Winston-Salem: Wrongful Death Lawyer
Our Fee is 25% of Settlement
Winston-Salem Wrongful Death Lawyer
Losing a family member in a car, truck, or motorcycle crash is one of the hardest things a family can go through, and the sad truth is the family is confronted with insurance adjuster contacts and legal pitfalls in the immediate aftermath of a fatal accident. Critical legal issues suddenly arise at the worst possible time. Nagle & Associates, P.A. is a Winston-Salem wrongful death law firm that focuses entirely on roadway crash cases, so families dealing with a fatal accident get a legal team that has handled this exact type of loss many times before. We care about our clients and their families, and we are here to help even if all you need now is answers and guidance.
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Why Winston-Salem Families Choose Nagle & Associates
Nagle & Associates is North Carolina’s only law firm that handles exclusively motor vehicle accident cases. We turn away or refer out every other type of personal injury matter, concentrating all of our experience on roadway crash claims.
Over the last 30 years, the firm has recovered more than $850 million for North Carolina car, truck, motorcycle, and roadway crash victims. That includes numerous fatal crash cases resolved on behalf of surviving spouses, children, and parents throughout the state.
Our law firm regularly resolves catastrophic injury and large-loss cases, including a high number of multi-million-dollar settlements. We know how to build the strongest evidence, locate and access multiple insurance policies and fund sources, and how to motivate insurance carriers to pay full value for a fatal injury claim. If they don’t, we stand ready to bring your family’s wrongful death case to trial in your home county.
Our founder Carl Nagle is a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Wrongful death claims are, by definition, among the most serious cases a law firm can handle, and our experience with large-loss outcomes is directly relevant to how we build and win a fatal accident claim.
Our Winston-Salem Office
Our Winston-Salem personal injury office is located at 380 Knollwood St, Suite 320, Winston-Salem, NC 27103. Call (336) 723-4500 or (800) 411-1583 for a free consultation. We can handle a free consult by telephone and if you need our help, there are no up-front fees or costs to get us started today. Also, we offer home visits for families who are not able to come to us during this difficult time.
What Is a Wrongful Death Claim in North Carolina
Under the North Carolina Wrongful Death Act, certain surviving family members can pursue compensation when a loved one dies because of another party’s negligence, including a driver who caused a fatal car, truck, or motorcycle crash. A wrongful death claim is separate from, and in addition to, any criminal charges the at-fault driver may face.
The wrongful death claim allows surviving family members to collect for the injury claims of the decedent, and for the family’s loss of companionship and financial support arising from the fatal crash. We help with every step of the process.
Before a wrongful death lawsuit can be filed, an Estate must be opened for the deceased and an Estate Administrator appointed by the court. This is a step many families are not aware of, and it needs to happen quickly because North Carolina imposes a strict two year deadline to file suit from the date of the fatal accident. Opening the estate takes time, and this must be done before the wrongful death lawsuit can be filed.
Who Can Recover Compensation
Payment from a wrongful death claim generally goes to the surviving family members who would inherit under North Carolina’s intestacy laws. In most cases, this means a surviving spouse and children, and in some situations surviving parents or siblings share in the recovery. Every family’s situation is different, and we walk each family through exactly who is entitled to a share before any settlement is finalized.
What Compensation Can a Wrongful Death Claim Include
We have handled many large loss cases and Mr. Nagle feels that a ¼ share of settlement is more fair for clients with serious injuries. We therefore offer NC’s lowest personal injury legal fee. Our firm’s contingency fee is 25% of the settlement, compared with the 33.3% most personal injury firms charge. This is an 8.33% discount: in a $100,000 settlement, this puts an extra $8,333.33 in tax-free money into our client’s hands. There is no fee unless and until you collect, so you pay nothing up front to retain us. See a full breakdown of our fees.
Common Causes of Fatal Crashes We Handle in Winston-Salem
- Fatal car accidents involving distracted, speeding, or reckless drivers
- Fatal truck accidents on highway corridors such as Salem Parkway (formerly Business 40) and I-40
- Fatal motorcycle accidents where the rider had little or no protection in the crash
- Fatal drunk driving accidents
- Fatal accidents involving catastrophic injuries that later prove fatal after a period of treatment
What to Do After a Fatal Accident
- Contact a funeral home and begin arrangements when you are ready. There is no need to rush any legal steps in the first days. However, you should not cooperate with the claims adjusters who start working early. Their sole objective is to reduce or avoid payment for any wrongful death claims.
- Preserve any paperwork related to the crash, including the police report, once it becomes available. If possible, also secure photos of the vehicles and the crash scene. Your lawyer can often also secure police Axon body cam footage.
- Open an Estate for your loved one so that an Estate Administrator can be appointed. Our office can walk you through this process.
- Avoid speaking with the at-fault driver’s insurance company before consulting a lawyer. Even if you don’t hire a lawyer, educate yourself with a free consultation.
- We invite you to contact our office for a free, compassionate consultation to understand your family’s legal options and deadlines.
Why Families Choose a Firm That Only Handles NC Car Crash Cases
A wrongful death claim tied to a roadway crash involves accident reconstruction, insurance coverage layers, and often a criminal case running in parallel to the family’s civil case. Because we only handle one type of case, we have deep, current experience effectively managing this specific combination of issues. Because we only handle motor vehicle collision cases, and because founder Carl Nagle is a former insurance adjuster and insurance defense attorney, our team fully understands how insurance carriers evaluate fatal crash claims and how they try to limit payment. We also know how to compel them to pay full value for all fatal injury claims. Learn more about our background on our Meet Carl Nagle page and our Why Choose Us page.
Our Fee
Due to our success handling large-loss cases, we are able to offer a client-centered fee structure that leaves more money in your hands when the case closes. Our fee is 25 percent of any settlement, well below the 33.3 percent that most personal injury firms charge, and there is no fee unless and until we collect for your family. Carl Nagle set our fee there deliberately. A wrongful death recovery exists to support the people your loved one left behind, and we would rather that support reach the family than the law firm. We also advance all case costs on your behalf. Those costs come out of the recovery at the end of the case, and if we do not win, we absorb them. Your family is never billed.
Results and Client Reviews
You can review examples of our case outcomes, including fatal and catastrophic crash cases, on our results page, and read what past clients have said about working with our firm during difficult circumstances on our testimonials page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions How long do we have to file a wrongful death claim in North Carolina?
North Carolina law imposes a two year deadline from the date of the fatal accident to file a wrongful death lawsuit. An Estate must be opened and an Estate Administrator appointed before the lawsuit can be filed, so it is important to begin this process early.
Who is allowed to file a wrongful death claim on behalf of my family?
The lawsuit is filed by the Estate’s court-appointed Administrator, but the wrongful death case proceeds are distributed to the family members entitled to inherit under North Carolina’s intestacy laws, typically a surviving spouse, children, or in some cases parents or siblings. NC’s intestacy statute is N.C.G.S. Chapter 29.
What compensation can our family recover?
Families can pursue medical and funeral expenses, payment for the decedent’s pain and suffering before death, loss of income and lost services, loss of companionship and guidance, and punitive damages in cases involving especially reckless conduct such as drunk driving.
Do we have to go through a trial?
Most wrongful death claims settle without a trial, but we prepare every case as though it will go to trial, which puts pressure on the insurance company to offer a fair settlement.
What does it cost to hire your firm?
Nothing up front. Our fee is 25 percent of any settlement, well below the 33.3 percent most personal injury firms charge, and you owe us nothing unless and until we recover money for your family. We are paid from settlement funds.
Why should we hire a firm that only handles motor vehicle accident cases?
Because we do not take any other type of personal injury case, our team has deep, current experience specifically with roadway crash claims, including fatal accidents. That focus, combined with founder Carl Nagle’s background as a former insurance adjuster and insurance defense attorney, gives Winston-Salem families an advantage when dealing with any insurance company after a fatal crash.
Talk to a Winston-Salem Wrongful Death Lawyer Today
If your family has lost a loved one in a car, truck, or motorcycle accident in Winston-Salem, we are here to help, and we will treat your family with the compassion and care that this tragic situation calls for. Please contact our Winston-Salem office for a free consultation at at (336) 723-4500 or (800) 411-1583.
