El Paso Texas Car Accident Lawyers

These statistics are both unbelievable and unacceptable. At the law offices of Tawney, Acosta & Chaparro P.C., our El Paso, Texas car accident lawyers are passionate about helping auto accident victims understand their rights and options for recovering compensation after a serious crash.

Please call our law firm today for the free, critical information you need about what steps to take next.

Texas Car Accident Statistics

In 2019, there were over 16,000 crashes in El Paso alone. Of those, 65 involved one or more fatalities.

There were nearly 440,000 accidents statewide with 1,764 involving one or more fatalities. Many of the fatalities in El Paso County involve impaired drivers. In fact, El Paso previously ranked as the highest county for deaths related to impaired driving accidents. 48% of traffic deaths in El Paso in 2018 involved a driver who was under the influence at the time.

If your accident involves a drunk driver, it’s important to contact an attorney right away.

Types of Car Accident Cases We Can Help You With

No two car accidents are exactly the same, but they often involve similar acts of negligence. Indeed, some of the most common causes of car accidents in Texas include:

• Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol;
• Speeding;
• Texting while driving;
• Using a handheld device while behind the wheel;
• Aggressive driving;
• Distracted driving;
• Illegal lane changes;
• Running a red light or stop sign;
• Failing to yield;
• Following too closely; and
• Otherwise breaching traffic safety laws.

These actions can have serious consequences for drivers and their passengers.

Common Types of Auto Accidents

Acts of negligence can lead to tragic crashes in El Paso, including the following:

• Head-on collisions, which are the deadliest car accident type;
• T-bone accidents, which often occur at intersections and may have tragic consequences;
• Side-swipe accidents, which happen when drivers aren’t paying attention when changing lanes;
• Rollover accidents, which can involve single or multiple vehicles; and
• Rear-end crashes, which are often dismissed as insignificant, but can lead to serious–and even deadly–injuries in some cases.

Our Texas car accident attorneys have experience representing clients involved in all of the above accident types. Look to our lawyers and their history of success in managing car accident cases.

Steps to Take After an El Paso Car Accident

What you do following a car accident in El Paso is crucial. Make the wrong choices, and you could inadvertently hurt your accident claim.

1. Call the police.
2. Take scene photos of the vehicle damage, surrounding conditions, your injuries, etc. Don’t risk injuring yourself worse though.
3. Exchange information with all involved parties, including all witnesses present. Don’t assume the police will get all witnesses’ contact information.
4. Someone may have to leave and will not be able to remain at the scene until the police arrive.
5. See a doctor right away if you aren’t transported from the scene.
6. Contact your insurance company. Be wary of speaking with the other driver’s insurance. They will try to get you to give them a recorded statement, which you should decline without proper representation.
7. Retain a Texas car accident lawyer.

Seeking medical treatment right away is crucial. It can take a couple of days for soft tissue pain to become noticeable. You could have internal injuries that are not immediately visible, so it’s crucial to get checked out. The other driver’s insurance will use any delays against you, claiming you weren’t that injured or something else happened in between that caused your injuries.

Hiring a lawyer early on is crucial. The sooner we can be involved in the case, the easier it is to preserve evidence and speak with witnesses while the accident is fresh in their mind. Once you hire us, we handle communication with the other party’s insurance company. That means you are protected from inadvertently saying something that could damage your case.

Car Accident Damages – Losses from a Serious Auto Accident Can Be Severe

The initial impact of a car accident can be traumatizing. It can lead to anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder for the victim for years to come.

Car accidents can lead to various damage types:

High Medical Bills

Even minor injuries can be expensive to treat under our current system of healthcare. Expensive injuries may cost tens of thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of dollars.

Property Damage Costs

If you’ve been in a serious car accident, your vehicle has likely been severely damaged or totaled. This may mean thousands of dollars in repair costs.

Lost Wages

If you are seriously injured, returning to work right now or in the near future–or perhaps ever depending upon the extent of your disabilities–may not be a possibility. This means lost wages, lost benefits, and loss of earning capacity, a strain that can put a lot of financial pressure on your family and raise questions about how you’ll support yourself and your loved ones as you recover.

Pain and Suffering

The losses suffered in a car accident are not purely economic in nature, but noneconomic too. Pain, suffering, diminished quality of life, and more are all damages for which you deserve compensation.

Who Pays for Damages After a Crash?

One of the most complicated elements of the post-car accident process is not just determining what types of damages you have suffered and their value, but determining who should pay for these losses and against whom you should file a claim.

Texas maintains an at-fault system of liability following a car crash, which means that drivers are responsible for paying for the accidents that they cause.

After a crash, an injured party maintains the right to turn to their own insurance company for damages (under policies such as personal injury protection (PIP) coverage or uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, to file a claim against the at-fault driver’s liability insurance, or to file a lawsuit directly against the responsible driver.

In order to recoup damages from the other driver and/or their insurance, an injured party in El Paso will need to establish and prove fault.

A successful claim is based on the establishment of four important elements:

• Duty of care. You must prove that the other driver owed you a duty of care (the duty to operate their vehicle in a safe and responsible manner).
• Breach of duty of care. You must prove that the other driver breached the duty of care owed to you.
• Causation. You must establish that your car accident would not have occurred but for the breach of the duty of care.
• Damages. You must prove the extent of damages you have suffered, including both economic and noneconomic losses.

Depending upon the nature of your car accident, you may need various types of evidence in order to establish the above. Our car accident lawyers in El Paso, TX, can work with you to gather eyewitness testimony, photographic evidence, cell phone logs, event data recorder information, and other critical evidence types.

Modified Comparative Negligence in Texas

Texas is a modified comparative negligence state. If you were partially at fault for the accident, you could still collect a portion of your damages, provided you were under 51% at fault. Your recovery will be reduced by your own percentage of fault.

For example, if you’re 40% at fault, you can still collect 60% of your damages. If you are 60% at fault, you will collect nothing, and the other driver could collect 60% of their damages from you if there is a counter suit against the plaintiff (you).

The other driver’s insurance company will be motivated to put as much blame on you as possible to either limit their exposure or eliminate it entirely. If you attempt to pursue a claim independently, the insurance company will use your lack of legal knowledge and claims experience against you. That’s why you need a Texas car accident attorney representing you.

How a Car Accident Attorney in El Paso, TX, Can Assist with Your Claim
When you retain Tawney, Acosta & Chaparro P.C., to represent you, we will handle all the frustrating and stressful elements that accompany a personal injury claim while you focus on recovering from your injuries.

• We will assist with helping you find medical care or arrange transport if your vehicle is not drivable;
• We will conduct a thorough independent examination and gather evidence to support your claim for damages;
• We can provide relief from dealing with the insurance companies;
• We will provide a thorough evaluation of your damages and a breakdown of what your case is worth;
• We will handle all negotiations and settlement discussions with the other party’s insurance; and
• We will prepare your case for trial if it does not resolve through settlement negotiations.

We understand what is at stake for you. We have years of experience dealing with insurance companies and arguing cases in front of juries. Let our capable team help you get the compensation you deserve.

What Is the Texas Auto Accident Settlement Process?
Your first step in the settlement process is to contact our office. We will listen to the case facts, explain what legal issues are involved, and discuss your potential case value.

Then we will open an investigation and collect all the evidence and documents necessary to present the strongest case to the at-fault driver’s insurance. This can include speaking with witnesses, requesting medical records, conducting a scene investigation, and more. In some cases, we may need to hire experts, such as an accident reconstructionist.

During the investigation, the other driver’s insurance may try to settle or may deny your claim outright. Settlement negotiations involve a lot of back-and-forth discussions. Our job is to argue on your behalf to seek the maximum compensation.

One mistake that many car accident victims make is assuming that they must accept a settlement amount if one is offered.

However, this is not the case; when a settlement is offered by an insurance company, you have the right to thoroughly review it and reject it if it does not offer you compensation for the full extent of losses you have suffered.

If you accept the insurance company’s first offer, you may miss out on the opportunity of recovering full damages.

Following a settlement rejection, you maintain the right to demand a different compensation amount and negotiate with an insurance adjuster until a fair settlement is reached.

If you cannot reach a settlement or the insurance company denies your claim, you have the right to file a lawsuit to recover compensation.

How Long Do I Have to File My Texas Injury Claim?

In Texas, you have two years to file a lawsuit for a Texas injury claim, including a car accident. This time limit is called the statute of limitations, and it applies whether you are the driver, passenger, bicyclist, pedestrian, motorcyclist, etc. In most cases, your time starts running from the date of the accident itself.

If an accident victim is a minor child, the statute of limitations will be extended or “tolled” until they reach the age of majority or are legally emancipated. From that time, they will have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit.

It could become confusing because the extended statute applies only to claims that belong to the child. Although medical treatment is for the child, the claim for the cost may belong to the parents. Other damages, such as pain and suffering, scarring, permanent disability, etc., are claims that can be brought by a child.

Our Skilled Car Accident Attorneys Can Help

Following a car accident, we strongly recommend calling an El Paso, Texas car accident attorney as soon as possible.

Not only is the clock on the statute of limitations ticking, but the sooner you act, the easier it will be to collect important evidence for your case.

A Texas car accident lawyer will advocate for you throughout the claim process and ensure that your best interests are protected. An experienced attorney will know what your claim is worth and how to prove it.

To schedule a free consultation with our law firm following a serious El Paso car accident, please call us directly or send us a message online. We are here to answer all of the questions you have about recovering damages.

Let us start working on your claim today.

Frequently Asked Questions About Pursuing a Texas Car Accident Claim

Understandably, we receive many questions from prospective clients who want to know more about the claims process and hiring an attorney. Here are answers to three of the most common questions we receive to help you prepare for your upcoming meeting.

How Much Do Texas Car Accident Lawyers Cost?

Most El Paso car accident lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. That means you won’t pay anything up front or an hourly billing rate. Nor will you pay anything if your attorney doesn’t recover any compensation on your behalf. Instead, your attorney will take an agreed-upon amount from your court award or settlement.

What Is the Average Car Accident Settlement in Texas?

There is no average settlement amount for car accident cases. Every case is unique with a different set of circumstances. Your injuries, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage are different than everyone else’s. A case involving only soft tissue injuries and a few physical therapy treatments will not resolve for the same amount as a case involving severe injuries and permanent disability.

Do I Really Need an Injury Lawyer?

If you suffered severe injuries, hiring an El Paso car accident lawyer is important. Pursuing a car accident claim on your own can be a complicated process. You need someone who will protect your rights and fight for you. In cases that are very minor or where you are not injured, you may not need an attorney. However, before deciding, meet with our car accident lawyers in El Paso, TX, first. There is no obligation, so you have nothing to lose by setting up a consultation with Tawney, Acosta & Chaparro P.C.