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From 2004-2021, the Department of Transportation acknowledged more than 221,000 motor vehicle accidents throughout the Garden State. Out of these tens of thousands of car accidents, 48,962 resulted in personal injuries. In 2021, 4,786 motor vehicle injuries occurred in Middlesex County, coming in second right behind Bergen County.
If a car accident injured you, it’s important to seek immediate medical help to ensure your safety. You also need to familiarize yourself with how to file a claim with the help of an experienced car accident lawsuit NJ-based attorney.
This blog will explore what you need to know about car accident lawsuits and getting the compensation you deserve from the negligent driver.
Elements of a Car Accident Claim in New Jersey
Car accidents fall under an area of legal practice known as personal injury. To pursue a personal injury claim, you must first meet all of the required elements; otherwise, you will not be able to pursue compensation through a personal injury lawsuit.
These elements include:
- A duty of care: You and your lawyer must be able to prove that the negligent driver owed you a duty of care, or legal responsibility, to drive safely. Examples include obeying the speed limit, not driving while intoxicated, or stopping at red lights. These are all reasonable expectations of drivers as soon as they get behind the wheel.
- Breach of duty: If the driver failed to obey a stop sign, for example, and hit you, it would be a breach of duty. Breach of duty is when someone fails to adhere to the legal responsibility or expectation they owed you of driving safely.
- You were injured as a result of this breach: Also known as causation; you must prove that your injuries resulted directly from their actions.
- Damages: If all the elements above are met, the last thing you need to prove is that your injuries resulted in compensable damages. These damages could include financial losses from the accident, medical bills, or loss of consortium.
Through reviewing police reports, speaking with accident reconstructionists, and examining your medical records, your car accident attorney can determine the factors met.
It’s important to remember that because New Jersey is a no-fault state, your injury must be severe, such as one that is permanent or causes significant disfigurement. This threshold is to reduce the number of claims filed for minor car accident injuries. Your lawyer will be able to let you know if your injury qualifies for additional compensation outside of your insurance coverage.
How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Lawsuit in NJ?
Under N.J. Stat. § 2A-14-2A, adults who were injured in a car accident have two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury claim. Once this timeframe ends, so does your ability to pursue and collect compensation.
There is an exception to this, however, and that is if you were a minor when your car accident injuries were sustained. Under this statute, you have two years from the time you turn 18 to pursue a car accident lawsuit.
How is Pain and Suffering Calculated in a New Jersey Car Accident Claim?
If your car was damaged and it cost $2,000 to fix it, you can prove this monetary amount with receipts. The same can’t be said for pain and suffering, because if you were seriously injured and unable to return to work or lost a spouse in the accident, how can you assign a specific number to those unimaginable pains?
This is one of the complexities of calculating pain and suffering in a car accident and one that requires the help of an experienced car accident attorney. Throughout the claims process, your lawyer will consider several factors, such as how much your life has changed as a result of the accident, if you can work, whether or not your injury will heal, and if so, how long that process will take and what the healing journey will include.
Considering these factors, the calculation of your pain and suffering will use the multiplier method. This is when the pain and suffering damages receive a number on a scale of 1 to 5. The more impactful the damage is, the higher the score it’s likely to have. So, for example, if you faced significant injury and accrued $20,000 in medical bills, the multiplication of that depends on what number it is assigned. For example, if it’s a 2 on the scale, you could receive $40,000 for your pain and suffering. If it was ranked as a 5, then you could be on the receiving end of $100,000.
This is just an example. Unfortunately, the state of New Jersey doesn’t have a universal method. The positive news is that New Jersey also doesn’t put a cap on how much compensation you can receive for pain and suffering.
What Are the Chances That My Car Accident Lawsuit Settles?
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After a car accident injury, many victims dislike the idea of having a long, drawn-out court battle. They start to wonder about settlements. A settlement is when both parties involved (in this case, you as the plaintiff, and the negligent driver, the defendant) agree to a specific compensation amount in exchange for not going to court. These settlements can provide compensation for the damages listed above. They include property damage, emotional distress, financial losses, and pain and suffering.
As for whether or not your car accident lawsuit in New Jersey will settle, it’s up to several factors. First, it’s up to you if you want to consider settling. Second, it depends on who the negligent party is. If someone driving for a company injured you, for example, then it’s likely the company will want to settle out of court to avoid bad publicity and trial costs. In general, the majority of personal injury cases settle out of court.
Regardless, the decision to take a case to court is personal. While your personal injury lawyer will advise you, you should hire someone who’s willing to take the case to trial. Aggressive representation like this matters when it comes to recovering compensation.
Were You Injured in a Serious Motor Vehicle Accident? Let Experienced Car Accident Lawsuit NJ-Based Lawyer Leon Matchin Get You the Money You Deserve
Getting into a car accident is stressful enough. It’s worse when it leads to significant changes in your day-to-day life. Attorney Leon Matchin can provide the aggressive representation and comprehensive legal insight you need. He’ll help you file a car accident claim and get what you need on the road to recovery.
Don’t wait another moment to pursue compensation. Two years may seem like a long time, but it goes by in the blink of an eye. Don’t let that window close without getting the money you need and deserve. Call (732) 298-6522 or send him an email at leon@attorneyleonmatchin.com.