Manhattan Accident Attorneys PROTECTING YOU
Peace of Mind While You Heal
Statistically speaking, you’re likely to get in a car accident at least once in your life. And if you suffer an injury, you may have the right to seek more compensation than you might believe. With the help of a Manhattan, KS, car accident lawyer, you’re more likely to receive a larger payout than if you try to go it alone.
Why Choose The Palmer Law Group
Peace of Mind While You Heal
If you’ve been in an accident and have suffered an injury, chances are your life is pretty chaotic. But at the Palmer Law Group, we’ve helped thousands of clients find peace again by obtaining valuable financial compensation for their losses. Our reputation is built on winning cases for our clients, and our track record of success demonstrates our care and determination to serve their best interests.
When the Palmer Law Group represents you, you get a firm that has:
Over $100 million in settlements and verdicts for clients
Industry-recognized attorneys who care
Decades of representing the communities of Northeast Kansas
An open, direct line to our Manhattan car accident attorneys.
Contact our office for a free consultation. We can help you take the next step toward getting a payout that may truly help bring relief to your life. Call (785) 233-1836 today.
Compensation for Car Accident Injuries
The law is clear that negligent drivers can be held liable for the damages they cause. After all, why should you have to pay for someone else’s negligence? Generally speaking, you don’t. However, there’s a complex and nuanced process involved in claiming owed compensation.
Two injury victims with the same injury and the same circumstances can go through the same insurance company and get different results. But when you are represented by a Manhattan, KS, car accident attorney, you tip the scales in your favor, and you are likely to fare much better than you would by yourself. In similar situations involving pedestrians, a Manhattan, KS pedestrian accident attorney can provide the same level of expertise and support, ensuring the best possible outcome.
Experienced Manhattan, KS, car accident lawyers, similar to skilled Lawrence truck accident lawyer, know that car accident injuries can lead to significant short- and long-term expenses and emotional damages. Therefore, they reject unreasonably low offers from insurance companies and push for a settlement that can cover the many damages their clients face.
Medical Care
One of the biggest expenses for victims is the cost of treatment for related injuries. After all, the amount of force exerted in car accidents could cause severe trauma like brain injuries. In such cases, consulting a traumatic brain injury attorney in Topeka can provide crucial legal guidance and support. But even short-term care can cause medical debt to skyrocket. For victims and their families facing long-term care, the cost of treatment may be in the millions.
Home Care Services
If you’re suffering from any typical car accident injuries, you’re likely to be off your feet, without the ability to maintain your home as you normally would. Many victims hire help to assist them in the basic household tasks that help keep life moving forward, such as:
Caring for children
Cleaning house
Buying groceries and household necessities
Keeping the yard manicured
Doing laundry.
All of these basic duties must be completed, regardless of your injury, and you deserve to be compensated for having to hire help to keep your home running smoothly.
Loss of Employment
Most car accident injuries typically render you unable to work for a time. For some, it results in a permanent departure from the workforce. The financial impact is devastating, even in the short term, and the consequences thereof can lead to emergency situations, especially when living paycheck to paycheck. But if the injury was someone else’s fault, they can be held responsible for these financial burdens, even for lost future income. In such cases, consulting a Topeka truck accident lawyer can be a crucial step in ensuring that your rights are protected and you receive the compensation you deserve. In such cases, consulting a Topeka truck accident lawyer can be a crucial step in ensuring that your rights are protected and you receive the compensation you deserve.
Non-Economic Damages
Losses that aren’t tied to your net worth or salary are as real and harmful as lost income. These less tangible losses can significantly reduce the quality of your life and deprive you of a happy and profitable existence. According to Kansas law, the three types of non-economic damages are:
Pain and suffering
Disability
Disfigurement and any mental anguish
These concepts do not have built-in dollar values. Instead, the value of each is decided during compensation negotiations or by a jury at trial. In general, the more serious the injury, the higher the compensation needed.
It must be noted that non-economic damages are not automatically awarded in car accident cases. There must be an accompanying physical injury that occurred at the time of the accident. Kansas law gives a list of qualifying physical injuries that can trigger the application of non-economic damages, including:
Physical injury causing medical expenses of $2,000 or more
Fracture to a weight-bearing bone
Loss of a body part
Permanent disfigurement
Permanent loss of a bodily function
Death.
In cases of death, the heirs may bring a wrongful death suit for damages, which may include the economic and non-economic damages listed above, as well as expenses such as funeral and burial costs. In cases of death, the heirs may bring a wrongful death suit for damages with the help of a Manhattan, KS wrongful death attorney. This legal action can include the economic and non-economic damages listed above, as well as expenses such as funeral and burial costs.
Insurance and Damages
Kansas follows a modified “no-fault” system and requires drivers to carry personal injury protection (PIP) insurance. When you are injured in a car accident, your PIP will cover your injuries up to the policy limits. But it is important to understand that the limits are quite low, and it is not uncommon for an individual’s damages to exceed their PIP policy limit.
Additionally, your PIP does not cover non-economic damages. You can only make claims for economic damages, but there are caps that prevent many injury victims from getting fully compensated from their PIP policies. For example, basic PIP will only pay up to 85% of lost wages (or $900 a month) for one year, which can be increased for a premium.
The bottom line is that PIP will only cover part of your damages. However, you can pursue what’s remaining with a claim against the negligent driver. To better understand your options, it is advisable that you speak with an experienced Manhattan, KS, car accident attorney.
How Our Manhattan, KS, Car Accident Attorneys Can Help
A Trusted Advocate In Your Time of Need
While you are receiving treatment for your injuries, you deserve to have a Manhattan car accident lawyer looking after your needs. After all, the claims process is not victim-friendly, and claimants need to have a seasoned professional representing them if they want the compensation payout they deserve.
Recovering a comprehensive compensation package requires car accident lawyers to complete numerous tasks and comply with various substantive and procedural requirements, such as:
Gathering important evidence to demonstrate negligence
Drafting and filing all required paperwork
Hiring investigators and experts when appropriate
Negotiating with the insurance company adjuster
Meeting with defense attorneys
Representing you at trial if necessary.
Your car accident lawyer will also keep you up to date on how your case is progressing and clear up any confusion you may have along the way.
Timely Compensation Payout
At the Palmer Law Group, we pursue settlements diligently so our clients can have access to the money they need to address their losses. However, there is no way to guarantee that your case will be resolved quickly. If it’s a particularly complicated or contentious claim, we might be required to go to trial eventually. If this occurs, you can expect a lengthier compensation process, but it may be the only way to get the compensation payout you deserve.
Regardless of the circumstances, you can rely on our firm to pursue as swift a resolution as possible based on your situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Please review the following questions and answers. We hope they will help give you a clearer picture of the car accident claims process in Manhattan, KS.
Is there a deadline for car accident cases?
Yes. Most car accident cases in Kansas are under a two-year deadline. After this period, most claims are rendered invalid. This makes it essential to speak with a Manhattan, KS, car accident lawyer sooner rather than later.
Can I afford to hire a car accident lawyer in Manhattan, KS?
Yes. You pay nothing upfront to hire a Manhattan car accident attorney and nothing if you don’t recover compensation. When car accident lawyers are successful, their fees and costs will be deducted from your payout.
Should I accept the insurance company’s settlement offer?
Only after speaking with an experienced car accident attorney. Otherwise, you will not know the true value of your claim. Manhattan, KS, car accident attorneys negotiate with adjusters until they reach the right number. They know that insurance companies routinely offer car accident victims less compensation than they deserve.
Is there a chance my case will go to trial?
It depends, but likely not. Most car accident cases reach a settlement before a trial is needed. With that being said, the Palmer Law Group will go to trial if that is what it takes to get our clients justice.
If you would like to discuss these or any other questions and answers in depth, do not hesitate to contact the Palmer Law Group at any time.
What to Do After a Car Accident
After experiencing a car accident, your first concern should be your own safety; then check on the condition of those around you. Move to a safe position, if possible; call for first responders, and seek medical care. Under no circumstances is it a good idea to skip or postpone medical treatment.
File a Police Report
If no police are at the scene, a report must be filed with them as soon as possible. The police report is an extremely important record for car accident cases. The closer in time to the accident it is made, the better. If the report is not done at the scene, key witnesses may be gone forever.
Collect Photos and Video Footage
If at all possible, take photos and video footage of the accident scene and injuries. These will be extremely helpful to your car accident attorney. The more angles and information in each shot, the better.
Gather Important Documents
Pull together all of your car-related paperwork and bills that you accrue after the accident, including your insurance policy and hospital and treatment expenses. You will need these to prove your economic losses.
Common Causes of Accidents
Negligence is at the heart of most car accidents. Not all negligent acts result in injury, but enough do, and they can cause a significant impact on a societal and personal level. If you have been injured in a car accident, it is likely that one of the following causes is to blame:
Driving while under the influence (DUI)
Excessive speeding
Driving while distracted
Aggressive driving
Driving an unsafe vehicle
Failing to obey traffic signals
Failing to yield.
Each of these acts is a type of negligence, which must be demonstrated with evidence. Of course, that’s often easier said than done. Some of the forms of evidence Manhattan, KS, car accident lawyers might use to show negligence include:
Police reports
Medical reports
Witness testimonies
Photos of the crash
Surveillance and traffic cam videos
Weather reports
Driving records
Safety records.
When there is an overwhelming amount of evidence demonstrating a driver’s negligence, then compensation negotiations typically go much more quickly. Things slow down, however, when there is some question as to negligence. Kansas follows a contributory negligence variation that allows plaintiffs the right to seek recovery of damages even when they were at fault. However, the amount of compensation will be reduced to reflect their percentage of fault, which can be no more than 49%.