Reckless Driving
When you have to share the road with someone who is driving recklessly or negligently, it can be an intimidating experience. This is especially true when their reckless behavior causes an accident that you are injured as a result of, and you deserve to be fairly compensated for your involvement in this situation because of someone else’s decision to operate a motor vehicle dangerously. This is where a personal injury lawyer comes in handy, and what the team at Fasig | Brooks is happy to help you through.
Contact our firm as soon as possible in order to schedule a free initial consultation about your accident, your injuries, and your right to financial compensation for your damages. Our history of successful personal injury cases, including many reckless driving claims, should give you an idea of the level of professionalism and the amount of experience that you will have on your side throughout this process,
Read more below to get a better idea about what reckless driving is and what o do after you are in an accident with a reckless driver in Florida. Once you contact us for an initial consultation, we will be able to discuss the specifics of your own situation in greater detail, and give you a better idea of how we can help you move forward with your case today.
What Is Reckless Driving?
There are many examples of behavior that constitutes reckless driving, but simply put, the act of reckless driving is any behavior that ignores traffic laws and shows indifference for the safety of others. Reckless driving is more serious than careless driving, because it shows willful ignorance and disregard for the safety of the other people on the road.
Examples of Reckless Driving
The following are just a few examples of reckless driving but remember that context is very important when determining whether or not a specific action is considered to be reckless. If you are uncertain of whether or not the accident you were in was caused by reckless driving or something else, we will be happy to discuss during your free initial consultation.
Speeding
Determining whether or not speeding is considered reckless driving has a lot to do with things like how far over the speed limit the driver was going, and where they were speeding, such as in a school zone or residential neighborhood.
Illegal Passing
Passing where passing is not allowed is not only reckless, it is extremely dangerous. Passing someone on a road where not appropriate could cause a head-on collision, strike someone coming around a blind corner, or other injurious situations.
Cutting Red Lights
Cutting through a red light is one of the easiest ways to cause a side-impact collision, otherwise known as a T-bone crash because of the “T” that the two vehicles create upon impact. Depending on a variety of factors, these types of accidents can cause serious injuries for everyone involved.
Tailgating
When someone drives extremely close to the car in front of them on the road, this is known as “tailgating,” and it puts both drivers at risk for many reasons. Typically this action can result in a rear-end collision if the lead driver brakes quickly, but the lead driver may also accidentally cause another accident because they are intimidated and distracted.
Seeking Compensation After a Reckless Driving Accident
Reckless driving is a 4-point traffic violation, meaning that Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles considers this behavior to deserve a harsher punishment than things like speeding, failure to yield for a pedestrian, or child restraint violations (all 3-point violations). If you were in an accident because someone was driving recklessly, it is extremely important that you alert the police officer who arrives on the scene before they make a report. If the other driver is cited for reckless driving, this will lend strong support to your personal injury claim.
Filing an Insurance Claim
You will need to do is file a claim with the other driver’s insurance company in order to initiate the process, at which time you will begin working with a claims adjuster throughout their investigation. In theory, a claims adjuster is working to understand all of the financial damages that you have suffered as a result of their client’s actions, but the reality is that the adjuster is looking for ways to reduce your settlement offer. You will need to remain vigilant of this throughout the entire process in order to get the best settlement possible.
Hiring a Lawyer
As you can imagine, it is very stressful to handle a claims investigation on your own, especially as you are trying to focus on recovering from the injuries that you sustained in the accident. Stress reduction is a major benefit of hiring an attorney, but possibly even more important is the fact that your attorney is experienced with these cases, and will take all necessary precautions to avoid complicating your claim while working tirelessly to maximize your settlement.
Negotiating a Settlement
Once the claims investigation process is concluded, the insurance company will make you an offer for a settlement, in exchange for you waiving your right to any future legal actions regarding this accident. Instead of accepting, though, your attorney will begin a phase of aggressive negotiating in order to get you what you actually deserve. Typically, these claims are settled before a trial is required; however, the attorneys at Fasig | Brooks are willing to take any steps necessary to protect your financial interests through this case.
