Car accidents can change your life and your loved ones lives forever. The physical injuries, emotional trauma, and financial hardships caused by an accident can be difficult to deal with, and many people and their families suffer greatly as a result.
What to Do After a Car Accident in Atlanta
- Assess any injuries and go to your doctor: many times, people do not know or realize they are injured until well after a car accident. If you realize you were injured and are feeling pain as a result, go to your doctor immediately and receive treatment. Your doctor will write down everything you say about how you feel and what you think the cause of the injury was, so be precise with your language when you speak to your doctor.
- Do what your doctor says. Follow your doctor’s instructions, including getting necessary tests, completing treatment, and seeing specialists. If you are not feeling better, go back to your doctor and explain how you feel.
- Take pictures of your injuries.
- Obtain a copy of the police report from your accident, if possible.
- Contact Mike Rafi at 404-948-3311 before you speak to any insurance companies, give any statements, or go to traffic court.
- Contact your insurance company: you are responsible for reporting an accident to your insurance company. Importantly, all you must do is report the accident and provide the basic details—where the accident occurred and who was involved. You should not and do not need to provide your insurance company a statement or detailed account of the accident or your injuries right after the wreck.
- Do not write on social about the collision, the other driver, your injuries, your doctors, or anything else that could be used against you.
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When You Should Talk with a Car Accident Lawyer in Atlanta
If you have been injured in a car accident in Atlanta, you will likely receive a settlement offer by the insurance company — especially if the accident was the other driver’s fault.
Chances are, however, the offer you are sent will be much lower than what you deserve. Insurance companies are in the business of making a profit, after all, and want to give out as little money as possible.
Once you accept that offer, you forfeit your right to seek greater compensation for your injuries. Because of this, it’s vital to consult an Atlanta car accident lawyer as soon as possible. Unlike the insurance company, your lawyer will act in your best interest by carefully evaluating your case and helping you decide the best path forward in the legal process.
Though you may not need a lawyer for a little fender bender in which there were no injuries, you will definitely need an attorney if:
- There were serious injuries and/or property damage
- The accident resulted in a death
- It is unclear who was at fault
- The settlement offer doesn’t cover your expenses
- You’re unsure what your legal options are
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Finding the Right Car Accident Attorney for Your Case
Mike Rafi, a dedicated car accident lawyer in Atlanta, has seen first-hand how car accidents can affect people’s lives. Mike will help his clients seek the compensation they deserve. Mike Rafi and his team of experienced car accident attorneys believe in maximizing the value of every case they work on to help alleviate their clients’ financial and emotional burden.
Since 2016, Mike Rafi has won over $31 million on behalf of his clients. Rafi Law Firm is known as a boutique law firm, meaning we only take on a few cases at a time. Because of this, Mike and our other Atlanta car accident attorneys are able to fully focus on your case and approach it . Lawyers at other firms may be handling 10 to 20 cases at a time, if not more.
Our mission is to help you get the full compensation you deserve. Some of Mike Rafi’s recent car cases include:
- $3,013,000 jury verdict in wrongful death tractor-trailer crash on I-285
- $1.6 Million settlement for client in car crash
- $460,000 settlement for client rear-ended on I-285
- $300,000 settlement for client injured in car crash on I-20
Of course, every case is unique. We cannot guarantee you will receive the full amount in your claim. In fact, no attorney can–if a car accident lawyer tells you they can obtain a specific settlement amount for your case, run or better yet, drive safely way.
The settlement or verdict we seek on your behalf will be based on the circumstances of your accident, the injuries you sustained, the parties involved in the wreck and other factors. We will always be transparent with you about the outlook for your case and will work with you to obtain the compensation you need and deserve.
What Your Car Accident Lawyer Will Help You Prove
When your Atlanta car accident lawyer takes on your case, one of the most important elements of personal injury law they will consider is negligence. In legal terms, a person acts negligently when they act in a way that a reasonable person wouldn’t and cause harm.
In order to prove negligence, your attorney will consider four general factors:
1. Duty of Care
Broadly speaking, every person has a duty of care to avoid harming another person. This duty looks different in specific situations. For instance, doctors have a duty of care to treat their patients to the best of their ability. Drivers have a duty not to cause harm to others on the road. They must follow all traffic laws and drive defensively.
2. Breach of Duty of Care
When a driver doesn’t act in a “reasonably prudent” way, and they cause injury, they are said to have breached their duty of care. However, not every accident is caused by a breach of duty of care. For instance, if a large branch falls in the road and a driver has to swerve to avoid it, causing an accident, that driver may not have breached their duty of care. After all, another reasonably prudent person likely would have reacted in the same way.
3. Injury Caused by the Accident
Third, your lawyer will evaluate whether your injuries were caused by the accident itself, and not some other factor. Insurance companies will look for ways to blame your injuries on other things and not the crash. For example, insurance companies will look back into your medical history to find some other prior event that they can blame for your injuries, like a prior car crash, workplace accident, or sports injury. It is important to have a lawyer who understands the medicine and science about your injury and can successfully show that the car crash is the reason you are hurt.
4. Real Damages Caused by the Accident
Finally, your lawyer must prove that you suffered real, monetary damages because of the accident. This is generally the easiest element to prove. Medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other expenses are perfect evidence that you suffered real damages.
Insurance & Investigations
Both the other driver’s insurance company and your insurance company will immediately launch an investigation. Insurance companies make money by paying less on auto accident claims, so their goal is to pay you as little as possible.
The insurance companies will ask you to provide a written or recorded statement explaining how the accident occurred, who was at fault, and how you were injured—do not do it! The insurance companies will twist your words and take parts of your statement out of context, and they will not give you enough time to properly assess your injuries and receive treatment. They may also make low-ball offers and try to rush you into accepting, which will not be in your best interest. Learn about common myths about car accidents insurance companies tell people on our blog.
Mike Rafi will conduct his own initial investigation and navigate you through the insurance company gauntlet
- Meeting with you
- Inspecting your vehicle for any defects
- Traveling to the scene to evaluate the crash
- Speaking to police and first-responders
- Finding witnesses and interviewing them
- Researching the other driver and his employer, if he was working
- Learning about your injuries and treatment
Each case is different, and Mike will adapt his investigation to fit your case.
Getting Compensation for Your Car Accident Injuries
Under Georgia’s comparative negligence statute, you can receive compensation for your injuries if you are less than 50 percent at fault for the accident. However, the amount of compensation you receive will be lessened by the amount you are at fault.
As an example, let’s say you are rear-ended at night while you’re waiting at a stop light. You suffer broken ribs and a traumatic brain injury. However, one of your tail lights wasn’t operating properly. The court finds that you are 20 percent at fault for the wreck because of your tail light, and they award you $100,000 in compensation. Because you are 20 percent at fault, you would only receive $80,000.
Damages Available for Car Accidents in Georgia
Determining the amount in damages you have suffered is as important as analyzing the circumstances leading to the crash. Car crashes send more than 2.3 million people in the U.S. to the emergency room each year, with injuries including back and neck injuries, brain injuries, and spinal cord injuries. Damages, or compensation, that you may be able to recover after a car accident include economic and noneconomic damages.
Economic damages are intended to compensate you for the real monetary losses you suffered. They are generally easy to prove since you will be able to provide documents and other evidence showing your losses. These include:
- Past and future medical expenses, proven by medical bills and diagnoses
- Lost wages and future wages, proven by pay stubs and notes from your doctor saying when you can return to work
- Property damage, proven by invoices and receipts
- Out-of-pocket expenses, proven by receipts
Noneconomic damages are a bit more ambiguous in nature. These damages are intended to compensate you for the non-monetary losses you’ve suffered. Your Atlanta car accident lawyer will consult with experts to help figure out how much you’re owed for these losses, including:
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Mental anguish
- Physical disfigurement or impairment
Types of Car Accident Cases Rafi Law Firm Handles
At Rafi Law Firm, we handle nearly every type of Atlanta car accident. While this list isn’t exhaustive, some of the most common car accidents we handle include:
Most Common Causes of Car Wrecks in Atlanta
Car accidents can be caused by any number of factors, whether those factors are natural or caused by a driver’s actions. No matter the cause, an experienced car accident lawyer in Atlanta can help you get the full compensation you deserve for your injuries. Some of the most common causes of car wrecks include:
- Dangerous road conditions: Anyone who has driven in Atlanta knows the roads are full of potholes, metal plates and poor drainage. And who can forget Snowpocalypse? These road conditions can quickly become dangerous for drivers. They can cause drivers to lose grip with the road or malfunction altogether, which can send drivers into oncoming traffic or otherwise cause wrecks.
- Texting and driving: Distracted driving, including texting and driving, is one of the most serious issues on Atlanta’s roads. Though Georgia did pass a hands-free law in 2018, people still text while they’re behind the wheel. At highway speeds, reading or responding to a text can take a driver’s eyes off the road for five seconds — enough to travel 300 yards or more without looking at the road.
- Drunk driving: Though distracted driving is quickly rising to become the top cause of car accidents, drunk driving is still at the top. When a person is even buzzed, they begin to lose their ability to focus on the road and make critical decisions quickly. When buzzed becomes drunk, vision may double, and driving becomes quite difficult. Georgia is one of the toughest states when it comes to drunk driving, but that doesn’t stop a lot of people from doing it.
- Speeding: The temptation to drive faster than is safe is one we all face, especially when we’re in a hurry. But there’s a reason speed limits are in effect. When a driver is going too fast, it becomes more difficult to control the car properly. At high speeds, even a subtle turn of the wheel can be disastrous. In addition, it becomes much harder to stop quickly if traffic in front suddenly slows.
- Recalls/Car Defects: Though manufacturers go through a painstaking process to ensure their vehicles are safe to drive, some defects may not become evident for years. For instance, engines may overheat and catch on fire after three years of use. Or, airbags may not deploy properly after a while. When manufacturing issues suddenly arise, they can cause serious, and even life-threatening, car accidents.
- Driving for too long: Uber and Lyft drivers especially may be driving too long and become tired and unable to safely drive. Unlike truck drivers, there are no rules for how long an Uber of Lyft driver can drive for, so many of those drivers work a full-time job and then drive for a few more hours, which is dangerous and often results in crashes.
How Common Are Car Accidents in Atlanta?
In 2015, there were over 385,000 crashes throughout Georgia. These resulted in 1,430 fatalities and 19,405 serious injuries. Since 2009, the number of crashes has steadily increased, as have the rate of serious injuries. The most common fatal injuries were caused by single vehicle accidents, followed by roadway departures.
In Fulton County, where the majority of the city of Atlanta is, there were 58,581 total accidents in 2017. These resulted in nearly 18,000 injuries and 61 fatalities. Alcohol use was the main cause of car accident fatalities that year, followed by speeding.
Atlanta Car Accident Statistics
Personal Injury Law
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Most Dangerous intersections in Atlanta
Studies have shown that Atlanta has some of the deadliest roads in the country. The Atlanta car accident lawyers at Rafi Law Firm travel these roads every single day. When traveling through Atlanta, it is best to avoid the most dangerous intersections below to reduce your risk of a car accident:
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