It is startling and possibly life-changing to be suddenly injured in an accident. This is true whether you were slammed into by a semi-truck, severely bitten by an unleashed dog roaming the streets, or slipped on a loose grape and fell in the grocery store.
At Kyle Law Firm in New Braunfels, TX, we understand the physical and emotional damages that come with being injured in any type of accident. Our New Braunfels personal injury lawyers treat you with compassion and pursue your case with unprecedented zeal.
We have more than 60 years of cumulative experience in winning cases at trial or obtaining settlements for our injured clients. Contact us to schedule a free consultation with New Braunfels personal injury attorneys who will review the facts of your case and determine how we can help.
If you were injured in an accident or someone you love was killed, there are many reasons why you need a personal injury attorney to handle your case.
You must prove fault. In Texas, to collect for damages against a person you claim was negligent, you must prove the person was negligent and at fault for your accident. This is not as easy as you may think.
The person you believe is at fault may accuse you of being at least partially at fault. This is a complicated issue, and you need an experienced attorney on your side in this dispute who can defend you against the allegations that you were at fault. For example, the defendant may accuse you of speeding. You may have been speeding, but your attorney may be able to prove that your speeding did not contribute to the accident.
You need to prove your damages and collect for the full value of your loss. You think you can settle this yourself with the negligent person’s insurance company. The company’s insurance adjuster calls you and acts like your friend.
The adjuster very quickly makes you an offer to settle. These early offers are always, always low ball. The adjuster knows you are dealing with medical expenses and lost wages and that you will be tempted to take any offer since you need money. But don’t be fooled.
Keep in mind that adjusters work for the insurance company. Their job is to save their employer money. The more money they save the company, the more likely they will advance in their personal careers.
This is when you need a personal injury attorney who works for you and who will fight for you to receive all the compensation to which you are legally entitled. You will find such attorneys at the Kyle Law Firm. The attorneys know how to evaluate the extent of your damages and how to put an appropriate dollar value on your claim.
Some of the factors that need to be considered are:
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2021, 97.9 million people visited emergency departments to be treated for unintentional injuries. Nearly 201,000 injured people died. Some of the most common types of personal injury cases include, but are not limited to:
We Handle All Personal Injury Cases in New Braunfels, TX
No matter how you were injured, the experienced New Braunfels TX personal injury lawyers at Kyle Law Firm can help. Some examples of the types of personal injury cases we handle include:- Construction accidents of all types from falls to caught-in-between accidents
- Vehicle crashes including cars, boats, tractors, motorcycles, and semi-trucks
- Pedestrian accidents
- Premises liability accidents including trip and fall accidents, dangerous conditions, inadequate security, and dog bites
- Medical malpractice
- Industrial accidents
- Product liability cases
Why It’s Important to Hire a Lawyer For Help After an Accident in New Braunfels, TX
If you were injured in an accident or someone you love was killed, there are many reasons why you need a personal injury attorney to handle your case.
You must prove fault. In Texas, to collect for damages against a person you claim was negligent, you must prove the person was negligent and at fault for your accident. This is not as easy as you may think.
The person you believe is at fault may accuse you of being at least partially at fault. This is a complicated issue, and you need an experienced attorney on your side in this dispute who can defend you against the allegations that you were at fault. For example, the defendant may accuse you of speeding. You may have been speeding, but your attorney may be able to prove that your speeding did not contribute to the accident.
You need to prove your damages and collect for the full value of your loss. You think you can settle this yourself with the negligent person’s insurance company. The company’s insurance adjuster calls you and acts like your friend.
The adjuster very quickly makes you an offer to settle. These early offers are always, always low ball. The adjuster knows you are dealing with medical expenses and lost wages and that you will be tempted to take any offer since you need money. But don’t be fooled.
Keep in mind that adjusters work for the insurance company. Their job is to save their employer money. The more money they save the company, the more likely they will advance in their personal careers.
This is when you need a personal injury attorney who works for you and who will fight for you to receive all the compensation to which you are legally entitled. You will find such attorneys at the Kyle Law Firm. The attorneys know how to evaluate the extent of your damages and how to put an appropriate dollar value on your claim.
Some of the factors that need to be considered are:
- Your medical bills, both current and future
- Your lost wages, both current and future
- Your possible need for physical and vocational rehabilitation
- Your pain, suffering and emotional distress
Common Types Of Personal Injury Cases
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2021, 97.9 million people visited emergency departments to be treated for unintentional injuries. Nearly 201,000 injured people died. Some of the most common types of personal injury cases include, but are not limited to:
- Vehicular accidents. In Texas in 2021, 4,480 people were killed on Texas roadways. In 2020, 3,896 people were killed and another 14,656 people were seriously injured. In Texas, a serious injury is one that requires the person to be transported from the scene for medical treatment. It does not include injuries that may develop later such as is common with soft tissue injuries like whiplash. These injuries can be debilitating and cause life-long pain.
- Commercial Truck and 18-Wheeler accidents. When a fully loaded 18-wheeler runs into a 3,000-pound car, the resulting injuries are often catastrophic.
- Dog bites. Every year, there are approximately 4.5 million dog bites. Every day across the U.S., 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for non-fatal dog bites. In 2018, nearly 27,000 people were injured so severely by a dog bite they required reconstructive surgery.
In 2021, homeowners insurance companies paid $882 million in claims for injuries people suffered from dog bites.
- Slip and Fall. Slip and falls are the primary reason people lose time from work. More than 8 million people visit the emergency room every year to be treated for a slip and fall accident. At construction sites, approximately 200 people die every year due to falling and another 18,000 are injured.
What Is A Statute Of Limitations?
The statute of limitations refers to the law that establishes a time limit on when a person injured due to the negligence of another can file a personal injury lawsuit. In Texas, the law requires that action to be brought within two years “after the day the cause of action accrues.” There are just a few exceptions to that time limit. They include:
- A personal injury claim based on the use of a defective product
- An asbestos-related injury
- An injury that occurs as the result of the conduct of someone who has violated certain criminal statutes
- The injury occurred to someone who was a minor at the time the accident occurred
- A medical malpractice case where the statute of limitations may begin to run when you discover malpractice was the cause of your injury instead of the day of the actual malpractice event
What Are Damages?
In personal injury cases, the word “damages” refers to the amount of money you will be able to collect to compensate you for your injuries. The purpose of damages is to, as much as possible, make you whole. In other words, to return you to the same position you were in before the accident. There are different categories of damages: compensatory and punitive. Although punitive damages are rare in personal injury cases, there are times when punitive damages are awarded.What Are Compensatory Damages?
Compensatory damages are what they sound like: damages to compensate you for your injuries. There are two types of compensatory damages: economic and non-economic. Economic damages are damages that can be mathematically calculated. They include:- Payment of all the medical bills you have incurred because of the accident
- Expert estimation of future medical bills you are expected to incur because of the accident
- Wages you lost due to time you were required to be off work, and estimation of the wages you will lose in the future if you need to take time off work due to your injuries
- Wages you expect to lose in the future if you are unable to return to your former employment
- Cost of retraining if you are unable to return to your former employment but can work in some field with retraining
- Wages you expect to lose in the future if you can work, but only in a job that pays less than the one you were working in at the time of the accident
- Income you will lose in your lifetime if you are permanently disabled due to the injuries you suffered in the accident
- Reimbursement for all out-of-pocket expenditures you incurred for your medical treatment. For example, if you had to travel to a location for specific medical treatment, you can be reimbursed for your gasoline, food, hotel costs, and any other necessary out-of-pocket cost
- Pain and suffering – this is often calculated based on your compensatory losses
- Emotional distress – whether you can collect for emotional distress depends on the specific facts of your case
- Loss of consortium or companionship – these damages are paid to a family member, usually a spouse or a child, who has experienced a significant loss in their relationship with the injured person because of the loved one’s injury
How Are Damages For Pain And Suffering Calculated?
It is not easy to put a figure on the amount of damages you deserve for your pain and suffering. Some factors that courts often consider when making an award for these damages are:- How severe was the physical injury? The more severe the physical injury, the more you deserve to be compensated for your pain and suffering. For example, if you lost a limb in an accident, the pain and suffering award will likely be greater than if you broke a bone.
- How old you were at the time of the injury. A young child who is permanently injured will likely collect more for pain and suffering than an elderly, retired person.
- The degree of the suffering. This includes the physical pain you endured as well as any depression or loss of enjoyment of life for which the injury is responsible.
