Year: 2017

The best drivers in the world are still susceptible to the dangerous, reckless, and negligent behaviors of the worst drivers on the road. Unfortunately, this means that you could be caught in a car accident one day, no matter how safely and defensively you drive. In order to help you get through the difficult time that can follow a collision, our Coral Springs personal injury attorneys at Reinfeld Cabrera Tison have compiled a quick list of important dos and don’ts to follow after being in a motor vehicle accident in Florida.

Starting with the negatives, here are things you should not do after a car accident:

• Leave the scene: You should never leave the scene of an accident until authorities have approved of your departure, or all parties involved are satisfied with the information they have collected. If you do, you could be charged with and eventually convicted for a hit-and-run, a serious criminal violation in Florida.
• Apologize: Florida uses personal injury protection (PIP) insurance for car accidents. This system removes the ability to file a claim against the other driver’s insurance company. Instead, your own insurer will pay your compensation. However, another driver may still attempt to try to file a lawsuit against you directly if they are unsatisfied with their own coverage. If you apologize for the accident, it could be seen as an admission of guilt.
• Accept low offers: Your own insurance company is supposed to take care of you after being in a car crash in Florida, but it does not guarantee just how much coverage you will get. Each accident is different from the next and damages need to be evaluated. If you are told that you are getting a suspiciously low amount for your damages, it is likely an intentionally lowballed offer that you might not want to accept right away.

What to do if you have been in an Car Accident:

• Seek medical attention: Even if you do not think you are seriously injured, get yourself to a doctor as soon as possible. You could have underlying injuries causing serious harm that you just cannot feel yet, as in the case of many brain injuries. The sooner you get diagnosed and treated, the better.
• Get information from other drivers: You will be turning to your own PIP insurance provider for coverage after an accident, but you still need to know who hit you. Get the driver’s license number, insurance information, and ways of contacting the other parties, just in case it all becomes crucial later on due to an unexpected case development.
• Talk to a lawyer: Once you get a chance, you should call a Florida car accident attorney about what happened. Many of our clients at Reinfeld Cabrera Tison actually choose to call our Coral Springs personal injury lawyers before talking to their own insurance companies, just so we can take care of any potential issues right away.

Want to know more about our legal services and what else you should do – or not do – after being in a car accident in Florida? Feel free to contact us at any time to speak with a team that genuinely cares about your future and recovery. We are multilingual and keep our lines open 24/7 for emergencies.

Taking care of yourself needs to be a priority after being in any car accident. Assuming that someone else is going to help you could be a mistake. While this notion might be your natural instinct, you might not be entirely aware of exactly why it is so important, though.

After being in a motor vehicle collision, you should see a trusted physician or accept immediate medical attention for two main reasons:

• Your health: Of course, you are going to want to see a doctor after being in a car accident for your own health and safety. Serious injuries will require professional and immediate care, and some injuries might be too subtle to notice right away. Many brain or back injuries, for example, do not manifest noticeable symptoms until days, weeks, or months after an accident. A doctor may still be able to detect and diagnose such injuries immediately, however. By taking yourself to the doctor or allowing emergency responders to treat you, the likelihood of you suffering a severe or permanent injury will decrease.
• Your finances: Florida requires all licensed drivers to own personal injury protection (PIP) insurance, which essentially makes them responsible for their own damages after a car crash, even when they were absolutely not the party responsible for the accident. PIP insurance does not guarantee you will get all the coverage you need after an accident, and refusing to see a doctor shortly after a crash can and likely will reduce just how much coverage your insurance provider gives you. By delaying treatment, you could be worsening your conditions, as aforementioned, and raising the cost of medical services required to heal you in the process. Your insurance company will give you coverage for the injuries sustained because of your car accident, not because of your own decision to not be treated at once. Essentially, if you do not see a doctor as soon as possible, you could be setting yourself up to pay for thousands of dollars of medical costs that your insurer will not pay.

Coral Springs Personal Injury Attorneys for Your Case

Handling a car accident claim and working with your insurance company to receive ample coverage for your damages can be difficult in the best of situations. Sometimes, you might even be blamed for allowing your injuries to worsen without immediate treatment, despite your best efforts to get to a doctor. When this happens, you could be unfairly shorted out of compensation and left with a hefty bill in your mailbox.

Reinfeld Cabrera Tison and our Coral Springs car accident lawyers are here to help you stand up for your rights and get the fair treatment you deserve. Whether you need to take on your own insurer or have chosen to file a lawsuit directly against the liable driver, we are the legal team to rely on. Contact our office to request a free initial consultation with our team today. We are willing to travel to your home, office, or hospital room.

Ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft have grown dramatically in popularity within the last few years. While this has certainly created a great convenience for anyone looking for a quick ride home, it has also created an unexpected complication: proving liability in a ridesharing accident.

In the average car accident, discovering who is liable for the crash can sometimes be a somewhat straightforward process. Generally, one driver or the other was behaving negligently or recklessly, such as driving drunk or texting while driving. In a ridesharing accident, however, liability will likely not be as clear cut.

Parties who might be liable for your ridesharing accident could include:

• Drivers: Uber and Lyft drivers must take their responsibilities with the utmost seriousness and always drive defensively. Some ridesharing drivers may speed and violate other traffic laws to try to complete a ferry faster. Such behavior puts everyone at risk of an accident.
• Ridesharing company: Recent headlines have featured Uber in conflict with its drivers regarding employment policies, or lack thereof. Many drivers believe they perform the duties of an employee, but ridesharing companies often call them independent contractors. If a driver is an employee, the parent company – Uber, Lyft, etc. – could be partially responsible for any accidents they cause. You will likely require the services of a car accident attorney to determine if the ridesharing company can be held accountable at all for your damages.
• Passengers: An Uber, Lyft, or ridesharing driver does not know who will get into their vehicle next. They also cannot discriminate and pick-and-choose who they serve without risking a serious civil rights violation. The uncertainty of who will use their services means that they could pick up a potentially dangerous or unreasonably distracting passenger without knowing it. When a passenger’s intentional actions directly contribute to a ridesharing accident, some of the liability might be placed on them.

No matter the type of motor vehicle accident you are in, you should collect identifying and insurance information from everyone involved. This is especially true in a ridesharing accident, as any one of those people could likely be the person who should be held most accountable for what happened.
Coral Springs Car Accident Attorneys

Reinfeld Cabrera Tison is a highly-rated, highly-experienced team of Coral Springs personal injury lawyers that have the legal know-how and knowledgeability required to manage intricate ridesharing accident claims. If you were hurt while riding in an Uber or Lyft, or if an Uber or Lyft driver crashed into your vehicle, you can depend on us to work on your case with focus, insight, and dedication that pursues every last cent of compensation you deserve. Contact us at any time – we do our best to respond to client calls 24/7 in case of emergencies – to request a free initial consultation.

If you have been in an Uber, Lyft, or Ridesharing accident, and are feeling pain, please seek help immediately.