Types of Personal Injury Cases We Handle in Phoenix
Our Phoenix personal injury attorneys have experience with all kinds of cases, including:
- Truck accidents – Large trucks, including semis towing a trailer, are difficult to handle and may be nearly 25 times heavier than a typical passenger car. When a truck hits another vehicle, the results are often catastrophic. Many truck accidents involve truck drivers who are severely fatigued, distracted, impaired by alcohol or drugs, or otherwise negligent.
- Car accidents – Car crashes injure thousands of people in Phoenix and across the state every year. Even when a collision seems minor at first, victims can still suffer severe neck, back, head, and other injuries. Car accidents can also cause burns, severed or crushed limbs, and damage to internal organs.
- Motorcycle accidents – Motorcycles are much smaller and harder to see on the road than cars and trucks. Motorcycle accidents often result from drivers who don’t check their blind spots, follow too closely, or cut off a motorcyclist when passing or making a left turn.
- Bicycle accidents – Many drivers fail to share the road with bicyclists, even though bicyclists have most of the same rights as other road users. Drivers who are distracted, fatigued, impaired, or speeding are likely to hit a cyclist as they’re passing by or going through an intersection. Cyclists who ride at night are at a heightened risk of a crash.
- Pedestrian accidents – Pedestrians have no protection if they’re struck by a motorcycle, car, or large truck. That means motorcycle accidents often lead to life-threatening injuries, such as traumatic brain injuries, internal injuries, and spinal cord injuries.
- Boating accidents – Too many people ignore boating safety regulations when they’re on the water. Common examples of negligence by boaters include not bringing the right safety equipment, boating while impaired, speeding, and getting too close to other vessels.
- Bus accidents – Other careless drivers cause many bus accidents, though a significant percentage are due to bus drivers who are impaired, distracted, or negligent in some other way.
- Construction accidents – Construction sites are full of hazards for anyone who visits or works there. Examples of dangers include falling objects, large construction vehicles, the presence of toxic substances, and fall hazards.
- Dog bites – Any unrestrained dog could potentially attack and bite an unsuspecting victim. A dog bite can result in severe infection, while its sharp teeth and nails can inflict painful, disfiguring injuries.
- Slip-and-falls – Spilled liquids, stray cords, poor lighting, worn flooring, and other fall hazards cause many injuries every year in Arizona. What makes slip-and-fall accidents so tragic is that many of them are caused by property owners’ failure to maintain their premises.
- Traumatic brain injuries – A fall, motor vehicle accident, physical assault, or any other hard blow to the head could cause a traumatic brain injury. These injuries are extremely serious and often cause long-lasting or permanent damage.
- Spinal cord and neck injuries – Any injury to the spinal cord or neck is dangerous because, if the damage is severe enough, it can lead to partial or total paralysis. Common causes of these injuries include slip-and-falls, car accidents, pedestrian accidents, and bicycle accidents.
- Wrongful death – In some especially tragic cases, someone dies in an accident due to someone else’s negligence. When this happens, Arizona law allows the deceased’s family to file a personal injury lawsuit against the negligent party.
Types of Damages You Could Recover in a Personal Injury Claim
Depending on the severity of your injuries, the evidence you have, and other factors, a personal injury lawsuit could allow you to seek compensation for:
- Lost wages
- Diminished earning potential
- Medical bills
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Other losses
How Our Phoenix Personal Injury Attorneys Can Help with Your Case
Our Phoenix personal injury attorneys can help with your case by:
- Reviewing the details of the accident to determine whether you have a valid claim for negligence
- Investigating the accident to identify liability and find evidence to support your claim
- Documenting all the financial, physical, and emotional losses you’ve suffered
- Finding the right doctors and other specialists you may need to enhance your recovery
- Taking care of all communication and settlement negotiations with the insurance companies
- Bringing your case to court and representing you at trial, should settlement negotiations fail
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Phoenix Personal Injury Lawyer?
We think everyone in Arizona has the right to high-quality legal representation, no matter their financial means. To make sure anyone in Phoenix who needs a personal injury attorney can afford one, we work on a contingency fee basis. That means you don’t pay us any attorney fees upfront. We get paid only if and when we secure compensation for you.
Steps to Take to Protect Your Rights After an Accident in Phoenix
While your priority after an accident is to seek medical treatment, it’s also important to do what you can to protect your rights. Here are some critical steps to take if you’re involved in an accident in Phoenix:
- Seek medical attention as soon as possible. If you aren’t taken to a hospital from the accident scene, see your doctor as quickly as possible and ideally within a day. A doctor can help identify injuries that haven’t fully manifested and also document your injuries, which is vital for your claim.
- Request an accident report from the police or another authority (for example, the property owner or manager) so you have a written record of the accident. It will likely provide the necessary evidence for your case.
- Get the names and insurance information from whoever was involved in the accident. If you were in a car accident, for example, you’d want to get the name and insurance information of the driver who hit you.
- Take pictures of the accident scene. Get photos of anything that may have contributed to the accident, as well as any vehicles involved (if applicable). You also want to take pictures of your injuries.
- Look around for potential eyewitnesses and ask them for their names, contact information, and a statement. Eyewitnesses can provide valuable, unbiased testimony.
- Tell the at-fault party’s insurance company to speak to your lawyer. You don’t want to give them anything they could use to deny or reduce the value of your claim.
- Contact a personal injury lawyer. The sooner you can do so, the better, as critical evidence in personal injury cases can disappear or degrade after just a few hours or days.
Types of Catastrophic Injuries
A few examples of the catastrophic injuries we see in accidents in Phoenix include:
- Bone fractures and breaks
- Soft-tissue damage
- Joint damage
- Internal bleeding
- Internal organ damage
- Burns
- Crushed, severed, or amputated limbs
- Back injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Neck injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
Talk to a Phoenix Personal Injury Lawyer Now
The Phoenix personal injury attorneys at the law firm of Swenson & Shelley are ready to be your advocate after a serious accident. Contact us today for a free consultation to learn more about how we can help you demand compensation for your injuries.