The more vehicles involved in a car accident, the more complicated it often becomes for victims to recover the compensation they need and deserve for their injuries. Unfortunately for injured motorists in Alabama, the state’s laws sometimes make it even harder to recover compensation. However, by understanding the laws that apply to multi-vehicle accidents, you can make the most of your auto insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit.
If you suffered an injury in a multi-vehicle accident in Alabama, contact Stokes Stemle, LLC, for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney. We’ll review your case, explain your legal options, and answer any questions about recovering the compensation you deserve.
Determining Fault in Multi-Vehicle Accidents
Determining liability for a multiple-car accident can be tricky, as there are many moving parts. Let’s say you’re sitting at a red light and get rear-ended. In this case, you might expect the driver of the vehicle directly behind you to be responsible. But what if another vehicle struck them from behind? And what if that driver crashed because they were avoiding another car that merged into their lane without looking?
In such cases, the driver of the car that rear-ended the car ahead of it might not be the only party at fault. Instead, the driver who merged into a lane without checking their mirrors and the driver who caused the initial collision with their evasive actions may share fault.
To determine who is at fault in a multi-vehicle crash, police, insurance companies, and injury lawyers use various types of evidence, including examples like these:
- Traffic, security, and dashboard camera footage
- Eyewitness statements
- Expert analysis
- Accident scene photographs showing the damaged vehicles, skid marks, and relevant traffic signs, signals, and lines
- Blood alcohol concentration chemical tests
- Phone records
What Is Contributory Negligence?
Alabama case law holds contributory negligence as an affirmative defense in injury cases. Under this statute, anyone who shares liability for an accident cannot recover any compensation for their losses.
In most states, injured parties can still recover some compensation even if they are partially at fault. However, that is not the case in Alabama, which uses contributory negligence instead of comparative negligence. Even if you are found only 1 percent at fault for the accident that caused your injuries, the courts can bar you from recovering any compensation.
For that reason, it’s vital that you hire an experienced car accident attorney who can protect your legal rights by pushing back against claims that you contributed to the accident.
Joint and Several Liability in Alabama
Alabama Code Section 7-3-116 includes the state’s definition of joint and several liability. Under joint and several liability, victims can hold any party that is at least partially at fault for an injury liable for the total compensation they’re seeking through a lawsuit.
For example, let’s say you were in a collision caused by two other drivers who were each 50 percent at fault. You could file lawsuits against both drivers and seek 50 percent of your total compensation from each. However, joint and several liability also allows you to pursue 100 percent of your total compensation from either of the drivers.
Joint and several liability can be helpful in recovering maximum compensation when issues like auto insurance policy limits come into play. If Driver A has a low policy limit and Driver B’s is much higher, it might make more sense to pursue compensation from Driver B rather than Driver A. Claimants sometimes do this in commercial truck accidents because their insurance policies typically have much higher limits than passenger vehicles.
Insurance Complications in Multi-Vehicle Car Accident Cases
One of the most essential roles of a multiple-car pileup accident attorney is to untangle the complications introduced by multiple insurance companies and policies. Insurance companies always want to reduce their liability by shifting fault onto others. Things can get messy when three or more insurance companies are involved in a case.
Additionally, each driver involved in the accident may have different policy limits. One driver may have a $25,000 limit on bodily injury, while another may have a $40,000 limit, for example. Furthermore, one insurance company may be more likely to settle the case, while another wants to go to trial. It’s your attorney’s job to determine the best legal strategy for maximizing your compensation.
Proving Your Multi-Car Accident Case in Court
If the insurance companies don’t offer fair settlements, your attorney can take your case to court to seek maximum compensation. To prove your case in court, your attorney must demonstrate the following:
- First, you must show that another party is responsible for the accident, such as a driver who ran a stop sign and crashed into you.
- Second, you must show that you suffered injuries resulting from the accident, such as whiplash or broken bones.
- Third, you must show that you suffered a loss because of your injuries. Losses can include financial ones, like medical bills and lost wages, as well as personal ones, like pain and suffering.
To demonstrate these things, your attorney can use various types of evidence, such as accident scene photographs, eyewitness statements, expert testimony, and your medical records, for example.
Statute of Limitations on Multi-Vehicle Accident Claims in Alabama
Alabama Code Section 6-2-38 sets the deadline for filing a personal injury lawsuit, including those arising from multiple-car accidents, at two years from the accident date. Injured parties must file their lawsuits within this deadline or risk having the courts dismiss their cases as untimely.
An experienced car accident injury lawyer from Stokes Stemle, LLC, can help you file your lawsuit on time and meet the other deadlines associated with your case.
Contact Our Opelika Multi-Car Crash Attorneys for Help
If one or more other driver’s negligence caused the multi-car accident that led to your injuries, you could seek compensation through auto insurance claims and personal injury lawsuits against each at-fault party. However, the case will become more complex if it involves multiple at-fault parties. That’s why you need the assistance of an experienced car accident attorney from our law firm.
Contact Stokes Stemle, LLC, for a free consultation with an Alabama car accident lawyer. We’ll review your case, explain your legal options, and answer any questions you have.
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