Anyone whose negligence led to a T-bone car accident in Phoenix is responsible for the collision. Multiple parties can be at fault, as two motorists (and possibly other parties) can contribute to an accident. Non-motorists, including pedestrians and municipalities, can also be at fault for a T-bone accident.
Determining fault is not always easy; it is only the start of an insurance claim or lawsuit. Consider having a Phoenix car accident attorney determine fault for your accident, document your damages, and fight for the compensation you are entitled to.
Parties Who Can Be At Fault for a Phoenix T-Bone Accident
Those investigating T-bone accidents cannot have a narrow view. Your attorney will consider every possible party who can be at fault for your accident, including:
Motorists
Motorists’ negligence is the most common reason for T-bone collisions and other car accidents. Some motorists may pose a higher-than-average risk of causing a side-impact accident, including those who:
- Frequently engage in dangerous driving behaviors like speeding
- Lack experience
- Drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Are visually impaired
- Are prone to anger, sadness, and other emotional states that can make a driver dangerous
- Are tired
- Engage in distracted driving behaviors, which costs thousands of lives per year
Dangerous motorists may fail to honor the right of way, lose control of their vehicle, and take other actions leading directly to a T-bone collision in Phoenix.
Municipalities
The City of Phoenix is responsible for:
- Maintaining roads, which are in poor condition throughout Arizona
- Ensuring stop signs and yield signs are installed where necessary
- Ensuring traffic lights are installed where necessary and in working condition
- Installing work zones in a safe manner and maintaining those work zones
- Ensuring adequate lighting throughout Phoenix’s roadways
- Monitoring roads, responding to tips, and removing hazards as quickly as possible
Dangerous roads can lead directly to accidents, including T-bone collisions. The City of Phoenix or another governmental body may be liable if any dangerous driving condition contributed to your accident.
Motor Vehicle Manufacturers
If a defect in a motor vehicle component played a role in your T-bone accident, the manufacturer, assembler, or seller could be at fault for your collision.
Pedestrians
Pedestrians who act in an unreasonable manner can trigger events (like a motor vehicle stopping suddenly or swerving) that lead to a side-impact accident. People who can trigger an auto collision include:
- Walkers
- Joggers
- Bicyclists
- Scooter riders
- Other non-motorists
If these parties dangerously enter the roadway or fail to yield the right of way, they may be at fault for a resulting accident.
Alcohol-Serving Establishments
Institutions that over-serve drunk motorists can share liability for an accident. If impairment was a factor in your T-bone collision in Phoenix, your attorney will determine if the irresponsible sale of alcohol led your accident to occur.
The list of potential reasons for T-bone accidents is long. Someone may be at fault for your accident, even if they are not listed here.
How Can Multiple Parties Be At Fault for a T-Bone Collision?
T-bone accidents often happen because a motorist does something they should not, like running a red light. However, fault is not always so clear-cut; in some cases, multiple parties share fault for a side-impact collision.
Examples of how multiple parties can share fault for an accident include:
- A motorist is driving well above the speed limit when their brakes fail, causing them to run a red light and T-bone another vehicle.
- A pedestrian unexpectedly enters the roadway, causing a motorist to halt in the middle of a four-way intersection. Subsequently, another motorist hits the side of the halted vehicle.
- A broken traffic light requires motorists to use their judgment at a stop sign, leading a motorist to judge the right of way incorrectly and strike another vehicle.
In each of these examples, multiple parties do something that contributes to the accident—a motorist, a pedestrian, a motor vehicle manufacturer, and a municipality.
You only need to know this: Even if you think you are partially at fault for a T-bone accident in Phoenix, you can still receive compensation for accident-related losses.
What to Do After a T-Bone Car Accident in Phoenix
You must weigh your actions carefully after a car accident in Phoenix, as each passing day is a chance to benefit or jeopardize your health and case.
Steps to Protect Your Health and Promote Recovery
You may not only be dealing with physical injuries but also psychological and emotional conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is critical that you do everything possible to protect yourself and work towards recovery, which may include:
- Seeing a doctor for a complete physical examination
- Requesting medical imaging if it can help diagnose or document accident-related injuries
- Seeing a mental health professional
- Being upfront and detailed with these providers about your accident-related symptoms
You can hire a car accident lawyer next if you have any questions or concerns about getting medical attention. Your attorney may refer you to a trustworthy medical provider. Either way, don’t wait to find your lawyer or get medical attention, as this can lead to significant challenges when seeking compensation.
Steps to Benefit Your Case for Compensation
Some important measures to take in service of your claim include:
- Hiring a capable car accident lawyer who serves Phoenix
- Keeping all records related to your accident (including but not limited to medical bills and invoices for vehicle repairs)
- Declining to give statements to insurance officials until you have hired your Phoenix car accident attorney
- Following your attorney’s guidance, as you have chosen them for that reason (among others)
Once you hire your law firm, they will be responsible for your insurance claim or lawsuit. Allow them to pursue the compensation you deserve. You focus on your health.
Why Do T-Bone Accident Victims Hire a Car Accident Attorney?
Nobody wants to feel like they’re fighting for justice on their own. Having a trusted ally is a big-picture reason to hire a Phoenix car accident lawyer, but it is far from the only reason to do so.
You may choose to retain a car accident attorney serving Phoenix because:
- A lawyer’s experience is valuable to you: We often find peace of mind in relying on those with experience. You can be certain that your lawyer understands insurance claims and lawsuits if they have an extensive background handling cases like yours.
- You want your health to come first: You should recognize that handling your own case may come at the cost of your health. If you want to have the time you need for treatment and rest, hire a Phoenix car accident attorney.
- You aren’t familiar with high-stakes insurance claims or lawsuits: If you have not handled many auto insurance claims or lawsuits, you may spend precious time learning the ropes. When you hire a lawyer, they will use their training and experience to immediately pursue the compensation you deserve.
- You don’t have time: Accident victims are people with personal lives, professional responsibilities, and other time demands. After your accident in Phoenix, you may have very little time to spare. Handling a claim or lawsuit’s significant time demands may not be possible.
- You value a law firm’s financial support: Your attorney will use a contingency fee, asking you for no upfront compensation. The firm’s willingness to cover case-related expenses may be appealing. Your attorney will only receive a fee if they obtain a settlement or judgment for you.
- You want the protection a car accident lawyer provides: Those who handle their own cases have to constantly wonder—is the insurance company trying to trick me? What if I say the wrong thing? Am I seeking enough compensation? With a lawyer leading your case, you shouldn’t have any doubt that they are fighting for your best financial interests.
A lawyer’s value proposition is strong. You have several reasons to let a skilled Phoenix car accident lawyer represent you.
A Car Accident Lawyer Will Handle Every Case-Related Duty in Phoenix
You can adopt a hands-off approach once you hire a car accident attorney. Your lawyer will lead every aspect of your case, pursuing your financial recovery by:
Establishing Fault for the T-Bone Accident
Many parties can be at fault for a T-bone collision, and multiple parties may be at fault for your accident. Your lawyer will identify any motorist, municipality, vehicle manufacturer, pedestrian, establishment, employer, or other party who is financially responsible for your damages.
Obtaining All Evidence of Liable Parties’ Negligence
Your car accident attorney must prove who is at fault for the accident. Whether you deserve compensation from an insurance company, a company, the driver who caused your accident, a government agency, or another party, proving fault is necessary.
Your lawyer may prove who caused your accident using the following:
- A police report
- Video footage from security cameras, traffic cameras, cell phones, or other sources
- Eyewitness accounts of the T-bone accidents
- An expert’s reconstruction of the collision
Photographs of vehicle damage may prove how the accident happened, establishing that one vehicle struck the other in the side. Your attorney will use all available evidence to build your case.
Securing Proof of Your Accident-Related Damages
Your lawyer will secure any proof of your accident-related damages, including:
- Your doctor’s diagnosis of accident-related injuries and symptoms
- Your account of injury symptoms
- A mental health professional’s diagnosis of your pain and suffering
- X-rays, CT scans, and other medical images
- Income statements from before your accident (which can prove the income you have lost due to injury)
- Invoices for repairing or replacing your car
Attorneys understand that each client has different damages, so they must obtain different documentation for each case.
Calculating an Accurate, Detailed Case Value
Your lawyer must calculate a case value that:
- Accounts for damages you have already suffered (including medical bills and vehicle repair costs)
- Will cover any future damages you suffer (such as medical costs and pain and suffering)
- Reflects the share of fault for the accident
Your attorney will calculate damages in a careful, detailed manner. They will be certain this calculation is accurate before seeking compensation from liable parties.
Negotiating Your Settlement
Settling is a common way of completing T-bone accident cases. A settlement is the most efficient way to get compensation for a car accident victim, so your lawyer will engage liable parties in settlement talks.
Securing a settlement generally requires presenting evidence of negligence, proving the victim’s damages, and explaining one’s calculation of their client’s damages.
Filing a Lawsuit
Filing a lawsuit after a T-bone accident may be necessary if:
- Insurance does not cover the cost of your accident-related losses
- The responsible insurance company will not recognize the cost of your damages
- Insurance companies will not offer a fair settlement
- Other circumstances make it necessary to file a lawsuit
You will decide whether to pursue a lawsuit, but a lawyer can provide valuable guidance as you make this decision. If your lawyer secures a fair settlement, conversations about a lawsuit will not be necessary.
Going to Trial
Those who file lawsuits sometimes need to go to trial. If your case follows this path, your attorney will fight for your financial recovery in court.
Recoverable Damages from a Phoenix T-Bone Accident
Your lawyer will develop a detailed record of your accident-related damages, which may include:
- Medical bills
- Pain and suffering
- Mental health treatment costs
- Vehicle repair costs
- The cost of repairing a totaled vehicle
- The cost of replacing other personal property
- Lost income
- Diminished earning power
Those with serious injuries may need medical equipment, permanent replacement of lost income, caregiver services, and updates to their home. An attorney will document your unique damages and seek a fair financial recovery for those damages.
Which Car Accident Attorney Is the Best Fit for My T-Bone Accident Case in Phoenix?
You should conduct online research to find a law firm suitable to lead your case. Consider the firm’s reputation among former clients, case results, and other relevant factors.
Don’t wait to hire your Phoenix car accident attorney, as time is always of the essence. Seek a free consultation today.
David Abels
Partner
David Abels has carved a niche for himself in the personal injury law sector, dedicating a substantial part of his career since 1997 to representing victims of various accidents. With a law practice that spans over two decades, his expertise has been consistently recognized within the legal community.
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