When you use your vehicle to go to work, spend time with your family, travel, or run errands, you deserve to do so without fear of a negligent driver putting you in harm’s way. Unfortunately, many motorists—possibly overcome with road rage, alcohol, or pure carelessness—make mistakes that cause dangerous rear-end car accidents in Reno. When you are the casualty of a crash caused by this behavior and suffer financial or physical consequences, you and your family may qualify to seek compensation.
Filing a lawsuit allows you to use the court system to hold the at-fault party responsible for their harmful conduct, but you do not have to do this alone, nor is doing so wise. With the help of the reputable Reno car accident lawyers at Shook & Stone, you could elevate your chances of securing a fair settlement to address your losses.
Reasons Why Rear Impact Collisions Happen
According to our Reno personal injury lawyers, many types of behavior may lead to a vehicle smashing into the back of another automobile. For instance, a common context where this happens is in the midst of bumper-to-bumper traffic during rush hour or in the bustling downtown areas during the weekend. Drivers anxious to get home or to their destination may let their emotions get the better of them, leading them to follow other motorists too closely or drive dangerously fast.
Additionally, drivers who are not paying attention in busy areas—such as parking lots—can also create conditions for these accidents to occur. For example, someone driving an SUV and trying to find a parking spot at a busy outdoor mall may get distracted and not realize the truck in front of them stopped suddenly to avoid hitting a shopper. Likewise, someone may misjudge whether it is clear before they turn onto the main road, preventing the motorists with the right of way from having enough space to continue driving or avoid hitting the back of their vehicle.
Mechanical defects in the car itself—such as faulty brakes or steering problems—and people driving while under the sway of exhaustion or substances can also lead one motorist to strike another from behind. Shook & Stone has the necessary resources to investigate the underlying cause of the crash and use this to develop an effective legal strategy. Fierce advocates of those hurt in rear-impact collisions, our Reno attorneys welcome the opportunity to work with you to discover appropriate next steps.
Establishing Liability When a Vehicle Hits Someone From Behind
Holding the at-fault driver responsible for recklessly running into the back of your vehicle in Reno requires you to develop a legal case against them. To accomplish this, you must gather evidence that shows they are to blame for the crash and your injuries. In many contexts, this requires you to prove they committed negligence (e.g., broke Nevada Revised Statutes § 484B.127 by following you too closely) and, in doing so, caused you physical, financial, and emotional harm.
How you approach this responsibility depends on the unique chain of events that led to the harmful event and your specific claim; however, it likely begins with gathering evidence. With this in mind, you could collect the police report, your medical records, and any photos or videos of the scene to understand what happened. Using these materials as a guide, you could construct an argument for why the other driver is liable for what occurred and should pay compensation to you.
Shook & Stone has many resources available to help uncover evidence to prove the cause of the crash and determine what legal remedies are available. For example, if a negligent commercial truck driver caused the collision, our legal team could step in and submit a request for maintenance and navigation records from the trucking company. Combining the results of this investigation with our extensive knowledge of the law and legal system, we could develop a strategy to prove fault and pursue a favorable outcome in court.
Our Reno Attorneys Stand Up for Those Harmed in Rear-End Crashes
When a negligent driver runs into the back bumper of your vehicle, it can have severe and, in some cases, deadly consequences. Instead of shouldering the burden of injury-related medical bills, property repairs, and financial struggles on your own, consider filing a claim against the person responsible for the incident. Taking this step could be the start of an empowering journey to rebuild and reclaim your agency after the trauma of the collision.
The experienced attorneys at Shook & Stone take pride in their track record of creating effective legal strategies for victims of rear-end car accidents in Reno. We consider it an honor and privilege to have helped the many injured people who have put their trust in us to fight for them after a motor wreck disrupted their lives. To find out how we could help you, contact our firm today to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.
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