Tacoma Car Accident Attorney
Tacoma, WA is a busy, bustling city of about 200,000, situated about 45 minutes from Seattle and about 58 miles northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. Tacoma is the third-largest city in the state of Washington, and while originally dubbed the “City of Destiny” due to being at the end of the Northern Pacific Railroad, those who live in Tacoma today often refer to it as “T-Town.” Tacoma is the birthplace of world-renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly. Now experiencing unprecedented growth, Tacoma is the home to a creative community of filmmakers, entrepreneurs, business owners, photographers, artists, writers, and musicians.
Tacoma offers more affordable living spaces, along with charming neighborhoods combined with big-city amenities. Tacoma is truly a city on the rise, but with an increased population comes an increase in car accidents. If you are involved in a car accident caused by the negligence of another, it can be extremely beneficial to have a Tacoma car accident attorney in your corner. The attorneys at Palace Law have been helping people just like you for many, many years.
Why Should You Choose a Tacoma Car Accident Attorney from Palace Law?
If you have been involved in a car accident, you are well aware of the aftermath of that accident. You are left injured, perhaps unable to work, and in pain. You may be unable to get the medical treatment you need and unable to pay for your medical expenses. If you are unable to work, you may be unable to pay your normal monthly expenses. You may feel anxious about your future, frustrated from dealing with a recalcitrant insurance company, and even angry about the negligence of the person that caused your accident.
You pay nothing to Palace Law unless we recover compensation on your behalf. At Palace Law, we have handled thousands of personal injury claims, recovering millions of dollars in compensation for our clients. We understand that you have choices, but we would like you to consider Palace Law for the following reasons:
- Together, our attorneys have a collective 200 years of legal experience
- We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- Four of our attorneys have tried more than 200 cases
- Palace Law has more than 1,500 positive client reviews
- We offer a free consultation and make it possible for you to afford an attorney
- If you are too injured to travel, we will come to you
- We offer free legal forms
Palace Law can help you through this difficult time in the best way possible. We are compassionate, highly skilled, highly-experienced legal professionals who will always fight for your rights and your future.
What are the Causes of Most Car Accidents?
Getting into a car accident is almost always a traumatic event. No matter what caused the crash or how it happened, car collisions bring stress, anxiety, frustration, and pain. Although every single car accident has unique elements, there are certain factors that cover the causes of the majority of car accidents, including:
- DISTRACTED DRIVERS are more and more common across the United States. We routinely eat entire meals, talk on the phone, text, turn around to see what the children are doing in the back seat, talk to passengers, or simply daydream.
- IMPAIRED DRIVING, whether from alcohol or drugs is dangerous—and avoidable.
- EXCESSIVE SPEED is a common cause of car accidents and can make a car accident exponentially worse.
- RECKLESS DRIVING is another common cause of car accidents, including changing lanes excessively and without properly looking, failure to yield, running stop signs and stop lights, and tailgating.
- INCLEMENT WEATHER including rain, snow, ice, and high winds is not always avoidable. If you must drive in bad weather, reduce your speed and be extra careful. If visibility is particularly bad or the roads are really slick, it could be better to pull over and wait for the storm to pass.
- NIGHT DRIVING is the cause of many car accidents. It is more difficult to see at night, requiring you to be more alert, to slow down, and to leave more space between you and the car in front of you.
- FATIGUED DRIVING is quickly moving up the list as a top cause of car accidents. Just as we are a nation of multi-taskers—leading to distracted driving—we are also a sleep-deprived nation. Fatigue can be just as dangerous as impairment as far as decreasing your reaction times.
- VEHICLE DEFECTS are more common than you might think and can cause serious car accidents. If a car accident is caused by a vehicle defect, you may also have a product liability claim.
What are the Most Common Injuries from Car Accidents?
Car accident injuries are generally either penetrating injuries or impact injuries. Impact injuries occur when a person’s body hits a hard part of the car, such as a head hitting the side window, or a knee hitting the dashboard. Penetrating injuries include cuts caused by loose objects in the car or shattered glass. While your car injuries will be unique to your specific accident, the most common injuries following a car accident include:
- SOFT TISSUE INJURIES are those injuries that cause damage to connective tissues such as tendons, ligaments, and muscles. The most common injury resulting from car accidents is whiplash, which is a soft tissue injury. Car accidents can also cause back sprains and strains or even more serious back injuries because of the impact against the spinal column.
- CUTS AND SCRAPES are also very common types of car accident injuries. These cuts and scrapes can be caused by flying objects in the car during the accident or can occur when body parts come into contact with interior car parts. When airbags deploy during a car accident, they can also cause cuts and scrapes.
- TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURIES, concussions, and other head injuries are extremely common following a car accident. The head may hit a hard surface or could receive a penetrating injury. Bruises and cuts to the head can occur when the head hits a side window or the steering wheel. A severe closed head injury can bruise and tear the brain tissue and blood vessels, sometimes causing long-term damage.
- CHEST INJURIES can occur during a car accident, often when the airbag strikes the chest. Other chest injuries range from broken ribs to internal injuries, to painful body bruises. In addition to airbags, steering wheels, seatbelts, and dashboards can lead to chest injuries.
- BONE FRACTURES are common car accident injuries, particularly fractures of the femur.
- SPINAL COLUMN INJURIES can lead to paraplegia or quadriplegia, which results in a lifetime of medical issues and expenses.
How Do You Determine Negligence in a Tacoma Car Accident?
While the issue of who is at fault may be very straightforward in your mind, this is something that has to be proven to the court. First, you must show that the defendant owed you a duty of care. This means the defendant had a responsibility to act in a reasonable manner. Second, you must show that the defendant breached his or her duty of care, meaning there was a failure to act as another reasonable person would have, given the same circumstances. If you can show the defendant owed you a duty of care and that the duty of care was breached, then you must show you suffered injuries as a result of the breach of duty. Finally, you must show that your injuries caused you financial damages and that the defendant has an obligation to pay for those damages.
What is the Statute of Limitations for a Car Accident in Tacoma?
Statutes of limitations govern the amount of time in which you have to file a car accident claim. Each state sets its own statutes of limitations, which can range from one year to twelve years. In the state of Washington, the statute of limitations is three years from the date of your accident. It is imperative that you not exceed this window of opportunity, or you could be forever barred from filing a claim for damages.
What Should You Do Following Your Tacoma Car Accident?
If you are physically able, there are certain things you should do following your Tacoma car accident. Always call 911 or ask someone else to do it for you. If the other party attempts to dissuade you from calling 911, do not let yourself be persuaded. The police report could be an important part of your car accident claim. Make sure everyone that needs medical assistance—including yourself—gets it immediately. Many times, you may think you are not that badly hurt because of the adrenaline that floods your body during a car accident, masking injury symptoms. Because of this, it is always a good idea to have a medical professional look you over.
If you are able, use your phone to take photos of the scene of the accident, particularly the damage to your vehicle, and the other vehicle’s license number. If there were witnesses to the accident, obtain their contact information. Exchange information with the other driver, and even if you believe you might have contributed to the accident, never, ever say this until you have spoken to a Tacoma car accident attorney. Once you are home, write down every single detail you can remember about the accident. A detail you think is relatively unimportant could end up being very important later on. Keep all your medical bills in a folder and call your own insurance company as soon as you get home. Relay only the bare facts about the accident. Finally, contact an experienced car accident attorney who will ensure your rights and your future are properly protected.
How Can a Tacoma Car Accident Attorney from Palace Law Help?
When you contact Palace Law, you will get a highly experienced, highly skilled car accident attorney who can guide you through the accident claim process. We will help you get the medical treatments you need while working hard to ensure you are properly compensated for your accident. Our attorneys have been helping people just like you for many years, and we want to help you as well. Contact Palace Law today!