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Scranton Car Accident Attorney

Auto accidents take thousands of lives in the United States every year. In 2022, 1,179 Pennsylvanians died in motor vehicle collisions. An additional 67,012 people in the state suffered auto accident injuries. A car accident in Scranton could cause costly property damage and serious personal injuries.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a motor vehicle accident caused by a negligent driver, contact a skilled Scranton car accident attorney at Rosenbaum & Associates immediately. The experienced attorneys at our law firm can review your case in detail during a free consultation.

Scranton Car Accident Resources

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Scranton car accident lawyer

Why Choose Us?

Auto accident claims can get quite complex. Here’s why you should trust Rosenbaum & Associates with your motor vehicle accident claim in Scranton:

  • We have provided aggressive and comprehensive legal services to clients in Pennsylvania since 1992.
  • We maintain close relationships with clients, taking great pride in securing positive outcomes on their behalf.
  • We have successfully settled and litigated cases involving a variety of practice areas, including all types of auto accidents.
  • We have recovered millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for personal injury clients.
  • We handle highly complex cases, hiring subject-matter experts if necessary to strengthen a client’s case.

These are just some of the reasons why you should trust us to handle your claim. Learn more by requesting your free consultation today at (215) 569-0200.

How Can a Scranton Car Accident Lawyer Help?

If you were injured in the accident, the resulting financial burdens can be devastating. You may be facing costly medical bills, lost income, and vehicle repairs.

Working with an experienced car accident lawyer can ensure your rights are protected, and they will help you maximize the value of your claim. Insurance companies are not on your side, and their goal is to pay as little as possible on your claim.

Even if there is evidence of their policyholder’s fault, they will pressure you into accepting an unfairly low settlement offer and try to get you to sign a release of liability that prevents you from taking legal action. When an experienced car accident attorney represents you, the insurance company will know there is a threat of a lawsuit and will have to treat you fairly. 

A lawyer can also make sure the compensation you recover reflects the total extent of your damages. That will involve a thorough investigation into how the accident has impacted your life both physically and financially. The will ensure the figure you demand includes: 

  • Current and Future Medical Expenses: the cost of your medical care so far and any additional treatments you may need in the future due to your injuries.
  • Current and Future Lost Wages: If you must miss work while recovering, you may be entitled to any associated reduction in your income. 
  • Property Damage: For the repairs or replacement of your vehicle and any other personal items damaged in the collision. 
  • Diminished Earning Capacity: If your injuries prevent you from doing your job or you are forced into a different line of work.
  • Pain and Suffering: In many cases, the total compensation you recover can significantly increase by accounting for your pain and suffering, emotional distress, and how your injuries negatively affect your daily life.
  • Punitive Damages: While rare, it is possible to recover punitive damages if the other driver acted with a reckless disregard for the safety of others. 

Even if the police report finds the other driver at fault, their insurance company may still try to shift the blame onto you. Being represented by an attorney, you can rest assured that they will protect your interests, fault will fall on the appropriate party, and your compensation will not be unfairly reduced. 

How Much Is My Car Accident Injury Claim Worth?

A motor accident can cost thousands of dollars in medical bills and property damages. If someone else caused your car crash through negligence, recklessness, or carelessness, that person could be liable for your related losses.

The value of your claim will depend on the severity of your accident and the cost of your damages. In general, the more severe your personal injuries, the more your claim is worth.

Auto accident cases involving permanent scarring, significant disfigurement, loss of limb, organ damage or dysfunction, multiple bone fractures, disabilities, or wrongful death are typically worth more than cases involving minor injuries.

If the victim experienced significant pain and suffering because of the accident, he or she may be eligible for non-economic damages in addition to economic damages. Pennsylvania currently does not limit non-economic damages in auto accident cases.

Consult with a skilled Scranton personal injury lawyer to gain an understanding of how much your auto accident injury claim could be worth.

An experienced lawyer can review the facts of your case, calculate your damages, estimate your predicted future expenses, offer legal advice and come up with an accurate idea of the value of your claim.

Do not let an insurance company take advantage of you and offer less than your case is truly worth. Consult with our personal injury lawyers for an honest, straightforward representation of case value.

How Long Do I Have To File A Car Accident Lawsuit?

In Pennsylvania, you have a certain amount of time (a statute of limitations) in which you must file your motor vehicle accident claim with the civil courts.

Missing your deadline to file typically means forfeiting your ability to seek compensation. The courts will only make exceptions to the time limit in rare circumstances. The statute of limitations for filing a personal injury claim in Pennsylvania is two years from the date of your accident.

The clock will not begin ticking until the date you discover your accident injuries if this date differs from the date of the accident.

If, for example, you suffered a traumatic brain injury with delayed symptoms, the clock would not begin on your statute of limitations until the date a doctor diagnosed you with the serious injury.

If you wish to file a property-damage only claim, you also have two years from the date of the accident to file. A wrongful death claim yields a time limit of two years from the date of the decedent’s death.

You have the right to seek damages from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania if the at-fault driver was a federal employee or on official government business at the time of the wreck.

However, a car accident claim against the government come with tighter statutes of limitations than typical car accident claims.

If a government employee or entity caused your car accident, you have six months from the date of the collision to send a written notice of your claim to the appropriate government agency.

To learn more or to discuss the specifics of your case, speak with a Scranton car accident attorney.

Pennsylvania Car Accident Laws

Aside from the statute of limitations, other state laws also control the filing of car accident claims. Pennsylvania is a choice no-fault car insurance state. This means drivers in the state have the choice between fault or no-fault insurance coverage.

Choosing no-fault coverage means you will file a claim with your own insurance company after a collision, regardless of who caused your accident. If your insurance claim meets specific requirements that allow you to file outside of the no-fault system, only then may you file a claim against the at-fault driver.

If you opt for a fault insurance policy, you can choose from limited tort or full tort coverage. The amount of recovery you may seek for medical expenses and other out-of-pocket costs will depend upon your type of coverage.

With limited tort coverage, you may not seek pain and suffering or other non-economic damages unless your injuries are serious enough to give you the right to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver. Full tort coverage gives you the right to file a claim against the at-fault driver whether your injuries qualify as serious or not.

Pennsylvania abides by modified comparative fault rules when it comes to assigning liability for an auto accident. This means as long as the courts find you – the victim – less than 50% at fault for the crash, you can qualify for compensation.

Even if you made a mistake that resulted in the courts assigning 49% of the blame to you, you could still recover partial compensation.

The courts will reduce your award by an amount equivalent to your percentage of fault. If you are more than 50% at-fault, however, you will not qualify for any compensation.

If you have any questions regarding auto accident laws in Pennsylvania, consult our experienced accident lawyers at Rosenbaum & Associates.

Car Accidents & Pedestrians in Pennsylvania

In certain scenarios, motor vehicle operators and the passengers in the cabin are not the only individuals injured.

Pedestrian related crashes make up only 3.2% of the total reported traffic crashes in the state of Pennsylvania, but accounted for more than 13.2% of fatalities involved in auto accidents during the reporting year of 2017.

Motor vehicle accidents involving pedestrians can result in some of the most serious injuries and fatalities, as pedestrians have no protective surroundings.

Some of the most common causes of pedestrian accidents result from daily activities while people are crossing intersections or exercising.

In Pennsylvania, the right of way belongs to the pedestrian, so these accidents frequently occur as a result of a driver’s negligence or lack of attention. If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in a pedestrian accident, call the law firm of Rosenbaum & Associates to discuss the next steps with an experienced auto accident attorney.

What Are Common Causes of Distracted Driving Accidents?

Distracted driving is one of the deadliest mistakes drivers can make on the road. Driving without both eyes on the road, both hands on the wheel, or being mentally present can compromise a driver’s ability to safely control their vehicle and avoid a preventable accident.

As a result, there is a risk of causing a potentially serious or even fatal accident when a driver’s focus is taken away from the road, even if for only a second. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) categorizes distracted driving into three main types:

Visual Distractions

Anything that draws a driver’s eyes away from the road ahead.

Manual Distractions

A task that requires a driver to use their hands for things other than operating the vehicle.

Cognitive Distractions

When a driver’s mind is occupied (daydreaming) when they should be focusing on driving. Texting while driving is particularly dangerous because it falls into all three categories of distraction.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that the five seconds it takes to read or send a text can be compared to having your eyes closed while driving the entire length of a football field when traveling at 55 mph.

Other common causes of distracted driving are eating or drinking, adjusting the GPS or music, putting on makeup/grooming, speaking to passengers or children, reaching for things in the car, and pets.

What are Common Car Accident Injuries?

Every car accident has three collisions: the vehicle collision, the human collision, and the internal collision. The human and internal collisions are what cause personal injuries. The human collision involves the driver or passenger colliding with something inside the vehicle that stops his or her forward motion.

The internal collision occurs when the person’s internal organs collide with other organs or the skeletal system. Some of the most common car accident injuries from these two collisions are as follows:

  • Broken bones
  • Skull fractures
  • Neck and back injuries
  • Soft tissue injuries
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Chest injuries
  • Spinal cord injuries
  • Internal organ damage or bleeding
  • Lacerations
  • Burns

Some car accident victims will make a full recovery, while others may live with disabilities or disfigurements for the rest of their lives.

Regardless of what serious injuries you or a loved one recently suffered, our Scranton car accident attorneys can help.

We have handled cases involving a wide variety of personal injuries, including severe and permanent injuries. We may be able to help you obtain fair financial compensation for the damages suffered.

Pennsylvania Car Accident Statistics

According to the latest available data released by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the year 2022 recorded 115,938 traffic crashes. As a result, there were 1,179 reported fatalities and 67,012 injuries to people driving on our streets.

Here’s some quick facts in 2022:

  • Each day 351 reportable traffic crashes occurred.
  • Each day 3 persons were fatally injured in reportable traffic crashes.
  • Each day 221 persons were injured in reportable crashes.
  • 1 out of every 44 people was involved in a reportable traffic crash.
  • 1 out of every 159 people was injured in a reportable traffic crash.
  • 1 out of every 11,263 people died in a reportable traffic crash.

Fatalities and Injuries in Pennsylvania Car Crashes [2018-2022]:

2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Reported Crashes 128,420 125,267 104,475 117,899 115,938
Total Fatalities 1,190 1,059 1,129 1,230 1,179
Total Injuries 78,219 76,243 61,248 69,599 67,012

Pennsylvania Car Crashes with the Highest Fatalities [2018 – 2022]:

Pennsylvania Car Crashes With The Highest Fatalities Infographic

2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
Pedestrian Fatalities
201
154
146
182
184
Heavy-Truck-Related Fatalities
136
128
122
156
164
Motorcycle Fatalities
164
174
217
226
217
Alcohol-Related Fatalities
331
299
293
311
320
Speed-Related Fatalities
280
264
269
285
268

What Are the 4 Most Fatal Crash Types in Pennsylvania [2022]?

Crash Type
Crashes
Fatalities
Hit Fixed Object
34,685
361
Angle
33,320
254
Rear-End
22,465
89
Sideswipe
8,400
55

Which Counties Report the highest numbers of traffic Crashes & Fatalities [2022]?

The 5 counties with the most reported traffic crashes were:

  • Allegheny (9.9%)
  • Philadelphia (7.5%)
  • Montgomery (7.0%)
  • Bucks (4.8%)
  • Lancaster (4.8%)

The 5 counties with the most traffic-related fatalities were:

  • Philadelphia (12.1%)
  • Allegheny (7.1%)
  • Lancaster (4.8%)
  • Bucks (4.4%)
  • Montgomery (4.3%)

Scranton auto accident attorneys

How Do Car Accident Investigations Work?

It’s a standard operating procedure for the police to investigate an accident and file a report, in which they will give their verdict of fault. Your insurance company will do the same. If you’ve been injured in an accident, one of the best things you can do for your case is to contact a Scranton car accident lawyer immediately. An attorney will act in your best interest – we can’t promise that your insurance company will do the same. Here’s how the investigation will go:

  • To determine fault, we’ll look at police reports, insurance reports, and eyewitness testimony and create a timeline of the accident.
  • We’ll also investigate other factors that may have been at play, like substance abuse, distracted driving, or negligent vehicle operation.
  • We’ll contact the insurance companies. Sometimes, the threat of legal action is enough to get insurance companies to take your claim more seriously.

Contact A Scranton Car Accident Attorney Today

The attorneys Rosenbaum & Associates offer free consultations over the phone, at our local law office, or in the hospital if you cannot make it to our office.

During your free case evaluation, you can tell your story and receive candid legal counsel from one of our lead attorneys. You need to understand your rights and legal options to receive compensation as an auto accident victim in Pennsylvania.

If your motor vehicle accident case has merit, we may be able to offer legal representation during insurance settlement negotiations or a personal injury trial. Our car accident attorneys in Scranton have the knowledge and resources to get the best possible results for your claim.

Contact us for more information about your case and the legal help needed to recover for the pain and suffering from the accident. Our firm has the experience and expertise victims need to help recover what was lost after an accident.