Car Accident Attorney Concord, NY

Yes, you may be able to recover compensation for an accident, even if you share fault. After your no-fault insurance coverage pays for your losses up to the policy limits, if you are entitled to pursue additional compensation from the at-fault party beyond that, you can file a lawsuit against the at-fault party or a claim with their insurance company.

New York follows a pure comparative negligence rule, which reduces your compensation based on your percentage of fault. For example, if the court awarded $100,000 and assigned you 25 percent of the blame, your compensation would decrease by 25 percent, and you would ultimately receive $75,000. 

The comparative negligence rule is binding on the court, but insurance companies are guided by it. Insurers often attempt to deflect blame onto victims to increase the injured person’s share of fault and reduce their payout. An experienced personal injury lawyer can push back on these tactics and demand full compensation. 

Every case has unique circumstances, which means every case also has a unique value. Attorneys and insurers look at both the financial losses and the personal harm the at-fault party caused when calculating a claim’s worth. That can include:

• Current and future medical expenses
• Lost income and reduced earning capacity
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Permanent disability or disfigurement

Financial losses can be fairly straightforward to calculate, as they come with bills and receipts, but personal harm can be difficult to place a number on. When calculating things like pain, suffering, and emotional distress, attorneys typically evaluate all factors, including permanent effects of the injury, extent of past and future medical expenses, and prior jury verdicts for similar cases. 

If you’re curious about the value of your claim, let an experienced attorney review your case and offer their insight.

A lot of car accident victims make small mistakes early on in their cases that come back to haunt them. If you want to protect your rights, avoid the following:

• Offering Recorded Statements: Insurance companies often reach out requesting a recorded statement about the accident. They know how to ask leading questions and get you to unknowingly compromise your claim. Do not offer any recorded statements without legal advice.
• Accepting Quick Settlements: Another insurance company tactic involves pressuring victims into accepting quick, lowball settlements before they understand the full extent of their injuries. Accepting now will prevent you from recovering any more later, even if you realize your injuries are far costlier and more serious than you thought.
• Admitting Fault: Many people feel inclined to take some blame or apologize at the accident scene. You don’t have the information needed to make an accurate fault assessment at the scene of the accident, and anything you say can be used against you down the road.
• Waiting Too Long to Call a Lawyer: Evidence can disappear quickly, and witness memories can fade. The longer you wait to contact a personal injury law firm, the more difficult it can become to build a compelling claim.

Our Concord, NY, car accident law firm works on a contingency fee basis. That means that you don’t pay us any money up front to retain our services, and we charge you nothing at all for attorney fees unless we recover compensation on your behalf. We have a strong track record of success representing motor vehicle accident victims right here in Concord and throughout Western New York. If we do recover compensation for you, our fees come as a percentage of the recovery that will be fully disclosed and agreed upon before we begin working with you.