Mundelein Car Accident Attorney

When Should You Get a Lawyer After a Car Accident?

Car crash victims in Lake County should retain a Mundelein car accident attorney as soon as possible after an accident. Car accidents often cause victims to suffer life-altering injuries. These injuries come with more than just an emotional cost. Medical bills loom overhead, threatening the financial stability of the victim. When faced with reduced earning capacity or lost wages, car accident victims are at risk of suffering financial hardship as a direct result of the crash. Libertyville car accident attorney Bogdan Martinovich represents injured victims in their battle for financial recovery. Seeking compensation through a personal injury claim helps hold the at-fault party liable for the costs of your car accident and prevents you from suffering undue financial harm.

If you were injured in a car accident in Lake County, contact experienced car accident attorney Bogie Martinovich at (847) 996-1350 for a free consultation.

Serious Injuries You Can Sustain in a Car Accident

Lake County car accident lawyers see a wide range of moderate to severe injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents. Some car accident injuries may be immediately apparent in the moments after the crash, such as lacerations, visibly broken bones, or burns. However, latent injuries are also common in car accident cases. Latent injuries are those which are not obvious or visible immediately after an accident. Instead, these injuries may appear days, weeks, or months later. Common latent injuries from car accidents include traumatic brain injuries, soft tissue injuries, head, neck or spine injuries, and internal bleeding or organ damage.

The seriousness of your injuries can directly impact the value of your car accident case. Seeking medical attention as soon as possible can ensure that your injuries are properly documented, treated, and represented in your accident claim.

Burns, Scarring, and Disfigurement

Burns are a commonly sustained injury in a car accident. Engines can burn up or catch fire in the moments after an impact, causing visible flames to appear or metal surfaces to increase in temperature. 

More serious burns can lead to permanent scars. In addition to scarring from burns, lacerations or puncture wounds can also cause a victim to suffer scarring after an accident. In some cases, scarring may be severe enough to cause permanent disfigurement.

Broken Bones

The impact of a crash can easily cause a victim to suffer from broken bones or dislocations. Car accidents that occur at higher speeds have an increased likelihood to cause a victim to sustain breaks, fractures, or dislocations.

Though some breaks may be obvious after a crash, fractures, dislocations, or damage to bones that rest deeper within the body may not be immediately apparent. Properly detected damage to bones can take weeks to heal. Undetected damage, however, may never heal properly and, as a result, may permanently impact a victim’s life.

Head, Neck, and Spinal Cord Injuries

The body undergoes substantial jostling during the impact of an auto accident. This can cause serious injuries to the victim’s head, neck, or spinal cord. A victim may sustain a concussion, traumatic brain injury, or other serious head wound as a result of a sudden impact. Head injuries from car accidents can lead to memory loss, headaches, confusion, poor visibility, hearing loss, lost mental capacity, brain damage, and lack of emotional or motor control, depending on the severity of the injury.

In addition to head injuries, neck and spinal cord injuries are a serious risk for car accident victims. Mild injuries, such as whiplash, may only take days or weeks to heal, however they can also become a chronic, long-term problem. Other neck and spine injuries, however, can last a lifetime. This is true in cases involving catastrophic injuries, where victims sustain a disability from the accident. 

Disabling spinal injuries car accident victims may sustain include incomplete or complete injuries. A complete spinal cord injury causes permanent total damage to the affected area. This can lead to paraplegia or quadriplegia, depending on the location of the injury. 

An automobile accident during winter flurries.

Contact Us Now

Loss of Limb

Car accidents can cause victims to suffer amputations. Amputations permanently impact a victim’s life, and are therefore considered on the list of catastrophic injuries. Auto accident settlements involving amputations tend to be significantly higher, as the costs for treating an amputated limb are more significant than those for minor injuries.

Emotional Injuries

Though often overlooked, the emotional injuries a victim sustains in an auto accident can have a significant impact on his or her life. Common emotional injuries after a car accident include mood swings, anxiety, depression, PTSD, nightmares, disturbed sleep patterns, pain and suffering, and new life-impacting fears and phobias. These injuries often require treatment by a licensed mental health professional.

What Should You Do After a Car Accident?

The steps you take after a car accident can have a direct impact on your health and your financial recovery. The strength of your car accident lawsuit is directly tied to your ability to demonstrate the damages you suffered and prove the other party’s negligence. The evidence you gather at the accident scene will support this cause.

Immediately after an accident, you should relocate yourself, your vehicle, and other involved parties to a safe nearby location if your present location is creating a hazardous condition that could lead to additional car accidents and injuries.

 Once you are safe, you should take the following steps:

$2 Million
Hit-and-run accident involving a pedestrian.
$500,000
Defendant negligently placed a door stop at a library that caused a trip and fall.
$230,000
Bicycle rider hit at an intersection.
$200,000
Dog bite to the lip of a child.

Seek medical attention

Your health is your first priority after a car accident. As soon as possible, you should check yourself and your passengers for injuries. Next, survey other involved parties to determine whether emergency medical treatment is necessary. Contact emergency services to request an ambulance, or plan an appointment with your primary care physician as soon as possible. 

Seeking medical attention doesn’t just support your wellbeing. The documentation of your injuries provided through medical treatment will help you demonstrate the damages you sustained to the liable party’s insurance company. 

File a police report

Reporting your accident to the local authorities is an essential step in preparing for a Chicago area car accident claim. The on scene police officers will gather evidence, make a preliminary judgment of fault, and file a police report documenting the accident.

The police report is a crucial piece of evidence for car accident cases. It includes details that will help you prove you are not at fault for your accident. Additionally, insurers may require the police report number to file your claim.

Document the scene

Even though the police report will document the accident, you need to take additional steps to collect supporting evidence. Evidence to collect at the scene of a car accident includes photos of the accident, footage from nearby traffic or surveillance cameras, witness testimony and contact information, and details of the scene’s location. It is also helpful to write down your account of what happened to ensure your memory is accurate.

The evidence you gather at the scene of the car crash will help you demonstrate who is at fault for the accident in your insurance claim. Additionally, these details can help expert witnesses reconstruct the accident if the case proceeds to trial.

Exchange information with other involved drivers

Collecting contact details and insurance information provides you with a way to contact the at-fault driver’s insurance company once he or she has been identified. 

Report the accident to insurers

Once you know who is liable for your car accident, you can file a claim with his or her insurance provider. Though you can open the claim on your own, it is best to hire a Chicago area car accident lawyer to handle subsequent contact and negotiations on your behalf.

Retain a car accident lawyer

A car accident attorney greatly increases your chances at a higher settlement. Additionally, your attorney will help protect you from the insurance company’s bad faith practices. 

Insurance companies don’t represent your best interests in a car accident case. They are profit driven entities. As such, their efforts are geared at getting you to accept the lowest settlement possible, or avoiding paying you a settlement at all. A car accident lawyer can secure the damages you are owed and circumvent the insurance company’s tactics.

Contact car accident lawyer Bogie Martinovich to find out how much your car accident claim is worth. Call (847) 996-1350.

Clients Testimonials

clients testimonials stars

Bogie is an outstanding attorney in every way—knowledgeable, diligent, and effective. I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone.

~ Timothy S.

Bogie has handled our corporate legal litigation for more than 20 years, prevailing against some of the largest national law firms. He is very intelligent, knowledgeable, experienced, and helpful. We value his counsel very much and are pleased to have had him advising us for many years. For us, he is 10 stars!

~ Mark R.
It’s not often you’ll find attorneys who make you feel heard and get you great results, but Bogie and Katie always deliver on both fronts. They take the time to walk you through the entire process and make sure to keep your needs as their top priority. I can’t recommend them enough!!
 
 
~ Vendi P.
The case that Bogdan Martinovich worked on lasted for a few years due to Covid at the time. He worked very diligently on the case and kept us informed throughout the whole process with updates. Amazing, informative, and helpful with my first experience with this process!
 
 
~ Angelica S.

What Is Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Insurance?

Uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage is a mandatory part of insurance policies in Illinois. This coverage protects auto accident victims from absorbing the cost of a crash when the at-fault party fails to maintain sufficient insurance coverage. Illinois requires motorists to carry a minimum level of liability insurance at all times. These minimums include $25,000 of coverage for the injury or death of one injured person, $50,000 in coverage for the injury or death of multiple people, and $20,000 of coverage for property damage to another person. However, Illinois law requires your own insurance company to offer you the same amount of uninsured or underinsured coverage as your liability coverage. In other words, if you have $250,000 of liability coverage, you should have $250,000 of uninsured and underinsured coverage.

This coverage is a part of your own insurance policy. A traditional car accident insurance claim is filed with the at-fault party’s insurance company, and is known as a third-party claim. However, a UI/UIM claim is filed with your own insurance company instead.

Uninsured (UI) and Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage protects claimants in cases where the other driver has no insurance (UI) or not enough insurance (UIM). The UIM coverage applies when the liable party has insurance, but his or her policy limits are not enough to fairly compensate you for the damages you sustained. UI and UIM coverage also applies in cases involving hit-and-run drivers.

Workers' Compensation Attorney Bogdan Martinovich

How Much Is My Car Accident Claim Worth?

No car accident lawyer can guarantee how much compensation you will receive from the insurance company. Experienced Lake County area car accident lawyer Bogie Martinovich will be able to provide you with a fairly accurate estimate of what to expect if your case is successful, however.

The value of your car accident claim takes into account on two primary factors: the severity of your car accident injuries and the factors that contributed to the crash. These elements influence the amount you are able to claim in damages, which determines the value of your settlement award. The more severe your injuries are, the more significant the financial impact of the accident on your life.

The actions that caused the accident to occur will also influence your overall settlement. This is because Illinois operates under a modified comparative negligence system when determining liability in a car accident. 

How Does Fault Affect an Illinois Car Accident Claim?

A car accident claim is filed against the at-fault party’s insurance provider. However, a victim’s contribution to the accident may impact his or her settlement award. Under a modified comparative negligence system, if you are found to be at least 51% at-fault for your accident, you are prevented from recovering any damages. If you are 50% or less at-fault, your settlement will be decreased by the percent of fault that you carry. 

Damages a Car Accident Lawyer Can Help You Recover

The damages you can recover in your car accident lawsuit will depend on the losses you sustained and the sources of recovery that are available. Similar to other personal injury claims, a car accident case will typically result in compensatory damages. These damages exist with the intention of returning a victim as close to whole as possible through financial compensation. 

Compensatory damages for car accidents fall into two categories: economic and non-economic damages.

Economic Damages

Economic damages are the consequences of an accident a victim suffers with direct financial ties. These damages are typically represented by medical bills, receipts, wage statements, and other tangible proof of expenses. These damages include:

  • Medical bills for initial treatment
  • Long-term and future medical expenses
  • Present and future lost wages, reduced earnings, and reduced earning capacity
  • Costs for prescription drugs, medical equipment, and disability accommodations in the home

In fatal car accidents, a decedent’s surviving dependents can in addition to non-economic damages, recover economic damages on his or her behalf. Additionally, funeral and burial costs can be recovered. 

Non-economic Damages in a Personal Injury Claim

Injured victims can also recover damages for the intangible, non-economic damages for the following:

  • PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other resulting mental illness
  • Pain and suffering
  • Loss of consortium
  • Loss of enjoyment of life
  • Disability, or disfigurement

In addition to compensatory damages, the courts occasionally award punitive damages to a plaintiff in a car accident lawsuit. Though rare, punitive damages are applied with the intent of punishing a reckless at-fault defendant, such as a drunk driver, rather than to compensate an injured victim.

Accident lawyer Bogie Martinovich can review your case during your free consultation to calculate the damages that may be available to you in a personal injury claim. 

Frequently Asked Questions About Car Accident Claims

slip faq arrow

How Long Does it Take to Settle a Car Accident Claim in Illinois?

There is no set amount of time it will take to settle your claim. Though cases can take months or years to settle, the speed at which your claim settles will depend on the strength of the evidence you gathered and the cooperativeness of the insurance company. 

slip faq arrow

How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Claim?

Car accident claims fall under the same legal category as personal injury claims. If you are injured, you need to take legal action right away. In Illinois, you generally have just two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. Time limits may be longer or much shorter for your case depending on a number of circumstances, including the status of the victim, such as a minor or being disabled. So, if you fail to take legal action before the deadline, you could be barred from recovering compensation.

Filing as soon as possible has its benefits. Filing sooner helps to preserve your evidence, including availability of witnesses, and keeps your claim well within the statute of limitations.

slip faq arrow

What Do I Do After a Car Accident That Wasn’t My Fault?

If you were injured in a car accident that wasn’t your fault, you should contact a Libertyville car accident lawyer for a free consultation as soon as your condition is stable. Your attorney will identify the parties who may be liable for your accident, gather evidence to prove fault for the crash, and help you file a personal injury claim against the insurance policy or policies that are available.

Learn More About Car Accidents

To learn more about car accidents in Illinois, explore the resources below. To file your accident claim, call Bogie Martinovich, Attorney at Law. 

Contact Us Now