Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services

Motorcycle Accidents

Written by kwmlaw on December 15, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Motorcycle Accidents often lead to serious and permanent injuries. If you have been injured in a motorcycle accident that was not your fault, you may have a personal injury claim. Be cautious about talking to the other driver’s insurance company before you consult with an experienced injury lawyer. The insurance company may try to blame you just because you were driving a motorcycle.

However, if you work with an attorney, the other driver’s automobile insurance company may compensate for any losses you sustained. These losses include medical expenses, emotional and physical pain and suffering, any lost wages you incur due to the accident, and any permanent injuries you sustain.

Take these steps after an accident:

Protect your health. First, seek immediate medical attention either at the emergency room or with a trauma specialist as soon as possible following the injury.
If you are unable to work following your injury, let your employer know why you are unable to work and obtain a doctor’s note for your absence. The other driver may be responsible for reimbursing you for these expenses when the case settles.

Kelly and West can help you figure out these and other important steps to protect your physical and financial health after a motorcycle accident. Give us a call at 910-893-8183.

Accidents Involving Alcohol

Written by kwmlaw on July 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Have you or a loved one been hurt in an accident involving alcohol? Make your first call to the law offices of Kelly & West, who can help answer your questions about your case.

If the other driver may be charged with a DWI, it’s not just another accident. You need to know your rights and what’s expected of you. Accidents involving alcohol often result in higher compensation for the innocent victims.

Call today for a free consultation onf your case.

Don’t give up your rights — let us protect you.

Wrongful Death

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Death is an unfortunate part of life. But when one person’s intentional act or negligent actions result in the death of another, a wrongful death has occurred. That might be a car accident, nursing home abuse, a defective product, medical malpractice, or other reasons.

In North Carolina, wrongful death lawsuits are allowed in order for you to obtain compensation for the death of a loved one if that death is caused by someone else. The compensation you receive can pay for medical bills, funeral costs, and other expenses following your loved one’s death.

How Wrongful Death Cases Work
Wrongful death suits are usually taken on a contingency basis. That means the lawyer will take the case for a percent of the damages awarded.

However, before a lawyer takes a wrongful death case, he or she will determine whether the defendant either has liability insurance or sufficient assets with which the defendant can pay any damages.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring wrongful death attorney, please contact us.

Uninsured Motorist Claims

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Uninsured Motorist Claims

More than 13 percent of drivers on the road today do not carry any liability insurance. In North Carolina, it’s about 6.5 percent. We all know that the hit-and-run driver is all too common.

If you have an accident — with an uninsured vehicle or a hit-and-run driver — the place to turn for compensation for your injuries is the uninsured motorist or UM coverage on your own vehicle insurance policy. However, uninsured motorist coverage does not include property damage to your vehicle, unless the operator of the other vehicle can be identified. If the operator of the other vehicle cannot be identified, then damage to your vehicle caused by an uninsured motorist will be covered by the collision coverage on your own policy if you have it.

Uninsured Motorist Policy Limits

Your UM policy will cover anyone else driving your insured vehicle with your permission and anyone else riding in your insured vehicle. Furthermore, UM coverage also extends to cover any other vehicle you are driving but that you do not own.

Your UM policy may pay for injuries to members of your household other than yourself. For example, your UM policy may pay for injuries to a relative who lives with you. But this is not true of all policies; it’ s important to check yours.

UM coverage usually has rules limiting your ability to collect compensation and the amount you receive. If your accident is with a hit-and-run driver, you must notify the police within 24 hours of the accident. The law also requires that you or your vehicle actually be hit by the other car. Being forced off the road by a driver who disappears is not sufficient.

Also, if you are injured while on the job, your UM payments may be reduced by any workers’ compensation or other disability payments you receive. Furthermore, if you receive payments for medical bills from your own insurance company under medical payments coverage, the amount you are entitled to recover under UM coverage may be reduced by the amount of those medical payments.

UM Coverage When in Another’s Car

If you or a relative is injured by an uninsured motorist while you are in another’s car, the UM coverage of that other car’s owner is the primary coverage and your own UM coverage is secondary. You can collect from your own UM coverage only to the extent your damages are not covered by that car owner’s’ UM policy. If you file a claim under your UM coverage, an insurance adjuster from your insurance company will handle your claim just as if it were a regular liability claim. You will negotiate with the adjuster about the other person’s liability, the extent of your own negligence, and the extent of your injuries and other damages.

In choosing an attorney, it is important that you hire one experienced in uninsured motorist claims to ensure that your claim for damages is properly protected. As with any insurance coverage, uninsured motorist coverages are complex and it is best to talk to an attorney as soon as possible after your accident. You can learn more about insurance coverage and how much you need in our video gallery.

If you would like to talk with an experienced uninsured motorist attorney, please contact us.

Underinsured Motorist Claims

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Underinsured Motorist Claims Lawyer

Some drivers carry enough insurance to meet the state’s minimum liability insurance coverage requirement but not enough to cover all of your damages. If the other driver had some insurance, your uninsured motorist coverage does not apply. However, if you have what is called underinsured coverage in your own vehicle policy, you may be able to collect compensation beyond what the other driver’s insurance will pay.

How Underinsured Motorist Coverage Works

To collect under your underinsured motorist coverage, you must first show your insurance company that the other driver was underinsured for your damages. Obtain from the other driver’s insurance company a letter that includes the policy limits for that person’s liability coverage and a statement that you have settled your claim with that company for an amount equal to the policy limits.

When you negotiate your case with the other driver’s insurance company, the documents you exchange in finally settling the claim may already include the information you need. Once you have settled the claim with the other driver’s insurance company, negotiate with your own underinsurance coverage company about how much more than this amount your case is worth. This is an extremely complex area of the law. Do not sign anything until after you have received competent legal advice.

In choosing an attorney, it is important that you hire one experienced in underinsured motorists claims to ensure that your claim for damages is protected. As with any insurance coverage, underinsured motorist coverage is complex and it is best to talk to an attorney as soon as possible after an injury.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring uninsured motorist attorney, please contact us.

Truck Accidents

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Truck Accident Lawyer

If you have traveled on any major highways in the past months, you have probably noticed the astonishing increase in truck traffic. The records of trucking companies reveal that commercial trucks cram onto the highways, jockeying for position among passenger cars and rush to complete their routes on time. The trucks are often loaded to capacity, sometimes poorly maintained, and frequently driven by truckers with serious safety deficiencies. An astonishing number of these drivers are fatigued, under the influence of medication or drugs, or medically disqualified to drive a truck. This means truck accidents are imminent. Federal and state laws set up extensive requirements for trucking companies and their drivers. Trucking companies may violate these laws to some extent in a rush to make a profit. Many times these unsafe practices converge into deadly accidents.

If you were involved in a collision with a tractor-trailer, you should contact a competent personal injury attorney immediately. If you do not contact an attorney quickly, you may lose important evidence in your case.

Driving Safely Among Trucks

When you are driving near an 18-wheeler, consider these safety tips to avoid truck accidents:

Give the truck plenty of space in front. The average stopping distance for a large truck at 60 miles per hour is 451 feet.
Do not travel alongside a truck any longer than normal.
If a car stops or slows suddenly in front a truck, the truck driver is likely to whip over into the adjoining lane.
If you see unsafe driving, always report it at once either to the phone number located on the back of the truck or to the police. You have a duty to yourself and others to get
unsafe drivers off the road.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring truck accident attorney, please contact us.

Pedestrian Accidents

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Pedestrian Accidents Lawyer

A pedestrian who is injured due to someone else’s negligence has a claim for compensation for his or her injuries and losses. A pedestrian may have a claim for compensation if he or she is in a designated crosswalk where the pedestrian has the right-of-way. However, even if you or your child is a pedestrian and is struck by a car in an area other than a crosswalk, you may still have a valid claim if the other person was at fault.

Personal Injury Claim

As with any claim for personal injuries, you should seek professional medical attention immediately. If your injuries prevent you from returning to work or school, you should obtain a doctor’s note explaining your absence. After obtaining any emergency medical treatment that you may need, it is in your best interest to contact an attorney as soon as possible. Do not give a recorded or written statement to anyone without speaking to an attorney first. A pedestrian’s claim for personal injuries often raises questions of who was actually at fault. Did the accident occur in a designated crosswalk? What were the weather and lighting conditions? Were the vehicles headlights on? How fast was the vehicle traveling? Is the injured pedestrian a child? Although all pedestrians are expected to be careful crossing the street, young children are not expected to be as careful as adults. An experienced personal injury attorney will promptly investigate your claim, photograph the accident scene, and obtain any statements from witnesses while this evidence is still readily available. Your lawyer will help you to protect your rights professionally and aggressively pursue your claim, in order for you to receive fair and just compensation for your injuries and losses. These losses may include your medical bills, any lost wages due to your injuries, emotional and physical pain and suffering, scarring, and any permanent injury you may sustain.

Contact a Raleigh Pedestrian Attorney

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring pedestrian accident attorney, please contact us.

Negligence

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Negligence

A person is negligent if he or she fails to follow a duty of conduct that has been imposed upon him by the law. In other words, every person must use ordinary care to protect himself and others from injury. “Ordinary care” means the degree of care which a reasonable and prudent person would use under the same or similar circumstances to protect himself and others from injury. A person’s failure to use ordinary care constitutes negligence.

Proving Negligence

To prove negligence, the plaintiff must demonstrate, beyond the greater weight of the evidence, that the defendant was negligent and that the defendant’s negligence was the proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injury.

If you feel you have been injured due to the negligence of another, you should contact an attorney. An experienced and caring attorney will investigate your claim and help ensure that you receive full and fair compensation for your injuries and that no legal avenues for recovery are lost.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring negligence attorney, please contact us.

Infant Brain Damage

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Infant Brain Damage Lawyer

Errors made by doctors, nurses and hospitals can cause your child to sustain lifetime damage. For this damage, you may be entitled to financial relief.

There are several areas where a doctor, nurse, or hospital may make an error in caring for your child. The first such area is in prenatal care. This care may be inadequate from the beginning of pregnancy up to delivery. The second area that can result in infant brain damage or birth defect is mistakes made by the doctor or staff during labor and delivery; and the third area is misdiagnosis of infant diseases after delivery. All three areas can result in birth defects or severe brain damage affecting your child through his or her lifetime.

Elevate Your Child’s Quality of Life

If your child should suffer infant brain damage, nothing can give your child back a life that is whole and healthy. However, money can allow for the quality of your child’s life to be elevated and help lessen the hardships he or she will face.

If you would like to talk with our experienced and caring Infant Brain Damage Lawyer, please contact us.

Hit-and-Run Wrecks

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Raleigh Hit-and-Run Accident Lawyers

If you have been injured in an accident by a driver who struck your vehicle and then flees the scene, you are entitled to present an uninsured motorist claim under your automobile insurance policy. Your insurance carrier will be required to pay compensation to you for your injuries, except that it will not be required to pay for property damage to your vehicle unless the driver of the other vehicle was identified.

Investigating the Accident

A proper investigation will be necessary in order to prove that your injuries were caused as a result of the negligence of some other driver. For this reason, it is important to act quickly and gather all necessary information, including the names of any witnesses to the accident, and to ensure that a thorough and accurate police report is prepared. To protect your interest, it is best to consult with an attorney as soon as possible.

If you would like to talk with our experienced and caring Raleigh hit-and-run attorney, please contact us.

Head Injuries

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Raleigh Head Injury Lawyer

When someone suffers a head injury, there is the possibility that the effects of the injury will be much longer lasting than is initially obvious. What seems like a simple concussion, from which one quickly recovers, can later turn into personal injury with months or years of recurring headaches, dizziness, and memory and/or cognitive problems.

This type of long-term head injury often does not appear in the original diagnosis because its causes are often detected by sophisticated and expensive testing. Insurance adjusters know that head injuries can last a long time and can cause problems after recovery seems to be complete.

A head injury not only increases how much the claim is worth but often it also speeds up the negotiation process because an adjuster wants to settle the claim before further head injury-related medical bills are incurred.

Reporting Head Injuries to Your Doctor

Watch for these signs and report them to your doctor: concussion, a period of unconsciousness, however brief, dizziness, disorientation, nausea, difficulty with remembering or difficulty thinking clearly. If you have any long-term effects, report them to your doctor and emphasize that you are still suffering from the effects of your head injury.

Then, speak to an attorney knowledgeable about head injuries. An experienced and competent attorney will gather the pertinent information about the case and will ensure that there are no missed opportunities when it comes to receiving fair compensation for your head injury and your financial losses.

If you would like to talk with our experienced and caring Raleigh head injury attorney, please contact us.

Dog Bites

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Raleigh Dog Bites Lawyer

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of Rottweilers, Dobermans, Pit Bulls and other larger breed dogs as people increasingly turn to dogs as friends and use them to protect their homes. While these breeds aren’t always the problem, this increase has resulted in a higher incidence of animal-inflicted injury. Larger and aggressively trained dogs are now more often in close contact with smaller children.

Serious Dog Bite Injury

If you have a dog bite injury, there are a number of things you must do.

Take photos of your injuries.
Get permission to evaluate the dog before it is either euthanized or given away. You should have the dog independently evaluated through specially designed tests as soon after the attack as possible to determine its behavior characteristics; this is important for both the plaintiff and the defendant.
If possible, secure photos or videos of the dog to demonstrate its size, weight, and mannerisms.
Talk to neighbors about the typical behavior of the dog and whether it was potentially dangerous – they may know if the dog gets out of the yard, if the owner allowed it to wander the streets, or if there were any prior attacks.
Interview its veterinarian and review the medical records as to any prior aggressive or fearful behavior.
Check with animal control as to whether or not the dog was a problem in the neighborhood or was ever picked up.
Investigate the scene of the attack to see if corresponds with details relayed by all of the parties.
Determine if the owner was negligent or if he or she had been a responsible owner.
Check whether the dog was licensed, had all of its shots, wore a collar, was trained and whether the owner used abusive force with the dog.

Experienced Dog Attack Attorneys

Doing all those things is work, but your attorney can help. It is very important to hire an attorney as soon as possible after a dog bite injury. An experienced attorney can make sure there are no missed opportunities and help built a solid foundation of testimony by documenting the aggressive behavior and assuring that all relevant information is available at the time of trial.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring Raleigh dog bite attorney please contact us.

Car / Auto Accidents

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Get step-by-step instructions on what to do after an accident: download our FREE accident response guide.

If you have been injured in an auto accident that was not your fault, or if you were a passenger in a vehicle and suffered injuries as result of the negligence of another driver, you may have a claim against that driver’s automobile insurance company for any losses. These losses include medical expenses, emotional and physical pain and suffering, any lost wages you incur due to the accident, and any permanent injuries you sustain.

In order to protect your claim for losses, if you feel you may have been injured, you should seek immediate medical attention either at the emergency room or with your family doctor as soon as possible following the injury. And, if you are unable to work following your injury, you should let your employer know why you are unable to work and obtain a doctor’s note for your absence. The other driver may be responsible for reimbursing you for these expenses when the case settles.

Attorneys Dealing With Insurance Agencies

Some insurance companies will try to convince you not to hire an attorney by promising to pay your medical expenses and lost wages. The insurance adjuster will assure you that he or she will negotiate a fair settlement for your claim. Usually you will have to jump through so many hoops to obtain these benefits that you ultimately decide you need an attorney anyway. We do not recommend that you deal with an experienced claims adjuster from the other party’s insurance company without the benefit of your own attorney. And certainly you should not give a recorded or written statement to anyone without speaking to an attorney first.

Choosing an attorney to handle your claim responsibly and effectively is the most important decision you will have to make following an accident. Retaining an attorney to file an accident claim does not mean that you are filing a lawsuit against the other driver. The vast majority of the insurance claims are settled before a lawsuit has to be filed.

Please contact us if you would like to talk with one of our experienced and caring auto accident attorneys in Raleigh.

More information
The breakdown: Explaining auto insurance. Or learn more about Medical Insurance Coverage.

Bicycle Accidents

Written by kwmlaw on April 23, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Every day children and adult bicycling enthusiasts are injured in our country as a result of the negligence of car drivers. Bicycle riders are entitled to many of the same rights as drivers when using our streets. However, people in cars often pay little attention to bicycle riders on the street, which can result in dangerous possibly fatal bicycle accidents.

An experienced North Carolina personal injury attorney can assist you in protecting your rights and pursuing your claim for any injuries or losses that may occur due to your accident. These losses may include your medical bills, any lost wages due to your injuries, emotional and physical pain and suffering, scarring, and permanent injury. In order to protect your claim, you should seek immediate medical attention. If you are unable to return to work as a result of your injury, you should let your employer know immediately and obtain a doctor’s note explaining your absence. Do not give a recorded or written statement to anyone without speaking to an attorney first. An experienced personal injury attorney will thoroughly investigate your claim and obtain photographs of the accident scene as well as statements from any witnesses while this evidence is still fresh and readily available.

Bicyclist’s Injury Claim

A bicyclist’s claim for personal injuries often raises questions of who was actually at fault.

Did the bicyclist actually have the right-of-way?
Had the bicyclist established his or her use of the lane before the accident occurred?
Did the accident occur at an intersection or while the bicyclist was making a proper turn? As you may know, cyclists are required to use proper hand signals before making a turn on a public street or a road.
What were the weather and lighting conditions like on the day the accident occurred? Were the vehicle’s headlights on?
How fast was the vehicle traveling?
Was the bicycle rider wearing a helmet at the time of the accident?

An experienced personal injury attorney will properly address these issues and will handle your case in a professional and aggressive manner, keeping you informed of progress along the way.

If you have had a bicycle accident, please contact us to get help.

Personal Injury

Written by kwmlaw on April 17, 2014. Posted in Areas of Experience, Personal Injury Lawyer and Legal Services.

Did you know you don’t always need a physical injury to bring a personal injury lawsuit?

In order to have a valid personal injury claim, you must first have suffered an injury. Second, your injury must be the result of someone else’s fault. However, suits may be based on a variety of physical and nonphysical losses and harms. Watch video: About Personal Injury.

There are a variety of typical personal injury claims such as car, truck, motorcycle accidents; slip/trip and fall accidents. Learn more about your particular personal injury case by choosing one of the buttons below.

If you would like to talk with an experienced and caring personal injury attorney, please contact us today.