Frequently Asked Questions
Below, you will find straightforward answers to some of our most frequently asked questions about our Practice Areas. If you have questions about recovering compensation for your injuries, don’t put off contacting us for a free consultation.
We prepare each accident case thoroughly as if it is going to trial. But our experienced attorneys at Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC are skilled negotiators and settle most Indiana truck accident cases before trial. A just settlement allows the client to receive the money they need to pay medical bills and other expenses more quickly and avoids the uncertainty of a jury trial. We negotiate aggressively on behalf of our clients and communicate any settlement offers we receive. If the insurance company’s refuses to agree to a fair settlement, then our attorneys are battle-tested courtroom lawyers and are ready to fight for you in court.
When a person is killed as a result of a truck driver’s carelessness or negligence in a truck accident, the victim’s family may be entitled to bring a wrongful death lawsuit against the responsible parties. Indiana law specifies the types of damages that may be sought and who is entitled to recover compensation in wrongful death actions. The compensation can help a family cover the medical bills, fill the gap in the family’s income and pay for counseling to cope with the loss. A knowledgeable truck accident lawyer at Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC can evaluate the particulars of the accident, discuss your legal options and help you determine whether pursuing a wrongful death claim is the right thing to do.
We understand that you and your family are going through a difficult time as a result of your injuries and inability to work after your accident. You certainly do not need more bills right now. If your case is the type that we handle, our truck accident lawyers at Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC will handle your case on a contingency fee basis. A contingency fee arrangement allows an accident victim to have legal representation without having to pay any legal fees or out-of-pocket costs. Our truck accident attorneys only get paid if we are successful in obtaining an insurance settlement or jury verdict for you. We receive a portion of the settlement or verdict as the legal fee for our services.
You should not wait. It’s important to speak with an experienced Indiana truck accident lawyer as soon as possible after an accident involving a semi-truck. You want to avoid saying or doing anything that could adversely affect your claim for compensation for your injuries. The insurance company lawyers are experienced in dealing with truck accidents. You need a knowledgeable truck accident attorney on your side to level the playing field.
An experienced truck accident attorney will thoroughly investigate the truck driver, the trucking company and others involved in the accident to gather evidence. The attorney will request certain records that trucking companies are required to have, such as the driver qualification file, which provides detailed information about the driver’s history and medical tests. A truck accident attorney will review the driver’s logs, electronic on-board recorder, and truck maintenance records, interview witnesses, collect photos of the accident scene, review the police accident report and gather your medical records related to the accident. The evidence gathered will be used to build a persuasive case showing those who caused the accident were negligent and their negligence caused the injuries of the accident victims.
The trucking industry is regulated by both the state of Indiana and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. This is important because a violation of a state or federal regulation when related to a truck accident may lead to higher compensation for an accident victim or the victim’s family. It is important to work with an experienced lawyer who has handled numerous truck accident claims and is knowledgeable about the regulations that apply to truckers and trucking companies.
Multiple parties could be at fault for construction zone accidents, increasing the complexity of claims. Assigning liability to involved parties typically requires extensive investigation of the accident’s circumstances. You may be able to hold the at-fault driver, construction company, or other involved parties responsible. Accurately determining liability is critical for obtaining construction zone accident compensation.
Construction zone accident claims can quickly become confusing and complicated. They require time and energy to resolve. Potential legal issues after construction zone car accidents include:
- Can you file a workers’ compensation claim?
- Who are the at-fault party’s insurers?
- How do you determine liability?
- How do you handle government entities when they are at fault?
- How do you identify potential at-fault parties?
- How do you calculate the value of all the compensation you deserve?
There are a few things you can do to avoid a construction zone car accident:
- Look out for workers. Watching for individuals crossing the road or moving around on the roadways can reduce the potential for an accident.
- Focus on the road. Paying attention to the road, signs, and other motorists can help you avoid potential hazards.
- Follow speed limits. Slowing down and obeying posted signage can help avoid possible accidents and maintain safety.
- Practice defensive driving. Expect the unexpected in a construction zone. Employing various defensive driving methods, such as checking blind spots and being patient with other drivers, can help prevent work zone accidents.
Failure to follow construction zone traffic laws can result in car accidents and additional penalties for speeding or other violations in a construction zone. Common causes of construction zone car accidents include:
- Speeding – Construction zones often temporarily change typical speed limits to ensure safety for employees, pedestrians, and drivers. Failure to adhere to these adjustments can cause severe construction zone accident injuries due to the increased force of a speeding vehicle.
- Tailgating – Failure to maintain a safe following distance between cars to prepare for sudden slowdowns and stops can cause rear-end collisions in work zones.
- Distracted driving – A text, a phone call, or a simple adjustment to your vehicle’s dashboard controls can take your eyes off the road for enough time to cause an accident.
- Ignoring critical signage – Despite brightly colored signs warning drivers of temporary detours, lane changes, or road closures, some motorists don’t pay attention. Ignoring these signs can lead to potentially fatal crashes.
- Delayed lane changes – Unsafe merging or failure to use turn signals or check blind spots can cause collisions with poles, cones, fencing, or other vehicles in the construction zone.
Roughly 40,000 car accidents occur on or around construction zones nationwide every year, according to the Indiana Department of Labor. That makes car accidents a frequent hazard in construction zones. Most of the accidents happen when drivers enter or exit construction zones. Additionally, the driver is often the one who dies from a construction zone car accident.
This is a question that auto liability lawyers in Indiana hear on a regular basis – and very often, by the time a client calls, they’ve already found the answer to be “no.” Not all auto insurance policies are created equal, and often there are policy limits and coverage gaps that can leave a driver – who may well have thought he/she was fully covered – without resources for costly medical bills, ongoing therapy, etc. With all the emphasis on cheap, state-minimum insurance these days, it’s easy to envision how more and more drivers who thought they were covered will be left out in the cold.
Indiana’s minimum liability limits are:
- Bodily Injury: $25,000 maximum per person/$50,000 maximum per accident
- Property Damage: $10,000 maximum
Indiana requires uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, allowing you to collect these damages from your own insurance company if the other driver in the accident isn’t sufficiently covered. This coverage can be waived but the waiver must be in writing. However, you should never waive this coverage. The worst drivers often have little or no insurance. There are special rules that apply to underinsured coverage. If you do not follow those rules, you could jeopardize the coverage.
Even more frustrating than coverage gaps is when a policy does appear to cover a particular claim, but profit-motivated insurance companies delay payment or deny the claim based on a technicality. This is something we see on a regular basis from some of the most well-known insurance companies.
If you have an insurance question following an accident or injury, Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC offers a free consultation to help review your coverage and avoid the insurance runaround.
Not everyone needs a lawyer after a car accident. But the guidance of a knowledgeable Indiana personal injury lawyer can help you avoid missteps during the insurance claims process. If any of the following applies to your car crash case, you should speak with a car accident lawyer:
- You were injured as a result of the accident
- You have missed work due to your injuries
- It is not clear who is at fault for the crash
- Multiple parties were involved in the wreck
- Another party tries to pin the blame on you
- The other party is uninsured or underinsured
- The crash occurred in a school or work zone
- The insurer minimizes or denies your claim
Under I.C. § 34-11-2-4, all personal injury suits must be filed within two years of the date of the incident. In other words, the two-year window begins on the date of the car accident that injured you.
If you attempt to file a lawsuit after the statutory two-year deadline, the court will most likely dismiss your case, and you will lose your right to seek compensation in Indiana civil court. An experienced car accident lawyer in Indiana can determine how the statute of limitations applies to your claim and keep your case on track from day one.
If the insurance company refuses to agree to a reasonable settlement of your injury claim, your attorney may recommend filing a personal injury lawsuit and pursuing your claim in court. A successful lawsuit could provide you with compensation for:
- Hospital bills and other medical expenses you incur due to the accident
- Incidental costs, such as mileage expenses for travel to medical appointments
- Lost wages or benefits, if you were forced to miss work and use up your vacation and sick leave during your recovery
- The projected value of your lost earning potential, if you suffer permanent disabilities
- Pain and suffering due to the crash
The most important thing to remember when you speak with an insurance company representative is that their employer is a for-profit business that makes money by collecting premiums and loses money by paying claims. The claims adjuster is looking for anything they can use to minimize or deny your claim, including your own statements.
Do not apologize for the accident, provide your opinion about what happened, or guess at answers you do not know. If you happen to misspeak or relay information that turns out to be inaccurate, it could damage your case. Never indicate that you are uninjured. This could make it difficult to claim compensation if you have crash-related injuries that worsen over time. It’s best to speak with a car accident attorney before giving a recorded statement to another driver’s insurance carrier.
Indiana law does not impose a specific time limit on insurance companies when investigating car accident claims. However, the law does outline several “unfair claims settlement practices,” which include behaviors like failing to promptly communicate with claimants or failing to promptly investigate or settle claims. Insurers who engage in these practices can face serious penalties, including fines or even license revocations.
In some cases, you can still file an injury claim if you were partly at fault for a car accident in Indiana. Under I.C. § 34-51-2-5, fault on your part does not automatically bar you from seeking compensation. However, under I.C. § 34-51-2-6, the amount of compensation available to you may be reduced based on your assigned percentage of contributory fault.
If you are found to be more than 50 percent at fault, you can be barred from seeking compensation. As you might expect, insurance companies frequently attempt to minimize or deny accident claims by inflating the percentages of fault assigned to claimants. A knowledgeable car accident lawyer can help you by pushing back against the insurance company’s tactics and demanding a fair settlement for you.
Generally speaking, you have grounds for a car accident case if another party’s negligent, reckless, or harmful actions caused a wreck and you suffered compensable losses as a result. In the context of a car accident case, a compensable loss is any expense for which you can be compensated financially. Examples include medical bills for crash-related injuries and loss of income during the time you miss work while recovering from your injuries. Crash victims may be entitled to compensation for intangible losses, such as pain, suffering, and lost quality of life.
Yes. Like most states, Indiana follows a fault-based system for determining liability in car accidents. A fault-based system allows crash victims to seek compensation from the party or parties whose actions caused the wreck. Indiana’s fault-based system requires the injured party to establish the other party’s fault and legal liability before they can be compensated.
Under § 9-26-1-1.1 of the Indiana Code (I.C.), you must call 911 or otherwise alert the authorities immediately after being involved in a car accident in which someone is injured or killed. You are required to contact authorities if you collide with an unattended vehicle or cause non-vehicle property damage and cannot locate the owner after taking reasonable steps to do so.
Individual municipalities can mandate that drivers involved in collisions in their jurisdiction file an accident report. Accident reports can be useful evidence when pursuing insurance claims or lawsuits. Obtaining a copy of the crash report from the local police, county sheriff, or Indiana State Police is a good idea.
Automobile accidents are an inevitable fact of modern life. But that doesn’t mean everyone knows what to do if they are involved in one. The steps you take immediately following an automobile accident can determine whether your personal injury claim is successful.
The following list is intended to help you in case you are ever in an accident:
- Don’t flee. It is illegal to leave the scene of an accident before the paramedics and police have arrived.
- Allow yourself to be treated. Let the doctor or paramedic have a look at you even if you think you have not been injured. Sometimes victims don’t always realize the extent of their injuries immediately after an accident.
- Give your side of the story. If you are capable of talking with the police, give a statement. You need your side of the story to be recorded.
- Collect information. Jot down the names of the passengers in your car and the names and insurance information of any other drivers involved. If there are any witnesses, get their names and information as well.
Yes. Indiana law allows for victims of Indiana car accidents to seek recovery for damages for pain and suffering as well as property loss, emotional distress, disability and more. To win these types of compensation, the amount of loss must be proven within a reasonable degree of certainty. The Indiana car accident attorneys of Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC have successfully handled thousands of Indiana personal injury cases stemming from car accidents and can review your personal injury case immediately.
Prior to talking with any insurance company, it is best to contact a personal injury attorney. Following an accident, you should never provide a statement to the other driver’s insurance company. Divulging information to an insurance company could make the difference between getting full compensation for your claim and being denied any compensation at all.
When you are injured in a car accident, your personal injury claim is handled separately from your vehicle damage claim. While an injury claim may take months to settle, property damage claims can be settled quickly. At Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC, we have an experienced staff person available to assist you with your auto damage claims at no cost to you.
In rear-end collisions, the law generally favors the lead car, but that does not mean the trailing vehicle is always at fault. Hasty drivers making lane changes often cut off other motorists then abruptly jam on the brakes, forcing the second car to slam into them. One of our knowledgeable accident attorneys can review the facts of your accident to help determine liability.
Tractor trailers have large blind spots on all sides. You may have a valid claim if the truck driver moved into your lane and caused an accident, regardless of whether your automobile happened to be in a blind spot. Each Indiana tractor trailer accident has specific contributing factors that make it unique so it is important to have an experienced truck accident lawyer review your accident and determine the best strategy to proceed. It’s important to recognize that 35 percent of fatal truck-related accidents involve a truck’s blind spots, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Association.
After an Indiana car accident you should politely decline to speak with the adjuster for the trucking company’s insurance company and refer the caller to your attorney. You have no obligation to provide information to them. Anything you say or do, even in a casual conversation, may be used to limit the amount of compensation you receive. The adjuster may sound friendly when asking about your health and recovery. But the adjuster’s job is to minimize the amount of money the insurance company pays in claims. Insurance adjusters are trained negotiators who settle claims every day. You should have a lawyer representing your interests in dealings with the other side’s insurer.
Nearly every injury victim asks whether his or her case will go to trial. The answer may depend on the insurance company handling the case on behalf of the at-fault party or parties. Insurers can be stubborn and refuse to negotiate. On the other hand, insurance companies seldom want a case to go to trial because of the uncertain outcome of litigation.
For this reason, settlements always remain the more likely outcome. There is no guarantee of any particular outcome, but in the end, an insurance company may conclude that settling is more cost-effective than paying their legal team to fight your claim and risking an additional judgment on top of those costs.
A settlement also can benefit the at-fault party or that party’s insurance company. For example, a confidentiality clause may be part of the settlement, which prevents anyone connected to the case from speaking about it – and specifically the dollar amount of the settlement — publicly.
If a case does go trial, it could be a year or longer before it shows up on the court docket. The trial itself could take weeks depending upon the amount in demand, the proof required, the number of witnesses, and how vigorously the defense responds in its rebuttal.
Any trial will be a matter of public record. Corporate defendants when they are engaged in any court battle may have concerns about preventing the disclosure of embarrassing information that could harm the company’s reputation. Your attorney could use that as a form of pre-trial leverage that leads to a favorable resolution.
At Craig, Kelley & Faultless, we will give your claim personal attention and do our best to move your case forward as quickly and efficiently as possible through the civil justice system.
The amount of time it takes to resolve a personal injury case will vary depending on specific factors. Claims with stronger evidence may be more likely to be settled faster than cases in which key facts or the injuries themselves are in dispute.
Since the evidence gathering or discovery phase could take some time, you should expect it to take at least several months before a lawyer can begin negotiating a respectable settlement amount with an insurance company. Settlement negotiations could continue for several additional months and may last all the way through the eve of the trial or even during a trial if the case goes to court.
A lawyer may hold off on filing a lawsuit until the scope of the victim’s injuries and medical treatment needs are more evident. Once filed, a personal injury lawsuit can take several years to work its way to resolution.
When you have been hurt in an accident caused by negligence, the other party’s insurer may offer you a quick settlement to resolve your case. Determining whether the insurance company’s offer is fair can be challenging for someone without experience handling injury claims. This is especially true if you are unsure about your ongoing needs for medical treatment, rehabilitation, or other requirements related to the injury. An experienced personal injury lawyer will have an informed perspective on whether a settlement offer is reasonable and can offer helpful guidance.
Your lawyer will submit a demand letter to the insurer that requests fair compensation before you will release an at-fault party from liability. In so doing, consider the expenses you have already paid, as well any other injury-related costs you expect to incur in the future.
Along with your medical bills and property damage, your attorney will calculate lost wages and the cost of any medical devices or prescription medication. You can also seek compensation for other kinds of damages that cannot necessarily be quantified in a traditional manner, such as pain and suffering.
Your lawyer will consider the strength of your case, including the evidence and the likelihood that your story could earn the sympathy of a jury if the case gets that far. The insurer may accept your demand and move forward with a settlement, make a counteroffer or series of counteroffers, or simply deny your claim.
Personal injury refers to an injury to a person that is the result of negligence or intentional misconduct. Injuries may be physical, emotional or psychological, or financial in nature. Personal injury claims could include injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents, a slip and fall, medical malpractice, a defective drug or a defective product.
Personal injury lawsuits are subject to a statute of limitations, after which the claim cannot be filed. Under Indiana law, a personal injury lawsuit must be filed in court no later than two years after an injury. There are a few exceptions, but you should consult with a personal injury lawyer sooner rather than later to determine if you have a case.
If the at-fault party has insurance coverage, the victims will have to deal with the insurer to seek compensation for injuries and damage to their property. Unfortunately, insurance companies are often reluctant to pay the full amount that the accident victim is owed. When this happens, an experienced Indiana personal injury attorney can help the victim and their family pursue compensation through a negotiated settlement or personal injury lawsuit.
Truck accident claims often result in more compensation for victims than claims involving ordinary passenger vehicles. Trucking companies and truck drivers must carry higher amounts of liability insurance than automobile drivers because 18-wheeler accidents often cause more severe injuries than car crashes. The more your injuries affect your daily life, the more compensation you can demand. A truck accident lawyer can provide more specifics on how much your claim might be worth based on the following losses:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages
- Vehicle damage
- Reduced future earnings
- Diminished quality of life
- Physical pain
- Emotional distress
- Damaged personal property
You should let your attorney contact the trucking company on your behalf after an accident. You don’t want to say something to an insurance adjuster or trucking company lawyer that might undermine your case. An attorney can gather evidence of your losses and submit a demand to the trucking company or its insurer. Your attorney can file a lawsuit if the trucking company refuses to offer a fair settlement. Trucking companies can’t afford to ignore lawsuits. Once you have the trucking company’s attention, your truck accident attorney can handle any communication with a trucking company and represent you in settlement negotiations.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol investigates many truck accidents within state boundaries. The highway patrol’s Major Crash Investigation Unit handles cases involving commercial vehicles, accident fatalities, and crashes that may involve felony charges. The Major Crash Investigation Unit has officers stationed throughout Missouri, and they have specialized equipment and training for handling truck accidents. If you are involved in a truck crash, the highway patrol will likely send someone from the Major Crash Investigation Unit to investigate. You can contact them once their investigation is complete and obtain a copy of the accident report.
One thing that separates semi-truck accidents from typical car crashes is that commercial truck drivers and trucking companies have to follow more rules and regulations than other motorists.
- Hours of Service regulations – Because semi-trucks may weigh up to 20 times more than a passenger car, it is essential that truck drivers are always awake and alert behind the wheel. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and state regulatory agencies have hours of service rules that limit how long an interstate truck driver can operate a vehicle without taking a rest break and how many hours a trucker can drive during a week.
- More strict drunk driving laws – Commercial drivers are held to a stricter standard regarding driving while impaired. According to the FMCSA, the blood alcohol concentration for commercial drivers to be charged with driving while impaired is 0.04 percent. All commercial truck drivers are subject to drug and alcohol testing. Truck drivers must undergo drug and alcohol if they are involved in a fatal accident or receive a traffic citation for an accident resulting in an injury.
- Weight restrictions – The bigger a vehicle is, the harder it is to control. Accordingly, the FMCSA and state regulators have implemented strict weight restrictions for truck drivers. The weight limit for a standard tractor-trailer is 80,000 pounds, but there are different rules for combination trucks and other vehicles.
You are not required to have a wrongful death attorney to file a claim or lawsuit, but a lawyer can streamline the process and help you avoid pitfalls that could jeopardize your case. A lawyer also has resources you do not have, such as access to expert witnesses who could bolster your case and draw links between the accident and your loved one’s death.
Look for a lawyer with experience in wrongful death cases. Wrongful death cases may involve estimating the future lost earnings of the deceased, which can be complicated. The attorney you choose should also have trial experience and a track record of success with wrongful death claims.
The estate’s representative, often representing the family of the deceased, contacts a wrongful death attorney to initiate the claim. Once hired, the attorney can investigate the incident that caused the death and gather evidence of the wrongdoing that caused it. The evidence could include safety records of the establishment where the accident happened, driving records or a police report if the deceased was killed in a collision, witness statements, and photos or video of the fatal accident, for example.
Once the lawyer has a solid case for negligence, they may send a demand letter to the at-fault party or their insurer to demand appropriate compensation, or they could file a lawsuit. Many wrongful death cases are settled out of court through negotiations, mediation, or arbitration. The lawyer may represent the estate in these negotiations. Some cases go to trial, and so the wrongful death lawyer would litigate the claim in Indiana civil court.
The statute of limitations sets a two-year deadline for bringing a wrongful death suit against the at-fault party. If the deceased’s personal representative fails to initiate the legal process before the statute of limitations expires, a judge will almost certainly dismiss a later filed case.
Liability in wrongful death suits requires proof that the at-fault party caused the accident that resulted in the death. That means establishing the at-fault party had a duty of care to the deceased, fell short of that duty of care, and caused the incident leading to the deceased’s death.
Damages in a wrongful death lawsuit include any medical care the deceased needed after the accident before they passed, hospital fees, burial and funeral expenses, and anticipated lost earnings and benefits. The lawsuit could also seek compensation for the loss of love and companionship the death causes the surviving family.
The wrongful death claim must be filed by the deceased’s personal representative. The personal representative may be the executor of the deceased’s will or, absent a will, the court-appointed representative of the estate.
A wrongful death occurs when someone dies because of someone else’s negligence, negligent act of omission, or wrongful action. It’s a preventable death, one that would never have happened but for the other party’s actions. Indiana law defines a wrongful death as one in which the deceased, if they had survived, would have had grounds to file a personal injury claim for damages against the at-fault party.
