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Modern safety features like airbags and seatbelts go a long way toward protecting drivers and passengers from suffering serious injuries during head-on and rear-end collisions. However, these safety features often cannot do much to protect you from another car slamming front-first into your car’s doors or side paneling. Side-impact/T-bone car accidents in Erie are often catastrophic, as there may be nothing but a couple of inches of metal and a now-shattered window between you and a tremendously dangerous amount of force.
Given how often wrecks like this end up causing serious and even life-altering injuries, it can be vital to take proactive legal action and demand fair compensation from every person who played a role in causing it. That said, civil litigation is rarely ever simple or straightforward, and guidance from a seasoned car accident attorney can be essential to maximizing the amount of compensation you receive.
Where Do Side-Impact Crashes Commonly Occur?
Side-impact car crashes can happen in different places in and around Erie. A T-bone wreck involves the front of one car colliding head-on—or very close to it—with the side of another. T-bones most often happen in intersections due to someone running a light, failing to yield properly, or just not paying attention to their surroundings. These collisions can also happen in crowded parking lots as well as on narrow roads with alleys and driveways.
Another common type of side-impact crash is a “sideswipe” collision, which involves the sides of two vehicles brushing together while both cars are traveling at speed. These are particularly common on major highways and especially near entrance and exit ramps, and they often stem specifically from one driver failing to check their “blind spots” properly before changing lanes or merging. Any variation of a side-impact accident can be the basis for civil litigation if the crash directly leads to someone sustaining an injury serious enough to require professional medical care.
Holding Someone Else Liable for Specific Losses
Filing a lawsuit over a side-impact car accident in Erie to recover civil compensation requires proving that the “defendant” being sued directly caused the accident by doing something “negligent” behind the wheel. As a qualified legal professional can explain, both overtly illegal acts such as drunk driving as well as careless acts such as driving while distracted can constitute “negligence.”
Someone found liable for a side-impact wreck may subsequently be held liable for both economic and non-economic losses stemming directly from the crash, including:
- Medical bills, car repair/replacement costs, and other expenses not fully covered by insurance
- Lost work income and/or earning ability
- Personal property loss/damage
- Physical discomfort and pain
- Psychological and emotional suffering
- Lost quality of life
A legal professional can go into more detail during a private consultation about what damages a particular person may be able to recover.
Get in Touch With an Erie Attorney Following a Side-Impact / T-Bone Car Accident
Getting sideswiped or T-boned by a negligent driver can be traumatic, even if you are fortunate enough to avoid suffering any significant injuries. Unfortunately, wrecks like this all too often have life-altering—and sometimes life-threatening—consequences.
You should not have to pay for the harm you did nothing to cause, and help from a seasoned lawyer can be key to making sure you do not have to. Call Lowenthal & Abrams, Injury Attorneys, today to discuss a possible claim built around a side-impact/T-bone car accident in Erie.
