When is it time to speak with a personal injury lawyer? Accidents happen all the time, and it can be difficult to know when to seek damages. Houston personal injury lawyers represent clients who have sustained physical, financial, or emotional harm as the result of another party’s negligence.
7 Situations Where You Want to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer
1. Car Accidents
Car accidents lead to many personal injury claims every year. In Texas, you have the right to hold an at-fault driver accountable for your losses. Between medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional distress, you might be able to collect a considerable amount of money.
Winning a car accident case involves proving that the other driver was responsible for the crash. Once liability has been determined, you must demonstrate the value of the losses you incurred.
2. Commercial Truck Accidents
Accidents between personal-use vehicles and commercial trucks tend to involve large amounts of damage, often including catastrophic injuries. The sheer size of a truck poses a significant danger on the road unless its driver exercises vigilance at all times. Due to the hazardous nature of commercial trucking, the amount of coverage a truck is required to carry ranges from $300,000 to $5,000,000, depending on the size of the truck and the kind of cargo being transported.
3. Motorcycle Accidents
If you were hit by a car or a commercial vehicle while you were out riding, there is a good chance that your injuries warrant compensation. All drivers must share the road with motorcyclists by observing traffic laws and taking reasonable safety measures. Despite the bias against motorcyclists, The Department of Transportation stresses that both riders and drivers need to exercise caution.
4. Product Liability Accidents
Product manufacturers must take reasonable measures to ensure the safety of the items they sell. Unfortunately, every year tens of thousands of consumers are injured while interacting with electronic devices, medical equipment, food items, pharmaceuticals, household items, and other products.
Cases that deal with consumer injuries fall into the category of product liability law. Winning compensation in a product liability case usually involves demonstrating that the product in question had a design flaw or a manufacturing error. And when a large number of claims arise against the same defective product, lawsuits are often filed and consolidated into a mass tort case.
5. Premises Liability Accidents
If you slipped and fell on another party’s property, you may be able to seek damages via a premises liability claim. In addition to slipping, getting burned, tripping, being struck by a falling object, and many other kinds of accidents can incur liability on the part of the property owner or manager.
Generally speaking, when you visit another person’s property, you have the right to expect safe surroundings. If the area is hazardous, the party responsible for its upkeep is required to provide adequate warnings. For more information, click here.
6. Job Accidents
While many work-related accidents must be handled via the workers’ compensation system, you may be able to sue your employer or a third party directly for any injuries you sustained while on the job. In many cases, a personal injury lawsuit can yield a higher payout than a workers’ compensation claim.
While not everyone is eligible to file a personal injury lawsuit following a work accident, your lawyer will be able to help you identify the best way to handle your case. Employers who do not participate in the workers’ compensation system are required to pay for their employees’ injuries through private insurance or company resources. Additionally, if a third party, such as a client or a vendor, was responsible for your accident, you may need to direct your claim to them.
7. Maritime and Offshore Accidents
If your injury occurred at sea, you might need to pursue compensation according to Maritime Law. Several pieces of legislation regulate the process of seeking damages for offshore injuries, including:
- The Jones Act
- The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA)
- Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA)
Injuries that occur on oil rigs, docks, commercial shipping vessels, and other types of watercraft are usually subject to the statutes listed above. Fortunately, many of the protections available to workers on land are also available to people employed at sea.
How Do Houston Personal Injury Lawyers Build a Case?
Whether they are representing a client who has experienced a car crash, a slip-and-fall, or another type of accident, Houston personal injury lawyers leverage extensive legal knowledge and experience. Building a strong case involves identifying the exact statutes that apply to the client’s situation and collecting legally permissible evidence of the at-fault party’s negligence.
Personal injuries can have a devastating effect on your life. You can avoid paying for your injury out-of-pocket by speaking with a lawyer about how to pursue compensation.
