Tennessee Injury Law CenterWhile on opposite ends of the music spectrum, Chely Wright and Rihanna were in tune on some good advice: shut up and drive. While the dangers of texting and driving are well known, drivers still do it. So, the automakers are now rolling out vehicles that allow a driver to use their voice, rather than their fingers, to send text messages. The system is similar to Siri on a i-Phone, but it is actually part of the vehicle’s electronic system. Ford and Toyota already have such systems in some vehicles. And while intuitively the idea seems like a good one for reducing distracted driving, studies show it is not an improvement at all. According to the AAA, hand-free voice messaging causes a “large” amount of mental distraction. In addition, Texas A & M Transportation Institute has found hands-free texting was just as distracting as a driver who actually uses his hands to text. Both methods slowed driver’s reaction times to almost two times that of a non-distracted driver. Without question, distracted driving is dangerous. And so, the best and safest advice remains to simply shut up and drive. Coming from someone who remembers the days of finding a pay phone if you wanted to talk to someone while out on the roads, pull over if your text message can’t wait until you reach your destination. You might just save your life or someone else’s.
Articles Posted in Automobile Accidents
Do I Have to Give A Statement to The Insurance Adjuster?
You have no legal obligation to give a statement about the events giving rise to a Tennessee automobile, truck or motorcycle accident to the adjuster to the at-fault driver’s insurance company. We typically recommend that our clients do not give such a statement, especially before they are prepared by one of our lawyers on how to give a proper statement.
We are not suggesting that we ever permit a client (or a witness) to change his or her testimony. Nor to encourage a client (or witness) to do so. But preparation for a recorded statement (and they are almost always recorded) greatly reduces the chance of an error that can harm the case.
On the other hand, you probably do have a contractual obligation to give a statement to your own insurance company. Your insurance policy probably requires you to do so. Once again, it is best that you seek the advice and help of a lawyer before giving the statement.
Traffic Deaths in Tennessee Are Way Below That of 2012
The Tennessee Highway Patrol reports that deaths in traffic accidents are significant’y lower in 2013 than they were at this point in the year in 2012.
By this date last year, 458 people in Tennessee had died from traffic related accidents. This year, 388 people have died, a drop of 70 people.
Motorcycle deaths are down 25%, from 60 to 45. Bicyclist deaths are down almost 50%, from 7 to 4.
Will the At-Fault Driver’s Insurance Company Have to Pay My Future Medical Bills?
Under Tennessee injury law, a person who causes harm to another is responsible for the reasonable medical costs incurred by the injured party to diagnosis and treat injuries that were caused in the incident and to pay the present day value of future medical expenses likely to be incurred in the future as a result of injuries caused in the incident.
However, the at-fault driver’s insurance company is only responsible for future medical expenses that are more likely than not to occur in the future, not those that might occur. Thus, your ability to recover future medical expenses for injuries that arise out of car or truck accident is dependent on medical testimony that, more likely than not, an injury that happened in the accident will require medical treatment in the future.
The following example will help in understanding the law. Assume you are hurt in a Tennessee truck accident and suffer a fractured hip. You undergo hip surgery and physical therapy. Your total medical bills are $60,000. The insurance company wants to settle your case, but you and your lawyer are concerned about the risk of future surgery because your doctor has told you that you might have to have hip replacement surgery in the future. Hip replacement surgery is expensive, and you want to have the at-fault driver’s insurance company pay for the surgery if it occurs. How can you make that happen?
I Need a Tennessee Car Accident Lawyer. Do I Need to Pay You A Fee to Meet With Me?
No. At the Law Offices of John Day, P.C. we do not charge a fee to meet with any potential client who wants to discuss a potential car accident, truck accident or other personal injury claim with us. We will meet with you or a member of your family in our office, your home or even the hospital, depending on the circumstances.
Why do we not charge for an initial meeting? There are two reasons. First, we understand that most people who meet with us about a potential injury claim are already facing a bunch of bills arising from the event that requires them to see a lawyer. Our potential clients are facing medical bills, time lost from work, and other financial stresses, and the last thing they need to spend money on is an hour meeting with a lawyer.
Second, when you meet with us to see if we are the right lawyer for you we are meeting with you and making sure that you are a client that we believe we can help. From time to time, people come to us with cases that we believe simply lack merit and we simply cannot help those people other than to tell them the problems we see with their case. Other people come to us with legal problems that do not justify the cost of litigation. So, we feel it is only fair that we do not impose any sort of a charge for an initial meeting with a personal injury client because both of us are trying to figure out whether there is a good "fit" between us.
Does The At-Fault Driver’s Insurance Company Have to Pay for A Rental Car While My Car Is Being Fixed?
Technically speaking, the automobile insurance company for the driver who caused your accident and damaged your car or truck does not have the responsibility to pay for a rental vehicle while your vehicle is being repaired. However, as a practical matter, many insurance companies will pay for the cost of a rental car for a reasonable period of time while a vehicle is being repaired.
Why do these insurance companies pay for a rental car when the law doesn’t require them to do so? Because the law requires the insurance company to pay damages for "loss of use" while the vehicle is out of service. The time that the vehicle is being evaluated for repairs and being repaired must be a reasonable period of time.
It is difficult to determine the value of "loss of use" but one good way to avoid future litigation over the meaning the phrase and the damages that must be paid is to supply a replacement vehicle for the use of the person whose vehicle was damaged in the wreck. Thus, insurance companies who believe that their insured driver was at fault will frequently give the claimant the right to rent a replacement vehicle.
Hit and Run Accidents in Tennessee
If you are involved in a Tennessee hit and run accident you may still be able to recover damages for the injuries you sustained in the accident. How? Your uninsured motorist insurance coverage on your vehicle protects you from hit and run drivers.
To prove an uninsured motorist claim in a hit and run case, you have to prove that t(a) here was actual physical contact between your vehicle and the hit and run driver; (b) the driver that hit you was negligent; (c) you reported the accident to a law enforcement agency within a reasonable period of time; (d) you were not negligent in failing to learn the identity of the hit and run driver or the owner of that driver’s vehicle; and (e) the nature and extent of your injuries caused in the accident.
Different rules apply if the there was no physical contact between your vehicle and the other vehicle that you say caused the accident.
Why Can’t I Sue the Insurance Company of the Person Who Caused My Car Accident?
If you are injured in a Tennessee car accident, truck accident or any other type of event, you do not have the right to file suit against the insurance company of the person or company that caused the injury. Instead, if you want to recover damages for what happened you must file suit against the person or company that caused the injury.
Why? Because, like most states, Tennessee does not permit what is called a "direct action" against the insurance company for the person or company that caused the accident. In fact, under Tennessee law, the judge and jury are never even told that the person or company that you filed a lawsuit against has insurance.
What the Legislature is afraid of is that if a jury knows that the person who is being sued has insurance to pay for some or all of the loss the jury might award damages regardless of fault. This is clearly a myth – most jurors rightly assume that the person being sued has insurance and there are plenty of court cases that result in no money or a very low amount being awarded to the injured party. Nevertheless, we continue to hide the fact of insurance coverage from jurors.
Lawsuit Against Tennessee City for Bad Driving By City Employee
Tennessee law provides that when a city employee negligently causes a car or truck accident while they are working for the city the city is responsible for the harm caused. Thus, the a lawsuit can be filed against the city (not against the driver) and damages for medical expenses, lost wages, pain, suffering and other losses can be recovered. Click on the link for more information on the types of damages that can be recovered in a Tennessee personal injury case. Click on the link for more information about wrongful death cases in Tennessee.
Tragically, the law limits the liability of any Tennessee city to $300,000 for any one person who is injured or killed as a result of the negligent driving by one of its employee’s while he or she is working for the city. Thus, even if your medical expenses are $500,000, the law will not permit you to recover more than $300,000 from the city whose employee caused the accident.
A lawsuit against the city must be filed within one year of the date of the accident causing an injury or death. Failure to file a lawsuit on time will result in the loss of your rights.
Deadline for Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Tennessee
Tennessee law requires that a personal injury lawsuit be filed within one year of the date causing an accident. Failure to file a lawsuit on time against the person or company responsible for your injuries will result in a loss of your rights.
There are certain exceptions to the one year deadline for filing personal injury lawsuits, but you should not assume that any exception applies to you unless a competent lawyer familiar with all of the facts advises you that you have more than one year to file a lawsuit.
Do not wait until the last few days before the one-year deadline to file a lawsuit expires to hire a lawyer. Delay in seeking a lawyer means that valuable evidence may be lost and it is likely that mistakes have been made that effect the value of the case.