Atlanta Injury Attorney Blog

Many of our clients call wondering if they even need a car accident lawyer in Georgia to handle their case. The short answer is, the more serious or complex the claim is, the more likely it is that you will need an attorney. Be very wary of lawyers who tell you need a lawyer no matter what or tell that you need a lawyer for a case with medical bills totaling less than $2,000.00. You should also beware of a lawyer telling you to get medical care with their chiropractor. Those cases rarely end well for the client.

In the following circumstances, you are probably going to need an attorney for your car accident claim:

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11 Alive News completed an analysis of car accident data from red light camera monitored intersections across the area and came to the conclusion that having the cameras increases the number of crashes. If true, that fact would require the permit for the cameras to be yanked. In my opinion, this is a knee jerk reaction to the data.

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Our new Georgia car insurance policy exclusions page is now up on the firm site. There have been a rash of coverage dispute with insurance companies stemming from car accidents in Atlanta and there are very few consumer resources out there. Just click on the hyperlink below to access the resource.

The Georgia car insurance policy exclusions covered include:

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As a regular part of their job, accident lawyers are called upon to examine and interpret the car insurance policies that apply in the aftermath of a crash. For the innocent victims of the crash, certain policy exclusions can be devastating.

Take for example a recent client who was struck by a driver whose license had been revoked due to too many dui convictions. This driver had no drivers license and had borrowed a friend’s car. Under Georgia law, even though the driver had no license and no insurance of his own, the insurance policy on the vehicle covers anyone driving the vehicle with permission. (understand that if a person is not a permissive user, they are not covered by the vehicles insurance) We sent out the certified letters to USAA insurance request they disclose the insurance policy limits and disclose any policy defenses. If this policy is drafted like most, it will continue an exclusion for coverage when the vehicle is operated by an unlicensed driver.

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Our Athens Injury Lawyer website is now active and we are meeting with clients through an office sharing agreement in Downtown Athens, Georgia. Please feel free to contact us to make an appointment at the Athens office.

In Georgia you can settle your property damage claim and proceed with your injury claim and what you do in one will not affect the other. The Georgia legislature passed O.C.G.A. §51-1-32 and 51-1-33 to ensure that you and the insurance company can work out your property damage sooner and without fear that it will impact your rights if you sustain an injury. Understand that just because they pay for your car repair, it does not mean that they will accept liability on the injury. Be careful though because there is still a danger when it comes to signing releases.

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The Georgia Senate has passed a bill banning texting while driving and it calls for a stiff fine for adults and license suspensions for teenagers. The House version of the bill calls for license suspensions if you cause a crash while texting. Although we should all applaud the passage of the bill as it may save countless lives, the cynic in me complains that driving while distracted is already a ticketable offense.I suppose though that literally telling people that driving while texting is illegal will have a more damming effect.

This legislation sadly grew out a of fatal crash involving Caleb Sorohan in December and the bill is called the “Caleb Sorohan Act for Saving Lives by Preventing Texting While Driving”.

Now all we have to do is solve the enforcement problem. My solution? Use traffic cams to take high res shots of cars and their tags from the front and rear on I-8/I75 and send them tickets in the mail. It will make for a safer world for all of us.

Option 2 is for GPS enabled phones to know when the phone is moving at highway speed and disable the texting function unless the driver is able to handle an intricate input task proving they are a passenger.

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I agreed to step in and try a case for another Atlanta injury lawyer two months ago only to find out in deposition that the client had filed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy due to business debts prior to the crash that injured him. Under the Bankruptcy Code, he has a duty to amend his Bankruptcy to reflect that he has the injury claim as it is a potential asset. In this case the client failed to do that and the bankruptcy is now closed.

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Despite the media spotlight shifting to car accidents caused by driving and texting, the number one killer remains drunk driving in Georgia. As drunk driving car accident lawyers, we civilly prosecute drunk drivers who injure and kill innocent victims across the State of Georgia. This traffic camera video of a drunk driver plowing into an unsuspecting victim demonstrates the human consequences to selfish decision making. One victim was killed and another was left with a serious brain injury. The victim’s parents want this video spread as far as possible to deter other drivers from making this tragic decision.

Although the criminal justice system is charged with the primary responsibility for punishment, Georgia law also recognizes that there should be a civil punishment for drinking and driving when you cause an injury. O.C.G.A. § 51-12-5.1 provides for punitive damages when the person behaves with a reckless indifference to the consequences of their behavior.

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When you read the CNN coverage on the head on crash between a tractor trailer and a Mennonite Church van in Kentucky that took 11 lives, the divergence between the effect of God’s law and man’s law is illustrated. Friday morning a tractor trailer driver crossed the center line in Kentucky and took the lives of 11 people headed to a Mennonite wedding.

Although our thoughts and prayers are with these unfortunate souls, I cannot abide the perspective of the church member mentioned in the article because to follow that path is to encourage this to happen again to other people.

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