Car Accident Lawyer Virginia Beach
We are a Shoulder to Lean On After a Car Accident
Car accidents can have catastrophic effects on your entire life. You might suffer from debilitating injuries that impact your emotional health, your finances, and your ability to earn money in the future. Car accident victims should not have to deal with the other party and the insurance company alone.
Our Virginia Beach car accident attorneys can aid you throughout the entire process. Our office will handle every aspect of filing a claim and dealing with the insurance company. You can spend the time after your accident focusing on healing and getting better.
Contact the offices of Preston, Wilson & Crandley, PLC to schedule a free consultation. We look forward to working with you at our Virginia Beach office.
What to Do After Getting in a Car Accident
Your mind might be spinning in confusion right after you get in a car accident, but there are certain things you need to do to ensure you get fair compensation for your injuries.
Call 911
You should always report car accidents to law enforcement. Virginia law states that all auto collisions that result in injuries need to be reported. Officers need to be dispatched to the scene to document the accident, including taking witness statements and photographs of the vehicles, collecting insurance information, and preparing police reports.
Do Not Admit Fault
While it is perfectly reasonable to inquire about the health and safety of the other driver and any passengers, you should not communicate with them beyond that. Anything you say could be used against you by the occupants of the other vehicle or the insurance company, and the more you say, the more likely it is that something will be taken out of context or misconstrued.
Virginia follows a pure contributory negligence system. This means any negligence on the part of a driver, even if it is slight, will bar that person from receiving compensation for his or her injuries. Even if you feel bad that an accident happened, do not accidentally create a potential contributory negligence defense for the other driver by apologizing for an accident that you did not cause.
Get Medical Help
It is important to seek medical care after a car accident even if you do not have visible signs of injuries. Many injuries, such as whiplash, can take time to manifest. You might not realize how severely you have been hurt for a few days or weeks after your crash.
Another thing to keep in mind is that you will have a very difficult time obtaining compensation if you have not seen a doctor or other medical professional. Documentation provided by your doctor and any medical professional you see after your accident is key to filing a car accident claim. If you have no medical records or bills to support your claim, it is unlikely that the insurance company is going to offer much, if anything, in settlement of your claim, and it will be almost impossible to prove significant injuries if it becomes necessary to file a lawsuit.
There are many types of injuries you can sustain as a result of a car accident, such as:
- Broken bones
- Lacerations and cuts
- Internal organ damage
- Nerve damage
- Concussions
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Joint injuries
- Whiplash
- Spinal cord injuries
- Wrongful death
- Sprains and strains
Getting medical attention immediately following your accident can make all the difference for your recovery and your claim for compensation.
Gather Evidence
It can be challenging to document the scene after getting into a crash. Take as many pictures and videos of the scene as you are able, and if you are too injured to do it yourself, you can always ask another person on the scene to help.
You will want to get the contact and insurance information from everyone who was involved in the crash. Other details you should gather include:
- Vehicle model and make
- License plates
- Contact information for witnesses
Contact a Car Accident Lawyer
Get in touch with one of our car accident injury lawyers in Virginia Beach right away if you and/or your passengers sustained injuries due to a car accident. In most cases, a person injured in a car accident in Virginia has two years to file a lawsuit for personal injuries.
Otherwise, the claim is barred by the statute of limitations. If you have been hurt in a car accident, you do not want to wait until the last minute to hire a personal injury lawyer. Your lawyer will need time to investigate your case, take witness statements, collect medical records and other documents, and negotiate with the insurance company, all before a lawsuit is filed. Delay can be fatal to your claim, so give us a call as soon as possible. We will fight for your rights, putting you in the best position for maximum recovery.
Why You Need to Contact Preston, Wilson & Crandley, PLC
Time is of the essence if you have been hurt in a car accident due to the negligence of someone else. The other driver and the insurance company will do everything they can to defeat or minimize your claim. Protect your rights by partnering with our personal injury lawyers.
Receive Legal Advice
You might get a lot of advice from people after you have been in a car accident. It can be challenging to determine what advice you should follow and what you should disregard.
Reaching out to one of our car accident lawyers is a great place to begin. Our personal injury attorneys will review your case with you, advise you on what steps you should take after an accident, investigate your claim, advise you of your rights and the value of your claim, negotiate with the insurance company, and, if necessary, file a lawsuit.
Understand Your Rights
Each state has its own laws governing injury claims arising from car accidents, including issues of negligence, damages, and applicable insurance coverage. However, any person making an injury claim as a result of a car accident will have to prove the following:
- The other driver had a duty to safely operate his or her vehicle
- The other driver breached that duty
- The breach of that duty caused the car accident
- You suffered injuries due to the car accident
Our car accident attorneys will explain everything in easy-to-understand terms so you understand your rights, we will keep you up to date on the status of your case, and we will put you in the best position for success.
Thorough Investigation
There are many causes of car accidents in Virginia Beach, such as:
- Drunk driving
- Distracted driving
- Fatigued driving
- Speeding
- Unsafe driving in adverse weather conditions
- Improper merging
- Tailgating
- Rolling stops
- Failure to yield the right-of-way
- Unsafe passing
- Illegal turns
- Speeding up to get past a yellow or red light
We have the experience to know the law that applies to your case, and we will do the investigation necessary to ensure that we have the evidence to prove your claim. That includes speaking to witnesses, taking photographs, visiting the location of the accident, and gathering medical records, bills, and other documents in support of your injury claim.
Experience in All Types of Car Accidents
While there are thousands of car accidents each day, no two collisions are the same. It is important to work with an attorney that has extensive experience in all manner of car accident cases. Examples of the kinds of accidents that our firm handles include:
- Head-on collisions
- Rollovers
- Rear-end accidents
- T-bone crashes
- Sideswipes
- Hit-and-run
- Single-vehicle
- Drunk drivers
- Car-on-pedestrian accidents
- Car-on-bicyclist accidents
Negotiating a Fair Settlement
The other driver’s insurance company will work hard to pay as little money as possible, but you should not feel pressured into accepting a lowball offer. Our car accident lawyers will negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf, and we are not afraid to file a lawsuit and go to trial, if necessary, to get you the compensation you deserve.
Trial Representation
Going to trial for your car accident claim can be scary, but your mind can be at ease when you have Preston, Wilson & Crandley, PLC by your side. Our lawyers have decades of trial experience to bring to bear in your case, ensuring your claim will have the best presentation possible.
How Our Process Works
Step One: Schedule a Free Consultation
Our car accident lawyers look forward to meeting you and working with you to navigate the injury claim process.
Please call our office at (757) 486-2700 to schedule a meeting.
Our office is conveniently located on Potters Road in Virginia Beach.
Step Two: We Learn About Your Case
During the initial consultation, we will discuss the facts of the accident, the injuries you sustained, the treatment you have undergone, the treatment you expect to undergo in the future, the law governing your claim, the available insurance coverage in your case, and our initial impressions of your case. We encourage you to bring all relevant documentation to your initial consultation with our car accident attorneys in Virginia Beach, including the following:
- Medical bills and records
- List of witnesses and their contact information
- Information detailing your injuries
- Your insurance information, including both your auto insurance and your health insurance
- Photographs and/or video of the accident scene
- Any dashcam or other video of the accident
- Photographs of any bruising or other injuries you sustained in the accident
Step Three: Our Investigation Begins
Our team will start investigating your claim once we accept your case. We will thoroughly review all of the evidence you provide us, and our lawyers will gather additional evidence, such as:
- Photographs and videos
- Police reports
- Eyewitness testimony
- Your account of the collision
- A journal detailing how your injuries negatively affect your daily life
- Medical records and bills
Step Four: Demand Letter Creation
Once the investigation of your claim has concluded and you have finished your medical treatment for your injuries sustained in the accident, our attorneys will draft a demand letter to the negligent driver’s insurance company describing the facts of the accident, detailing the injuries you sustained, itemizing your medical treatment and bills, quantifying your lost wages, and making a demand for an appropriate settlement figure.
The insurance company will then either respond with an offer of settlement or a denial of the claim. Hopefully, a negotiated settlement can be reached, but if the insurance company refuses to offer fair compensation for your injuries, or if it denies your claim altogether, a lawsuit will be filed.
Step Five: Heading to Trial
While most personal injury cases are settled either during pre-trial proceedings or prior to the filing of a lawsuit, there are times when going to trial is necessary. If this happens, your case will be decided by a judge or jury.
During a trial, the following things happen:
- Each side presents evidence
- Witnesses are questioned
- The attorneys deliver opening statements and closing arguments
The judge or jury will deliver a verdict once all evidence and argument has been heard.
How Much Does a Virginia Beach Car Accident Lawyer Cost?
Our accident attorneys operate on a contingent fee basis in personal injury cases. This means we do not receive payment for our work until we obtain compensation for your injury. We will discuss our compensation percentage during our initial consultation. This amount, along with any costs we advance in the prosecution of your claim, will be deducted from the payment received from any settlement or judgment. If we do not get you compensation, then there is no fee for our work.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Car Accident Injury Attorney at Preston, Wilson & Crandley, PLC
Navigating life after a car crash can be overwhelming and painful. You do not have to do it alone. Reach out to our firm to learn how we can assist you.
CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
“Throughout the case, John always kept us up to date by letter or phone. He told us exactly where we were and what could and could not be done. He doesn’t build it up. John is a top-notch personal injury lawyer who I have recommended to friends and would recommend to anyone needing a great lawyer.”
“I needed a lawyer for a personal injury case. After I did a lot of internet research, my wife’s lawyer suggested John Crandley Jr. from Preston, Wilson & Crandley. I read through their website and liked their style, so I called John.John’s best two qualities are that he’s direct and knows his craft inside out.”
“The law firm of Preston, Wilson & Crandley handled my case very well. Very professional. I’m very pleased with their service. Anytime I needed to reach them, they were either there for me or called me back immediately. Anytime I needed to know something, they explained it to me very thoroughly, very detailed so that I had a better understanding of it.”
“I was very pleased with the way Preston, Wilson & Crandley handled my case. Their services were excellent from beginning to end — answering all of my questions, helping me through concern and stress, and handling my case correctly. I would absolutely use them again if needed.”