Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys can help you through the aftermath of a car accident in Illinois. An Illinois car accident lawyer on our team will fight for full compensation. This money will pay for medical bills, car damage, and emotional suffering.
Our team has decades of experience. We have won over $100 million for our clients and aren’t afraid to stand up to insurance companies after a crash.
Call our Illinois law office today at (312) 726-1616 to schedule a free case evaluation with an Illinois car accident attorney.
How Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys Can Help After a Car Accident In Illinois
Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys will hold negligent drivers accountable for hurting you in a crash. We will handle every step of your Illinois car accident case, from the insurance claim through trial.
Our team is named Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers, and Million Dollar Advocates Forum members. No car accident case is too small or too big for us to handle.
If you hire our Illinois personal injury lawyers after a car accident, you can expect the following:
- A full explanation of your legal rights
- Damages calculation
- A thorough investigation
- Evidence collection and cataloging
- Filing insurance claims
- Negotiation with insurance adjusters and the defendant
- Filing a personal injury lawsuit
- Representation in court
Call an Illinois car accident lawyer at our law firm to get started on your case immediately.
How Common Are Car Accidents In Illinois
In 2022, there were 298,347 car accidents in Illinois. That’s about 817 crashes per day across the state. While 20% of the crashes resulted in injuries, less than 1% were fatal.
In total, there were 83,783 injuries, and 8,921 were A injuries. An A injury is an incapacitating or catastrophic injury. These injuries are very severe and prevent someone from walking, driving, or doing the same activities that they did before the crash.
What Is My Car Accident Case Worth?
Every car accident case is worth a different amount of money. The value of your case will depend on several different factors.
These factors may include:
- If your injury is permanent or severe
- The cost of your medical treatment
- The need for ongoing treatment
- Your inability to work or earn income
- Emotional trauma from the accident
- The injury’s impact on your overall quality of life
- Cost of property damage
- If you played a role in causing the accident
- Insurance policy limits
Be prepared to discuss these factors during your initial consultation. Once we understand how your life has changed as a result of the crash, we can value your case.
Ultimately, you may recover more or less money depending on how the case pans out. However, your case worth will guide negotiations so that you never accept less than you deserve.
What Kind of Damages Are Available To Car Accident Victims?
Illinois car accident victims can recover compensatory damages. Compensatory damages include economic and non-economic losses.
Economic damages usually include:
- Medical bills
- Cost of medicine
- Lost wages (past and future)
- Property damage
- Alternative transportation
- Out-of-pocket expenses
Non-economic damages are intangible. It is payment for harms that may go unseen.
Non-economic damages may include:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Emotional anguish
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of consortium
- Mental illness
- Permanent scarring
In certain cases, you can request punitive damages. Punitive damages are awarded when a defendant acts egregiously. These cases go above and beyond standard negligence.
To get punitive damages the defendant must have acted fraudulently, intentionally, or with wilful and wanton behavior. An example would be a road rage crash or DUI accident.
We will pursue all available forms of damages in your case. Call us to talk about what you are eligible to receive in your Illinois car accident case.
How Much Does It Cost To Hire a Car Accident Lawyer?
Many people are afraid to talk with an attorney because of the cost. They worry that hiring an attorney will make their financial situation more dire. Fortunately, nothing could be further from the truth.
Car accident lawyers charge a contingency fee. A contingency fee is when a lawyer takes a percentage of the damages at the end of the case. This payment is instead of an hourly or flat fee.
This arrangement helps clients afford to access legal counsel even when they are struggling for cash. They will never pay their lawyer out of pocket and don’t have to worry about being able to afford it. After all, the payment comes directly from their damages. The flip side is that if they lose their case, they don’t have to pay their attorney at all.
Can I Recover Compensation if I’m Being Blamed for a Car Accident In Illinois?
Illinois applies modified comparative negligence law. You can recover compensation as long as you are 50% or less responsible for causing the crash. If you are 51% or more at fault, you lose the right to any money.
The catch is that you can only recover an amount proportionate to your share of responsibility. For example, if you are responsible for 25% of the damages, then you can recover 75% of the damages.
These rules benefit plaintiffs, but they also encourage defendants and insurers to blame plaintiffs unfairly after a car crash. By hiring a lawyer immediately after an accident, you can protect yourself from blame-shifting.
We’ll Fight To Recover Compensation for All of Your Car Accident Injuries
We treat all of our car accident clients fairly. Whether your injury is minor or catastrophic, we will dedicate 100% of our effort to getting damages.
Our Illinois car accident attorneys have helped people suffering from:
- Brain injuries
- Head injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Paralysis
- Nerve damage
- Amputations
- Broken bones
- Loss of eyesight
- Loss of hearing
- Whiplash
- Neck and back pain
- Concussions
- Crush injuries
- Airbag injuries
In many cases, our clients have complex injuries. We will work with your doctors and experts to review your medical records and prognosis. Once we fully understand how you are impacted by the accident we can ask for fair compensation.
What Causes Most Car Accidents In Illinois?
Most car accidents in Illinois happen due to:
- Unsafe lane changes
- Improper left-turns
- Speeding
- Running red lights or stop signs
- Failure to yield to the right of way
- Distracted driving
- Drunk driving
- Vehicle maintenance issues or malfunction
- Obstructions in the road
- Poor visibility
- Slippery roads or bad weather
We can help you investigate the crash after it happens. This will produce useful evidence for your insurance claim and any resulting lawsuit.
How Do I Prove Negligence After a Car Accident In Illinois?
You need to prove that the defendant was at fault after a car accident in Illinois. A defendant is at fault if they were negligent.
Negligence is a legal theory that has four elements:
- Duty of care
- Breach of duty
- Causation
- Damages
You must prove each element by a preponderance of the evidence. This burden of proof means that it is more likely than not true.
We will explain the negligence theory and how it applies in your case. Then, our team will help you prove that the defendant was negligent so that you can recover full damages.
What Should I Do After a Car Accident?
Many people are unprepared for a car accident. Beyond having their insurance information and registration in the glove box, they don’t know what to do after a crash.
If you get into a car accident in Illinois, you should always:
- Stop at the scene of the accident as soon as possible
- Check on passengers and the other driver for injuries
- Call emergency services for medical help
- Report the accident to the police
- Exchange insurance and contact information
- Take photographs of the crash scene, including the car
- Identify witnesses and get their information
- Go to the doctor for a full check-up
- Get a repair estimate for your car
Once you are safe and have received medical care, you should call an Illinois car accident attorney. It’s never too early to get legal advice and help handling the insurance process. A car accident lawyer will also advise you on what to say to protect yourself from wrongfully accepting blame.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit After a Car Accident?
In Illinois, you typically only have two years to bring a personal injury lawsuit. If you fail to bring your claim before the statute of limitations expires, you can be barred from recovering damages.
Contact Our Illinois Car Accident Lawyers for a Free Consultation
The longer you wait to talk with a lawyer, the longer you’ll wait to get paid. Contact an Illinois car accident lawyer at Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys to get started on your case.
We offer a free consultation with no pressure and no strings attached. You can use this opportunity to get to know our legal team in Illinois and better understand your rights.