Can I File a Claim If I Was Injured as a Passenger In a Car Accident?
The majority of U.S. states operate under fault-based injury laws, requiring car accident victims to file claims against the responsible party in an accident. The involved insurance companies investigate to assign a percentage of fault to each party, allowing an injury victim to recover compensation minus their percentage of fault if they contributed to the cause of the accident. But what if you were injured in a car accident when you were not one of the drivers? How does an injured passenger recover compensation for their injury-related losses after a car accident?
What Types of Injuries Do Passengers Suffer In Car Accidents?
Passengers face an equal or greater risk of suffering car accident injuries as a driver, particularly front seat passengers. A front seat passenger is seated close to the dashboard and windshield, leaving them vulnerable to injuries in collisions from any angle, but particularly in head-on collisions and T-bone accidents on their side of the vehicle. Backseat passengers face less risk of serious injuries, but have a significant risk of injuries in T-bone accidents and rear-end collisions.
Passengers may suffer from injuries such as the following in a car accident:
- Fractured bones
- Soft-tissue injuries to muscles, tendons, and ligaments
- Neck injuries
- Back injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- External head, facial, and dental injuries
- Internal organ injuries
- Spinal cord damage
- Lacerations, contusions, and abrasions
Seatbelts and airbags significantly reduce the risk of car accident deaths, but they cannot prevent all injuries. Passengers suffer injuries as a result of the crash force of a collision, which propels them forward at the speed the car was traveling until the seatbelt snaps them back, causing tremendous stress to the body’s structural system. Passengers also often suffer injuries from blunt force trauma caused by the car’s structures collapsing inward at collision points.
Who Can Be Held Liable for Car Accident Passenger Injuries?
An injured passenger may be unsure where to turn for compensation. An experienced Atlanta car accident attorney investigates the accident and seeks compensation from all available avenues, depending on who was responsible for the accident and if any other entities contributed to the cause or severity of the accident. Common parties held liable for passenger injuries in car accidents include the following:
- The driver, even if they are a relative (their insurance company pays your compensation, not the driver)
- The driver of another car, if they caused the accident through an error, recklessness, or wrongdoing (all examples of legal negligence)
- A negligent road work contractor or a city government entity
- The manufacturer of a defective car part, seatbelt, or airbag
Under the comparative negligence system, an injured passenger is never at fault for an accident and cannot be held liable for damages. Instead, they are entitled to the full compensation available to them.
What Can I Recover In an Injured Car Accident Passenger Claim?
Injuries are painful and potentially debilitating, causing temporary or permanent life-altering consequences in addition to expensive medical treatment. These consequences of a car accident are the passenger’s damages. Common damages recovered by an Atlanta injury attorney in a car accident claim for passengers include the following:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Past and future income loss
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Reduced earning ability
- Compensation for pain and suffering
- Catastrophic injury damages that might apply, such as loss of limb, loss of an organ, loss of one of the senses, disfigurement, scarring, or diminished quality of life
If a loved one suffered fatal injuries as a passenger in a car accident, the closest surviving family member, like a spouse, parent, or child, may recover compensation for their loss through a wrongful death claim.
How Can a Car Accident Attorney Help Me?
Depending on the circumstances of the accident, an experienced Atlanta car accident lawyer can seek compensation for a passenger’s damages from one or more liable parties to recover the full and fair compensation available to them. Call Piasta Walker, Hagenbush, LLC for a free evaluation of your car accident claim.