North Carolina Road Hazards Accident Attorney

As common causes of car accidents, road hazards encompass anything from a rough road to standing water on the asphalt. When victims suffer injuries in a motor vehicle collision resulting from a road hazard, they are legally entitled to compensation for all of their expenses and suffering. At Nagle & Associates, Raleigh car accident lawyer Carl Nagle is skilled at determining the likely cause of a crash and helping victims assert their rights through the legal process. Our firm solely practices in the area of serious motor vehicle collisions, which allows us to channel a keen attention to the nuances of each case. Carl Nagle formerly worked as an insurance defense attorney and understands how to fight back against an insurer’s efforts to reduce the value of a claim. Our office has diligently helped accident victims throughout North Carolina, including people in Asheville, Wilmington, and Winston-Salem.

Holding a Defendant Accountable for a Road Hazard Crash

Avoiding road hazards is a critical skill. Surveying the road ahead can help drivers plan accordingly and reduce their speed in these situations, maintaining a safe distance behind other vehicles. However, there are some situations in which no amount of care by a driver can prevent a crash, which instead results from the carelessness of the entity responsible for maintaining the road.

Car accidents that stem from a road hazard may be complicated in terms of proving liability, so consulting a knowledgeable lawyer is critical. Factors that may be taken into consideration include the type of road hazard, the reason for its presence in the road, and the reaction of the driver and others on the road. Recovering compensation for medical costs and other losses after an accident typically requires proving a defendant’s negligence, which is defined as careless or reckless behavior that causes harm to someone else.

Negligent parties in a road hazard accident case can potentially include the state, or a city that is responsible for maintaining that particular roadway. If the city should have known about the hazard but did not address the problem, for example, it may be held liable. Other people or businesses may also have been negligent. For example, a driver who strikes a ladder that fell off a landscaping truck on a highway may be able to hold the landscaper liable for their injuries.

North Carolina is among a few states that maintain a strict contributory negligence rule, which prevents plaintiffs in personal injury lawsuits from recovering compensation if they have been deemed partly responsible for causing the underlying accident. If a driver was weaving on the road, for instance, that behavior may prevent recovery from another party, even if that party also acted carelessly and contributed to the crash. On the other hand, a legal doctrine that may help a plaintiff in a situation in which they are deemed partly responsible is the “Last Clear Chance” doctrine. If the defendant had the last clear chance to avoid an accident but failed to do so, a plaintiff who was partially at fault still may be able to receive compensation.

Consult an Experienced Raleigh Lawyer for Your Car Accident Case

The team at Nagle & Associates can help victims statewide pursue compensation for injuries following a motor vehicle collision. We understand the impact of an accident on an injured person’s quality of life, and we can enlist persuasive experts to help explain it to a judge or jury. Raleigh car accident attorney Carl Nagle has represented people in Asheville, Winston-Salem, Wilmington, Hickory, Greensboro, Charlotte, and other cities in Forsyth, Guilford, Brunswick, Wake, Mecklenburg, New Hanover, Durham, Cumberland, and Catawba Counties. At Nagle & Associates, we discount legal fees by charging only one-quarter of any eventual settlement, rather than the one-third taken by most other law firms. In the event that a case advances to trial, our firm charges one-third of any jury verdict, while other firms may take upwards of 40%. We provide a free consultation about your injury claim, so call today at (800) 411-1583 or contact us online to discuss your situation with a skilled Raleigh personal injury attorney.