Car Accident

Corpus Christi Car Accident Lawyer

If a negligent motorist collides with your vehicle and injures you, you’ll need a Corpus Christi car accident lawyer who challenges insurance companies and fights for your compensation. At Barrett Legal PLLC, we don’t let insurance companies push our clients around or force them to accept unfair settlements. We can hold negligent parties liable and fight for the recovery you deserve.

When you face mounting hospital bills, lost wages, and physical pain, you should not have to battle a car insurance company. A Corpus Christi car accident attorney at Barrett Legal PLLC can review your case and contend for every dollar you are entitled to by Texas law.

Don’t let an insurance company reject your injury claim or delay your payout. Call Barrett Legal PLLC at 361-542-4295 to schedule a consultation with an experienced Texas car accident lawyer.

Texas Car Accidents and Insurance Companies

A traffic accident happens every few minutes somewhere in Texas. Some drivers assume that resolving an auto accident is a simple matter of swapping insurance details, filing a report, and letting insurance companies sort out the payments, but if you’ve been injured, an accident is much more complicated. 

If you’re seriously injured by another driver, that driver’s auto insurance company may look for ways to reduce your payout, shift liability for the accident, or outright reject your injury claim. An adjuster may claim that bad weather caused the wreck, or that road conditions were to blame, or that your injuries were pre-existing.

Texas law requires motorists to carry at least $30,000 in automobile insurance coverage per person for injuries, up to a total of $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 for property damage. This is called 30/60/25 coverage.

But a serious accident can lead to medical expenses that exceed these minimum limits. When damages exceed basic coverage, the insurance company representing the at-fault party may try to limit its financial exposure. Let a Corpus Christi car accident lawyer at Barrett Legal PLLC help you recover compensation and prevent an insurance company from taking advantage of you.

Fault and Modified Comparative Fault

In Texas, the motorist at fault for an accident is responsible for any injuries. Texas adheres to the modified comparative negligence standard (known as the 51% rule). You may recover damages for your traffic accident injuries as long as your share of responsibility for the crash is 50% or less. If a court determines that you were 51% or more responsible, you cannot recover any compensation.

  1. 0% to 50% at fault: When you recover damages, your payout is reduced by your percentage of responsibility. For example, if your damages total $100,000, but a jury finds you 10% responsible for the crash, your recovery cannot exceed $90,000.
  2. 51% or more at fault: By law, you may not recover compensation from any other party involved in the accident.

An insurance adjuster may claim you were driving over the speed limit, made a dangerous lane change, or failed to yield when entering an intersection. A Corpus Christi car accident attorney at Barrett Legal PLLC can challenge these claims by gathering evidence on your behalf and building a strong case for the other party’s full negligence.

Primary Causes of Car Accidents

Certain reckless driving behaviors repeatedly lead to accidents that cause serious and catastrophic personal injuries. These behaviors include:

Distracted Driving

Distracted driving is a principal cause of serious traffic accidents across Texas. State law strictly prohibits drivers from using a cell phone device to read, write, or send electronic messages while driving. Taking your eyes off the road for even two seconds at highway speeds creates a substantial risk for rear-end and T-bone collisions.

Speed and Aggression

Aggressive driving (such as tailgating, weaving in and out of lanes, and ignoring traffic signals) results in far too many high-speed collisions and catastrophic, life-altering injuries. Speeding reduces a motorist’s reaction time but increases the impact force of an accident.

Driving While Intoxicated

Alcohol reduces reaction times, impairs basic motor skills,  and clouds critical judgment. Alcohol-related accidents are frequently high-speed accidents that cause fatalities and permanent disabilities.

Industrial and Commercial Vehicles

Accidents involving commercial vehicles are frequently caused by driver fatigue, oversized loads, or poor truck maintenance. Due to the substantial weight difference between big rigs and passenger cars, accidents involving commercial trucks often generate personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits.

Severe Car Accident Injuries

A sudden traffic accident subjects the human body to violent forces. Even a low-speed collision can inflict hidden muscular or internal injuries, while high-speed crashes can cause devastating, permanent damage. The medical care required for severe injuries can create exorbitant medical bills and long-term financial hardship. These injuries include:

  1. Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs): A sudden, violent impact or jolt to the head may cause your brain to collide against the interior of your skull. TBIs may cause severe cognitive impairment, personality changes, and permanent loss of motor functions.
  2. Spinal cord injuries: Damage to your spinal column can result in partial or complete paralysis. Spinal cord injuries require lifelong medical treatment, specialized equipment, and full-time caregiving.
  3. Bone fractures: High-speed collisions crush vehicle frames, causing broken legs, arms, ribs, and pelvic bones that frequently require surgical installation of pins, plates, and screws.
  4. Internal organ damage: Forceful impacts against seat belts, steering wheels, or cabin structures can puncture lungs, rupture spleens, or cause life-threatening internal bleeding that demands emergency surgical intervention.
  5. Soft tissue injuries: Severe whiplash, torn ligaments, and muscle strains may not show up immediately after a collision. Left untreated, these injuries can permanently restrict physical mobility.

Car accidents also cause scarring, burns, and disfigurement. Living with severe injuries can affect your ability to perform daily tasks, return to your job, and support your family. When someone else’s negligence damages your health, let a Texas personal injury lawyer pursue the compensation you need.

What Compensation is Available?

With an attorney’s help, and depending on the details of your car accident and injuries, you may be able to recover economic damages, non-economic damages, and in specific cases involving gross negligence, punitive damages (also called exemplary damages):

Economic Damages

You establish economic damages by presenting medical bills, receipts, pay stubs, and other financial documents. Economic damages compensate you for verifiable and quantifiable losses, including:

  1. Pending and projected future medical treatment, including emergency room care, surgeries, diagnostic scans, and physical therapy.
  2. Lost wages for time missed from work during your medical recovery.
  3. Loss of your future earning capacity if your ability to work is permanently restricted.
  4. Costs associated with home modifications, medical equipment, and live-in caregiving services.
  5. Property damages for replacing or repairing your vehicle.

Non-Economic Damages

Personal injury victims are also entitled under Texas law, in most cases, to compensation for personal pain and emotional suffering arising from the accident and injury, including:

  1. Physical suffering and pain endured during and after the crash
  2. Mental anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder
  3. Physical impairment that keeps you from engaging in hobbies or daily activities
  4. Permanent physical disfigurement and visible scarring

Insurance companies and attorneys calculate non-economic losses using standard formulas, such as multiplying your economic losses by a factor between 1.5 and 5, or applying a per diem amount. The attorneys at Barrett Legal PLLC reject generic insurance calculations. We document the true physical and emotional impact of your injuries to demand full compensation from the liable party or parties.

Punitive Damages

In rare cases, a car accident may involve a driver’s gross negligence or malicious conduct. In these cases, Texas state law allows injury victims to seek punitive or exemplary damages. Exemplary damages are imposed by a court to penalize a wrongdoer and deter similar conduct in the future, such as cases involving intoxicated driving or commercial truck safety violations.

State law caps punitive damages at the greater of $200,000 or twice the amount of economic damages plus a sum equal to the non-economic damages, up to $750,000.

Take These Steps After a Car Accident

The actions you take immediately following a car crash directly impact your health and your legal right to seek compensation. Taking the following steps at the accident scene can put you in the best possible legal position to prevail with a personal injury lawsuit:

  1. Immediately call 911 to request medical attention and law enforcement. Texas police officers investigating a crash involving injury, death, or property damage exceeding $1,000 must file an official written crash report.
  2. Obtain the full name, address, phone number, vehicle registration number, driver’s license number, and insurance policy details from every driver involved in the accident.
  3. Take photographs of the damaged vehicles, license plates, skid marks, road conditions, traffic signals, and visible physical injuries. Ask for the names and contact information for any eyewitnesses who saw the accident.
  4. Never apologize at the accident scene or make any statement regarding who may be at fault. Anything you say may be used by an insurance provider to reduce or deny your compensation.
  5. Allow paramedics to examine you at the accident scene or visit an emergency room immediately, even if you feel fine. A prompt medical examination may discover latent injuries, and it establishes direct legal proof that your injuries were caused by that particular accident.

After securing medical treatment, contact a Corpus Christi traffic accident attorney at Barrett Legal PLLC before speaking with an insurance company or signing any paperwork. If the other driver’s insurance company contacts you, refer them to us, and we’ll handle the talking and negotiating on your behalf. 

The Key Role of Medical Documentation

Quick medical treatment after a car accident is essential for prevailing in a personal injury case. Immediately after an accident, your body releases adrenaline and endorphins that mask pain and hide physical trauma. Internal bleeding, soft tissue tears, spinal micro-fractures, and TBI symptoms may not be apparent for hours or sometimes days after a crash.

An immediate medical exam can give you peace of mind if you haven’t been injured, and if you have been injured, it creates the medical paperwork you’ll need to bring a personal injury lawsuit and pursue compensation.

The attorneys at Barrett Legal PLLC work with medical specialists, orthopedic surgeons, and physical therapists. We use your medical records to demonstrate the effects of the accident on your life, and we ensure that your injury claim accurately reflects your current hospital bills, ongoing therapy costs, and future medical expenses.

The Statute of Limitations

Texas law establishes a strict statute of limitations for personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits. In most cases, you have exactly 2 years from the date of a car accident to bring a lawsuit against the at-fault parties. If you fail to act before the 2-year deadline passes, the courts will dismiss your case, and you will permanently waive your right to recover compensation.

Don’t wait 2 years to consult an attorney at Barrett Legal PLLC. Evidence can be lost or contaminated, records can be altered, and witnesses can forget key details. Contacting Barrett Legal PLLC helps us preserve critical evidence and begin preparing a legal strategy immediately.

Barrett Legal PLLC Can Fight for Your Compensation

Barrett Legal PLLC provides high-quality legal services to car and truck accident injury victims in Nueces County and across Texas. We aggressively pursue every line of financial recovery available to our clients, and we offer:

  1. No upfront legal fees: We represent personal injury victims on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing up front, and you owe us no legal fees unless we prevail at trial or negotiate an acceptable out-of-court settlement on your behalf.
  2. Aggressive advocacy: We treat every personal injury claim as if it is heading directly to trial. Insurance companies know that our firm does not settle for anything less than what your personal injury claim is worth. This reputation gives us considerable leverage in settlement negotiations.
  3. Direct communication and support: You’ll work directly with an attorney who can give your case the attention and care it deserves. We can return your calls promptly and keep you informed at every stage of the legal process.

If an insurance company tries to intimidate you, shift blame for an accident, or reject your claim, Barrett Legal PLLC can step in to fight for you and your family. We aggressively pursue justice for car accident victims and other injured victims of negligence in Nueces County and throughout Texas.

After you’ve been treated by a medical provider, call Barrett Legal PLLC at 361-542-4295 to schedule a free consultation with a Corpus Christi traffic accident attorney who knows how to win the compensation you need and deserve.