The RVA Injury Lawyers™
Auto Accident Lawyers in Richmond
Our Client-Based Approach to Your Auto Injury Case
When you suffer serious injuries in a car crash caused by another person’s carelessness, you may be able to recover compensation from that person. You can count on our Virginia auto accident lawyer team at Renfro & Renfro to make certain that you receive the full financial recovery that you deserve. From our Richmond office, we serve clients throughout the metro area and Commonwealth of Virginia.
We understand how your injuries adversely impact your personal life and work. Our lawyers and staff work as a team to provide the guidance and support you need. We shoulder the burden of doing all the work necessary to get your compensation, which allows you to concentrate on your recovery.
Our Richmond injury attorneys build a close working relationship with each client. Our highly responsive approach puts clients at ease and makes them confident that their legal interests are fully protected. Our results-driven litigation strategy ensures diligent and vigorous representation at every stage of the process.
Virginia law places liability for a car accident on the person whose negligent conduct actions causes an accident and injuries to others. As a legal term, negligence refers to conduct that falls below an established legal standard of care that applies to all drivers. Generally, it means failure to exercise the ordinary care of a reasonable person under the circumstances. Recklessness or carelessness in driving often constitutes negligence.
For a person to be legally liable for injuries caused by an auto accident, the person must be 100 percent at fault. Virginia is one of only a few states that follows a pure or strict rule of contributory negligence. The standard provides that if an injured victim is even one percent responsible for the accident and injuries, that individual cannot recover anything from the other person. It’s a harsh rule with very unfair results in some cases, but it is the law in Virginia.
To recover for auto accident injuries, the victim must demonstrate through evidence that another person was negligent and that the person’s negligence caused the accident and the victim’s injuries. Compiling that proof requires investigating and analyzing all the evidence relating to the accident. That includes documents like police reports, witness statements, and other evidence, like photos of the scene following the accident. Sometimes expert assistance is required to reconstruct an accident, particularly if a crash involved multiple vehicles.
Making judgments about negligence and contributory negligence in a car crash requires specialized knowledge and skill. If you are seriously injured, an attorney should make those evaluations for you. Our Richmond auto accident lawyer team at Renfro & Renfro have extensive experience investigating and evaluating cause and fault in car accident cases.
“The team is awesome! They were so friendly and helpful with the whole process. They made us feel like family! I would recommend them to anyone!”
Sylvia Bivins
Compensation in Virginia Auto Accidents
Calculating compensation (damages) for injuries from a Virginia car crash is much more complex than many injured victims realize. The law allows you to recover for numerous specific items of harm that result from your injuries.
Your financial recovery in an auto accident case includes items like medical and treatment bills, lost income from missed work, and property damage. The calculation includes anticipated cost of future medical expenses and expected loss of income or earning ability — which can be challenging to calculate.
Auto accident compensation also includes reimbursement for past and future pain and suffering, emotional and mental difficulties, loss of companionship, and inconvenience, as well as any permanent disability or disfigurement. A wide range of considerations enters into the calculation of damages for auto accident injuries. Sometimes, experts are necessary to demonstrate both the medical and non-medical impacts on a victim’s life.
Calculating damages is one of the primary reasons why you should retain an experienced Virginia auto accident lawyer if you receive serious injuries in an accident that was someone else’s fault. If you attempt to calculate damages on your own, you likely will significantly underestimate what you can recover.
Insurance Coverage in Virginia Auto Accident Cases
In most cases, an insurance policy provides coverage for the at-fault driver’s liability. As a result, the insurance company’s adjuster negotiates with the injured victim for potential settlement of a case.
Insurance adjusters have a single goal: to pay as little as possible, or to pay nothing at all. The adjusters are trained, experienced negotiators with tested strategies for manipulating an injured person into making (and even signing) factual statements that hurt the victim’s case. Remember: If you admit to conduct that constitutes contributory negligence, you will recover nothing from the person primarily at fault.
A person who suffers serious injuries should never talk with the at-fault person’s insurance company. If they call you, simply tell them (or better yet, have someone else tell them) that your attorney will be in touch to discuss your case.
If the person at fault has no insurance or an inadequate amount of insurance, recovering for your accident injuries may also involve filing a claim under your own insurance policy. If you have Uninsured Motorist / Underinsured Motorist coverage, your policy may make up for the shortfall in the at-fault driver’s insurance. Even though UM / UIM claims are with your own insurance company, they involve an adversarial process. You are more likely to recover — and to recover a higher amount — if your attorney handles the negotiations for you.
Sometimes, an insurance company outright denies a claim for auto accident injuries. When that happens, your only option is to file a lawsuit. Our accident lawyers at Renfro & Renfro negotiate with insurance companies as long as the company is reasonable and negotiates in good faith. If settlement offers are insufficient or negotiations break down or go on too long, we do not hesitate to file a court action to enforce your rights. Then, we fight aggressively in court to obtain the compensation you deserve.
When do I need
A Virginia Auto Accident Lawyer
If you receive minor injuries in a car accident and recover in a short time, you may not need a lawyer. If your expenses are minimal and covered by insurance, you do not miss work or lose wages, and you do not have any long-term consequences from the injury, an attorney probably will not be able to get more compensation for you.
However, if your injuries are serious and long-term, requiring an extended recovery and causing you to miss work and lose income, retaining an experienced Virginia auto accident attorney to pursue your claim is essential. If you attempt to resolve the claim yourself, you likely will get much less than you deserve.
In any type of accident, the most important priority is getting immediate medical treatment. Then, you should contact a lawyer as soon as it is feasible after your accident. Not only does conducting an investigation become more difficult as time passes, but in Virginia, you have only two years to make a legal claim for auto accident injuries. The time limit for property damage claims is five years.
At Renfro & Renfro, our Richmond car accident lawyers do not charge for your case evaluation. You lose nothing by talking with us — and you have everything to gain, including the peace of mind that your claim is in capable hands dedicated to helping you navigate successfully through the legal process.
Free Case Evaluation By Our Respected Richmond Auto Accident Attorneys
If you suffered injuries in a car accident caused by another person, you may be entitled to compensation under Virginia auto accident law. Our experienced Richmond injury attorneys at Renfro & Renfro provide a free consultation and case evaluation for accident victims.
We serve clients in the Greater Richmond Region, including in Petersburg and Dinwiddie, and throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. We welcome you to schedule a consultation by using our online form.
