Odessa Car Accident Lawyer

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) reports that 483,641 motor vehicles are registered in the Odessa District of Texas. While EZ-Rider for the Midland Odessa Urban Transit District offers public transportation, most people will need to drive their own cars to get to and from destinations, and any person who suffers injuries in an automobile accident will want to immediately seek the help of a skilled Odessa car accident lawyer.

According to the most recent TxDOT statistics, Odessa was the location of 2,597 total crashes that included 11 fatal crashes causing 15 fatalities, 43 suspected serious crashes causing 51 serious injuries, 314 possibly injury crashes causing 464 possible injuries, and 128 unknown severity crashes causing 274 unknown injuries. All victims of car accidents need to understand that insurance companies for negligent drivers are not likely to want to fairly compensate people for their losses, which is exactly why you will want to have an attorney handling your case so you can know that you have a legal professional working to ensure that you can recover every last dollar that is available to you.

Common Types of Car Accidents in Texas

No two crashes are ever the same, and different people can experience varying degrees of injuries in different kinds of collisions. Insurance companies often draw incorrect conclusions about the health of people involved in these accidents based on certain factors, and you may require the help of a lawyer simply to prove another driver was at fault for your accident.

Some kinds of crashes can be extremely complex and make legal representation necessary. Consider Uber, Lyft, or rideshare accidents, for example, collisions that could invariably make some large companies potentially liable for damages.

Most rideshare drivers in Texas are independent contractors, meaning they are working for themselves and not for the actual rideshare companies. There are certain situations, however, in which a rideshare company can still be liable for damages, and you will want an attorney’s help in determining if you might have a claim against a major rideshare company.

Another kind of car accident that could involve complex liability issues is drunk driving accidents. When a drunk driver causes an automobile accident, law enforcement at the scene of the crash will usually place the driver under arrest. They may face additional charges for intoxication assault when a crash causes serious injury to another person or intoxication manslaughter when the collision causes the death of another person.

While a drunk driver can certainly be liable for damages, it may also be possible that an establishment can be liable for selling alcohol to an obviously intoxicated patron who later causes a motor vehicle accident. Additionally, the state social host law means that anybody providing alcohol to a minor can also be liable if the intoxicated minor causes a crash.

Other common types of car accidents could include:

• Head-On Collisions
• Rear-End Collisions
• Side Impact or T-Bone Accidents
• Sideswipe Accidents
• Multiple-Vehicle Accidents
• Left or Right Turn Accidents
• Lane Change or Merging Accidents
• Blind Spot Accidents
• Fatal Car Crashes
• Hit and Run Accidents
• Low-Speed Car Accidents
• Uninsured or Underinsured Accidents
• Work Zone or Highway Construction Crashes
• Rollover Accidents
• Highway Accidents
• Bicycle Accidents
• Bus Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents
• Intersection Accidents
• Blind Spot Accidents

Causes of Car Accidents in Odessa

One of the main sticking points in dealing with any insurance company can be fault for a car accident because most insurers will be trying to argue that their driver was not responsible for causing a collision. You need to exercise severe caution in your communications with any insurance company because they will often be seeking ways to try and trick you into making recorded statements that may be used against you later, so it is in your best interest to just avoid saying anything to an insurer and instead let an Odessa car accident lawyer handle all conversations with insurers on your behalf.

There are several different possible causes of a car accident, and some of these causes may be difficult for people to articulate. When you hire an attorney to handle your case, they will be able to conduct an independent investigation and work to secure the evidence necessary to prove how an accident occurred and why somebody else was at fault.

Left or right turn accidents can be an extremely common type of crash because certain drivers will be in such a rush to perform turns that they do not accurately gauge their surrounding traffic. Left turn collisions are more common because drivers try to perform these turns before oncoming traffic arrives but misjudge the speed and distance of those vehicles, but right turn accidents are still fairly common themselves.

Another common cause of motor vehicle accidents can be vehicle defects that prevent drivers from avoiding collisions. Faulty brakes, electrical system issues, and steering problems can all be factors leading to crashes, and it is possible that manufacturers of faulty parts can become liable for damages in these cases.

Additional causes of car accidents in Odessa may include, but are not limited to:

• Distracted Driving
• Speeding
• Reckless or Aggressive Driving
• Driving While Intoxicated (DWI)
• Driver Fatigue or Drowsy Driving
• Improper Lane Changes or Turns
• Failure to Yield Right of Way
• Running Stop Signs or Stop Lights
• Inclement Weather Conditions
• Tailgating
• Wrong-Way Driving
• Road Rage
• Tire Blowouts
• Potholes or Other Dangerous Road Conditions

Car Accident Injuries

For most people who are filing car accident claims, they will focus on the particular injury they receive a diagnosis for. Certain injuries can be particularly severe and may involve several months, years, or even a lifetime of rehabilitation for recovery.

All victims of car accidents in Odessa will want to be sure that they immediately seek medical attention for their injuries, even when they suspect that they did not suffer any injuries. You not only want to ensure your own health, but you want to create a medical record right after a crash because it will be invaluable for your personal injury claim.

One of the most serious kinds of injuries a person can suffer is a traumatic brain injury (TBI). A TBI can be mild, moderate, or severe, and these injuries are always challenging for people to live with because the effects of such injuries are not immediately apparent to the average person, so most people will not know how badly a person has been affected.

A TBI can cause a multitude of physical and cognitive symptoms. A victim may experience profound behavioral, emotional, and sensory issues.

Another very damaging type of injury is a spinal cord injury. A typical spinal cord injury involves damage to a part of the spinal cord or nerves at the end of the spinal canal that causes permanent changes in a person’s strength, sensation, or other body functions.

The most severe spinal cord injuries can involve paralysis, which may include monoplegia that affects only one arm or leg, hemiplegia that affects one arm and one leg on the same side of the body, paraplegia that affects both legs, or quadriplegia or tetraplegia that affects both arms and legs.

Some of the additional kinds of injuries in Odessa car accidents could include:

• Whiplash
• Back injuries
• Knee injuries
• Leg injuries
• Arm injuries
• Neck injuries
• Sprains and strains
• Herniated discs
• Joint damage
• Concussions
• Skull fractures
• Closed head injuries
• Fractures or broken bones
• Contusions
• Lacerations
• Burn injuries
• Scarring
• Internal organ injuries
• Permanent nerve injuries
• Amputations

When a loved one dies in a car accident, then you may be able to file a wrongful death claim. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 71.004 establishes that surviving spouses, children, and parents of a deceased person are the only parties that can benefit from a wrongful death claim.

An executor or administrator of a deceased person’s estate could bring an action when a surviving spouse, children, and parents do not begin an action within three months of a death. All of those parties, however, must not request that such an action not be brought.

Victims need to understand you only have two years for people to file personal injury or wrongful death claims in Texas. You cannot afford to wait to get a lawyer involved in your case, however, because they will need sufficient time to adequately determine the viability of your legal claim.

Damages for Midland Car Accidents

Compensatory damages are the types of awards that intend to restore a person to their original condition, and Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 41.001 defines compensatory damages as being economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are the awards that relate to tangible losses, while non-economic damages are for much more subjective nonpecuniary losses.

The most common kind of economic damages in most cases will be a person’s medical expenses. You must be sure not to agree to any settlement an insurance company may extend to you soon after your crash because it likely does not account for your future medical needs, and an experienced Odessa car accident lawyer is going to know how to consult experts to accurately gauge your true lifetime medical costs.

Some of the other kinds of economic damages may include:

• Lost Wages
• Property Damage
• Physical Therapy Costs
• Costs of Long-Term Care
• Rehabilitation Expenses

When it comes to non-economic damages, loss of enjoyment of life can be a common award when people suffer injuries that are so severe that they can no longer participate in recreational activities. In such cases, juries are willing to compensate people for the ways in which their lives are no longer as pleasurable as they once were.

Other kinds of non-economic damages could include:

• Pain and Suffering
• Mental Anguish
• Emotional Distress
• Disfigurement
• Physical Limitations

Punitive damages are a less-common category of damages that are sometimes available to plaintiffs. Punitive damages are awards that intend more to be a penalty or punishment for a negligent party that engaged in particularly reprehensible misconduct, and the award also hopes to deter other people from doing the same thing.

Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 41.003 establishes that exemplary damages are only possible when a person proves by clear and convincing that their harm was the result of fraud, malice, or gross negligence. Furthermore, Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 41.008 limits exemplary damages to two times the economic damages plus an amount equal to any non-economic damages up to $750,000 or $200,000, whichever is greater.

Call Us Today to Schedule a Free Consultation with an Odessa Car Accident Lawyer

If you suffer catastrophic injuries or your loved one dies in any kind of car accident in Odessa, do not delay in getting yourself legal counsel. You will want to speak to The Patel Firm because we represent individuals throughout the greater Odessa area and have a track record of major victories in these kinds of cases.

Our firm is bilingual and offers a no-fee guarantee, meaning you will pay nothing upfront for our representation in your case because we will instead take a percentage of your ultimate award. You can call 361-400-2036 or contact us online to set up a free consultation with our Odessa car accident lawyer.