Professional Auto Accident & Personal Injury Lawyer in Carbondale, IL

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Auto accidents can be both confusing and scary. They can result in serious injuries, loss of life or significant damage to properties in the worst cases. In the best situations you may only suffer minor vehicle damage. Either way, it is likely that you will have to spend several weeks or even months dealing with the consequences of this car accident. We at Gill’s Law Firm are here to help those in the Carbondale, IL area receive proper compensation from all types of personal injury vehicle accidents.

If you have been in an accident, first seek medical attention for your injuries.  Next contact us for legal advice.  Do not discuss or sign anything with any insurance adjusters.

We never charge a fee unless your claim is successful. 

Gill Law Firm has experience with litigating injury claims against most insurance companies.

Car
Accidents

Truck
Accidents

Motorcyle
Accidents

Auto Accident Attorneys
in Carbondale, IL

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Car Accidents

Driving a motor vehicle has its ups and downs. One of the major downsides can be that you get injured in an accident caused by someone else. You can try to be the best driver that you can, however car accidents happen. Southern Illinois has so many vehicles on its roadways, so you know accidents both vehicular and pedestrian are bound to happen. When vehicular accidents happen, you have tons of steel, glass, and even other car materials hitting your car or even yourself if you are a pedestrian with brutal force. These accidents are traumatic and can be very violent. If you or someone you know has been in an accident, make sure to speak with a professional and experienced accident lawyer in the Carbondale, IL area!

Our Carbondale, IL vehicle accident lawyer is able to handles all types of accident injury claims including:

  • Multi-vehicle accidents
  • Uninsured or Underinsured Accidents
  • Sideswipe Collisions
  • Head-on collisions
  • DUI Accidents
  • Distracted Driving Accidents
  • Rear-end Accidents

Truck Accidents

At Gill Law Firm, our legal professionals investigate and litigate accidents that involve different types of commercial trucks. This includes tractor-trailers, 18-wheelers, box trucks, dump trucks, and delivery vans. We represent victims and families who have lost a loved one in accidents involving commercial trucks. Unfortunately, accidents involving commercial trucks can be very complex. Truckers and trucking companies have to follow special regulations that govern them. If some of these regulations are broken, this can indicate fault for the accident.

Driving alongside commercial trucks can cause you high anxiety. However, semi-trucks and tractor trailers are subjected to special rules and regulations. These laws are designed to help protect the public and help minimize the possible risk of accidents. Federal and state laws require that trucks are regularly inspected and are maintained. In addition, truckers also must comply with specific rules such as having a special license and having to abide by hourly driving limits. Even with these rules and regulations in place, commercial trucks are often involved in accidents due to:

  • Transport of hazardous material
  • Unsafe or unsecured loads
  • Overweight trailers
  • Bad Road Conditions & Adverse Weather
  • Distracted truck driving
  • Fatigued Truck Driving
  • Mistakes Made by the Truck Driver
  • Poor or Improper Maintenance
  • Negligence by the Truck Company

Motorcycle Accidents

When in an accident, the point of impact for motorcycles is usually the front. This can result in fractures and broken bones which are followed closely by sprains, lacerations, and contusions/abrasions. However, more severe injuries can occur, including the possibility of paralysis and even death. Due to these risks, costs are high, including both physical and emotional pain, pricy medical expenses, lost wages, and of course property damage. Being in a motorcycle accident may leave you wondering whether you will be able to ride again. This can especially be the case if the accident was not your fault or was caused by another driver’s negligence.

To determine who is at fault in the accident, factors must be properly identified. This can help you figure out to what degree is each party at fault, and ultimately who is financially responsible for the accident.

Some Top Causes for Motorcycle Accidents Include:

  • Hazardous Weather and Road Conditions
  • Tailgating
  • Distracted Driving
  • Driving Under the Influence
  • Speeding
  • Being an Inexperienced Rider
  • Weaving In and Out of Traffic

Automobile Accident Victims and the Insurance Companies

The professional and experienced injury attorney at Gill Law Firm can help negotiate with your insurance company to ensure that you receive fair compensation for your claim. We have the legal knowledge create the strongest arguments and have the ability to retain a private investigator to help build your case. Our attorney can explain all of your legal options, help conduct a proper investigation of the accident, and if necessary, challenge the findings on the police report. Also, they can help establish driver fault, determine road conditions, and inspect safety equipment.

Insurance companies usually want to pay out fast, which unfortunately offers minimal help to victims. These companies would rather not wait for you to find out that you have a long-term medical issue of a disability due to the accident. This is because to them, this is business, however for you it is all about your future. Before agreeing to a settlement make sure you talk to a lawyer to ensure that you are getting a fair settlement. We are willing to pursue your case in court if your insurance company does not agree to a fair settlement. It is important to us that you are fairly compensated for your pain and suffering, medical bills, and the wage loss you are experiencing.

We strive to ensure that your long-term financial, psychological, and medical needs are all being met. 

Definitions for 10 Common Legal Terms Associated with Car Accidents

If you get into an accident you will need to know who was at fault for the accident, who is liable, what the damages are, and how to be compensated for your possible injuries. This process may seem overly complicated or overwhelming but learning the terms below can help make the process easier.
A tort is a wrongful act that can result in either injury or damage. If a person commits a tort against you, then you can file a civil action lawsuit against them. It would be for any damages that you have suffered as a result of their wrongdoing. You may have a tort claim against the other driver in a car accident if the other driver is at fault and negligently or intentionally acted in a wrongful way that caused you harm.

Liability refers to the legal responsibility that someone has. This could be the driver who caused the accident being liable for their actions. This also means that they will be legally responsible for any personal injury or property damage that is a result of the accident. In some situations, only one driver is responsible. However, in some other cases, both drivers can bear some legal responsibility for the damages and injuries that result. This could occur when both drivers acted in a negligent manner that causes the accident.

A driver that is negligent is a driver that fails to meet the required duty of care that all drivers must follow. All drivers have a duty to act with care when they are driving. If the drivers fail to act with reasonable care-even unintentionally- and that failure causes another person to suffer harm, the driver who caused the accident is guilty of being negligent.

The negligence described above is a common form of negligence, but there are several different kids of negligence. An example of this is “negligent per se”. This is when a driver causes an accident by breaking a traffic law. Laws that are broken can include running a red light and hitting another car By breaking a traffic law, that driver is presumed to be negligent with no additional evidence required. Violating a traffic law in this way makes you negligent per se.

“Comparative negligence” or “contributory negligence” refers to a situation in which both drivers were negligent and bear legal responsibility for the accident. An example of this would be if one driver ran a stop sign, but the other driver was driving twenty miles over the speed limit, which made them unable to stop in time. In this specific scenario, the insurance company or the court might find that both drivers are liable and make them both responsible for a percentage of the total damages that their negligence caused.

In a case for car accidents, what you are able to recover often depends on what evidence you are able to show the insurance company or court to explain what happened. The person who is claiming that the other driver is at fault (known as the plaintiff) cannot just make a claim and collect the money. It is the responsibility of the plaintiff to show how the incident occurred and who was really at fault. The plaintiff has the burden of then providing their claim with sufficient evidence. This is referred to as “burden of proof” and it rests with the person or party that is raising a claim against another driver.

One way that you will fully be able to satisfy your burden of proof is by demonstrating the “facts of loss.” The facts of loss make up the account and record of what happened in the car accident. These facts usually are recorded in a narrative form in the police report. However, they are not limited to only being in the police report. Any facts that can be verified to be true can be a part of the record that you present to the court or insurance company. However, this concept is usually limited to facts that relate to liability. This means that you can only present facts that show that it is more or less likely that another party was responsible for causing the accident.

One way that you are ablet o receive compensation after an accident is by making a claim through the insurance company of the driver who was at fault for the accident. All drivers are required to carry a minimum amount of collision insurance on their insurance policy.  An insurance policy is a legal agreement that is made between the insurance company and the insured person. It states that the insurance company will pay for certain kinds of damages caused by their clients. To maintain your insurance coverage in an insurance policy, the driver that is insured must pay a monthly premium to the insurance company.

There are different kinds of insurance coverages that are relevant to car accidents. These may include:

  • Collision Coverage
  • Bodily Injury Coverage
  • Property Damage Coverage.

If you were involved in a car accident, it is vital to obtain the other driver’s insurance information. This way you can submit your claim to their insurance company for the damage that you suffered. This is true no matter who caused the accident or how it occurred.

Unfortunately, not everyone who drives and is involved in a car accident carries the amount of insurance that the law requires. Some even carry no insurance at all. Other drivers may only have small insurance policies with payment limits that do not cover the amount of damage you suffered in the accident. In these specific situations, it is important to carry “underinsured or uninsured motorist coverage”.

An uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage plan is part of your personal insurance coverage. The purpose of this type of plan is to make sure that insurance will cover the damages even if the other driver who caused the accident is uninsured or underinsured. This specific type of coverage can allow you to be sure that you will not have to pay for any damages that the other driver is not able to cover.

Damages is the legal term for the amount of money paid in compensation for property damage, personal injuries, or other types of harm.  IF you sue the other driver to compensate for the damage that was done to your person or vehicle as results of an accident that they caused, the amount of money awarded to you is called “damages”

Some common types of damages include:

  • Medical Bills
  • Repairs to Your Vehicle
  • Replacement of Personal Property
  • Lost Wages
  • Pain and Suffering

If you can prove to the court or insurance company that you obtained expenses for these damages as a result of the other driver’s fault, you can be compensated fort the amount you spent on the damages.

Pain and suffering is a specific type of damages that people underestimate or overlook. Pain and suffering damages refer to the amount of money that the court or an insurance company believes is appropriate to compensate for emotional or psychological damages that are a result from the accident.

An example would be if a car accident leaves the injured person with anxiety related to driving, undue stress, or another form of trauma, these symptoms fall under the category of pain and suffering damages. Insurance companies usually avoid voluntarily including these kinds of damages in a settlement offer, but the person injured during the accident can negotiate for greater pain and suffering compensation.

Because suffering and pain damages can be difficult to prove but often can be a huge part of your injuries. It is crucial that you speak with a personal injury lawyer if you are experiencing “pain and suffering” as a result of a vehicle accident. We at Gill Law Firm are experienced at proving pain and suffering damages and will make sure you receive the compensation you deserve for your pain and suffering.

In a case involving a car accident, a settlement also can refer to an agreement with the insurance company for a specific number of damages. Even if one person has filed a lawsuit for the car accident, the two parties can come to an agreement and dismiss any litigation connected to the accident. Settlement is often a great way to avoid any legal fees, so it may be an attractive option to a driver who was at fault for the accident and did not want to go to trial.

Damages Available in Carbondale, IL
Personal Injury Cases

It is wrong to expect those who have suffered an injury to pay for the expenses of an accident. This is especially true if the injury was caused by someone else. While no amount of money can make it better, we can fight to get you the compensation you deserve. This compensation can help with bills from your injury, to seeking financial awards to prevent your injury from causing future loss.

We can help you recover damages such as the loss of money or expenses that you incurred as a result of your accident. Non-economic damages are another type of loss that we can help you recover. Both of these include:

personal injury cases carbondale il

A person or party that is negligent may be held liable for your current and future medical expenses that are related to your injury. This can include primary care visits, physical therapy, medications, and diagnostic tests (which include x-rays or other scans).

A loss of earnings can include regular wages that you were unable to make due to your injury. This also can include loss of overtime and bonus payments as well. Another thing that may also be included is the loss of future earnings or the loss of your pension from an inability to do your job, or work full time.

Victims of an injury caused by an accident may recover compensatory damages for bodily pain, humiliations, mental anguish, and other injuries that could be caused by extreme negligence.

Your claim could include an amount to compensate you on any property loss. This can include repairs to your vehicle, or repairs to the contents of the vehicle after a car accident.

As a injury victim, you may end up with a partner that has experienced a loss due to the accident. You as a spouse may file a loss of consortium claim in addition to an injury or wrongful death claim. These claims are there to compensate spouses of injury victims for a loss of companionship, loss of services, loss of assistance with the household chores, and the loss of emotional support that would have continued if the injury had not happened.

Spouses who are being forced to pay for the funeral and burial of a loved one who was killed during the negligent accident can recover these costs in a wrongful death case.

Punitive damages are a type of punishment that effects the negligent party’s reckless behavior. These damages are only awarded if the defendant’s conduct is seen as being outrageous due to reckless indifference or an evil motive.

If you have been in a personal injury case in the Carbondale, IL area. Make sure you call the experienced personal injury lawyer at Gill Law Firm.

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