court will compare each party’s degree of negligence. They will determine whether each of you is at fault for the accident, and if so, to what amount. Is one of you more at fault than the other? If you are 51 percent or more at fault for a crash, you cannot obtain compensation. If you are 50 percent or less responsible, you may obtain compensation. However, your financial recovery will be reduced by the percentage of your fault.

If you are worried about your responsibility for the crash, or you think you will be blamed, call us right away.

When to Hire an Attorney for a Car Accident

After a crash, you may wonder whether you should hire a lawyer or not. To be sure, you should schedule a free consultation with us at The Law Giant, Personal Injury & Accident Lawyers. If you have suffered only property damage and inconvenience, then we may recommend you move forward with an insurance claim without an attorney. Insurers routinely handle vehicle damage-only claims, and your vehicle may be repaired or replaced within a few weeks.

However, if you suffered injuries, you should have an attorney by your side. By hiring a San Antonio car accident lawyer, you increase the likelihood of receiving a payout for your injuries. You also improve the likelihood of maximizing that payout. Overall, you are more likely to gain a greater amount of compensation with a San Antonio personal injury attorney’s help than without it.