• Exchange Details
  This might not be possible in every situation, but exchanging details with other people who are involved can help to make things smoother in the long run. As well as getting the personal details of other drivers or passengers, you should see if there are witnesses nearby who would be willing to share their accounts with the police and insurance companies. This can help you to get more information about the car accident and support your insurance claims.
• Work with an Accident Attorney
  Getting legal support after a car accident can help to guide you through this difficult process and ensure you have all the legal information and advice you need. Making a claim and figuring out the next steps after a car accident can be challenging, but an accident attorney in St Petersburg can help to make this experience a bit easier and smoother. As you recover from any injuries from a car accident and process this traumatic event, an accident attorney can help to pursue claims and give you all the help you need.
• Write Down Everything You Can Remember
  Car accidents are often traumatic, and it might feel like everything has happened in a flash. Although you may remember details now, it is easy to forget them afterward. Make a note as quickly as possible of anything you remember from the car accident, including the time it happened, the color and any details of other cars involved, and the names and any other details of people at the scene.
• Seek Medical Help
  Even if you have been involved in a mild car accident, it is important to seek medical help and get yourself and any other passengers checked out for injuries and potential problems. Some problems caused by being involved in a car accident may happen further down the line and will not manifest straight away. Undergoing a full assessment by a medical professional after a car accident is an important step to help document any injuries or damage caused and ensure you can receive the right treatment and support. The opinion of medical professionals can also support your insurance claim after a car accident.

Finding a Good Accident Attorney
Experiencing a car accident is never pleasant, and receiving the necessary help and support in the aftermath is crucial. You can find an accident attorney to support your case at Weller Legal Group in St Petersburg.

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Why Biking in Florida is So Dangerous

In 2019 a AAA survey discovered that the reason why so many bikers in Florida encounter a bike injury is that 56% ride with traffic, 36% don’t wear helmets, and another 21% ride against traffic. Unfortunately, bikers don’t need to encounter a personal injury if they’d simply follow the rules of the road. This means that bikers must understand that they have the same rights and responsibilities as motor vehicle drivers.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says that the two most common reasons for traffic accidents resulting in a bike injury are falls and collisions. Unfortunately, if you do get injured it isn’t as simple as turning the accident into your insurance because over 20% of drivers in Florida don’t have car insurance. Therefore if you’re hit by a driver you have a 1 in 5 chance of them covering your medical bills.

How to Avoid a Traffic Accident While Riding Your Bike

When you want to avoid getting into traffic accidents that result in a bike injury, it’s important to know what you’re doing before you even head out on your adventure. Here are a few tips that our personal injury lawyers think you should always remember.

Have the Right Bike

The first thing you want to do is make sure you have the right bike. Your bike needs to fit you properly so that it’s easier to control and you can avoid a personal injury. It’s also important to have a white light on the front of your bike and a red light on the back of it. You should also have reflectors on it.

Wear the Right Gear

Once you have the right bike, it’s time to get the right gear. Not only should you dress in bright clothes during the day, but you should wear reflective gear at night to avoid traffic accidents. Another important way of foregoing a bike injury is to wear a properly fitted helmet – one that fits snugly.

Be a Good Biker

Make sure you always follow the rules of the road. Remain alert as you ride with the flow of traffic. This may result in you encountering some road hazards (e.g., potholes, gravel, broken glass, puddles) so watch for them so you don’t develop a personal injury.

It’s also important for you to signal to other drivers where you’re going and make sure that they see you doing so. If you’re riding on a sidewalk, make sure you tell any pedestrians you encounter that you’re about to pass by them before doing so.

These things are easier when you take the time to plan your route before heading out onto the road because then you’ll know what to expect so you can avoid traffic accidents. This also allows you to choose roads that have less traffic, a slower speed limit, and sidewalks.

Filing a Personal Injury Case for Your Bike Injury

If you still encounter a bike injury, you’ll want to contact a personal injury lawyer right away. At the Blenner Law Group in St Petersburg & Palm Harbor, FL we’ll help you fully recover financially. You may be entitled to compensation for the expenses related to the accident, any lost wages, and for your pain and suffering. Make sure you talk to us as soon as possible after your accident.

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Common Mechanical Defects

When you get into a car crash due to your car’s negligent design or manufacture, a personal injury attorney will hold the manufacturer liable. This is because it’s the manufacturer’s responsibility to ensure that their cars are safe to drive. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen. Each year numerous vehicles are recalled because of serious flaws that put drivers’ lives at risk.

Flawed Brakes
Brakes have come a long way over time. Now we have anti-lock and dual braking systems to help reduce the number of car crashes that happen on our roads today. Nevertheless, personal injury attorneys still see accidents caused by faulty braking systems that don’t allow you to stop in time to prevent a crash.

Issues with Tires
Whether the tires are poorly designed or their rubber has been compromised they can result in tire blowouts and crashes. Additionally, if your vehicle has issues with its suspension your tires may wear down unevenly. This is another common reason why tires fail.

Faulty Designed Steering
When your vehicle’s steering system malfunctions or fails you can’t operate your vehicle properly. This is the cause of most single-car crashes because your vehicle has veered out of control. Of course, it can result in multiple-vehicle collisions too.

Problems with the Lights
Your headlights and taillights are important so other drivers can see you. When they’re poorly designed or installed incorrectly it results in problems with visibility and glare. Faulty headlights and taillights can also overheat. All of these issues may result in a car crash for which you’ll need to hire a personal injury attorney.

Faulty Wipers
You may think that wipers are one of the simplest parts of your vehicle, but they do play a major role in helping you see when it’s raining. When a manufacturing flaw causes them to malfunction you may lose sight of the result and end up in an accident.

Engine Failure
Defective parts or poor installation of your engine often results in the failure of your transmission. This occurs when your engine overheats and seizes up. Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do when this happens. You’ll lose control of your car or it’ll come to a sudden stop causing you to be rear-ended.

Poorly Designed Gas Tanks
Whether a gas tank has been poorly designed or it’s incorrectly placed within a vehicle all it takes is a minor accident for this to result in a fire. This isn’t only dangerous for you but it also affects all of the other cars around you. If you’re in an accident like this you definitely need to hire a personal injury attorney.

Faulty Airbags
When your airbags deflate while you’re driving your vehicle they can cause you to get into an accident. Even if you get into an accident and your airbags inflate incorrectly you could get injured further.

Taking Action After a Car Crash

While design and manufacturing defects do happen, faulty repairs and maintenance issues caused by mechanics also happen. Regardless of why you’ve been in a car crash, you should hire a personal injury lawyer to help you discover why it happened. Whether it was caused by a manufacturer or mechanic your personal injury lawyer at the Blenner Law Group in St Petersburg, FL will help you recuperate your damages. Contact us today.

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According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration car accidents caused by speeding are up as much as 15% in some areas during recent months. The resulting injuries become worse as your speed increases. This speed is also a significant factor in crash liability.

It should be no surprise that speeding isn’t only common but also quite dangerous. According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, approximately one-third of all deadly crashes occur when at least one of the parties involved has been speeding. What’s interesting is that most drivers don’t think it’s an issue. They’ll even go so far as to make excuses for it.

In reality, driving at a high rate of speed has many dangerous consequences, including:

• You’re unable to easily maneuver your vehicle around obstructions and curves in the roadway.
• You need more time and distance so you can stop safely.
• Since it takes a bit for you to react to your vehicle when you get in an accident while speeding you’re more likely to get injured.
• You can’t possibly react fast enough to assess just how fast another vehicle is traveling when it’s moving at a high speed.

Undoubtedly, cars traveling at excessive speeds are frequently a liability. Just how big of a liability they are will depend on factors specific to the case.

Defining Speeding

Although this sounds easy, you should know that you could also get a speeding ticket when you’re traveling too fast for the road conditions, even when you’re going under the speed limit. This is why you need to remain alert to any changes in weather conditions. Of course, you also need to watch for congested traffic, roadway debris, poorly maintained roads, and anything around you (e.g., bicyclists, pedestrians, animals).

According to F.S. 316.183, you aren’t permitted to drive your vehicle at an unreasonable speed. As a driver, you’re responsible for controlling your speed so you avoid causing a car accident. This is important to understand because if you’re found negligent you’ll also be found liable. Negligence is defined as not being careful enough to avoid harming someone else. When found negligent you’ll incur fines and points on your driver’s license. You may also be held liable for your actions if someone else gets hurt.

Retaining a Lawyer After a Car Accident

Just because you were in a car accident where someone is injured or killed doesn’t mean it has to go to litigation. Relatively minor injuries can be adequately compensated with the personal injury protection (PIP) part of your insurance coverage. This coverage offers about $10K in coverage for medical and wage loss. No proof of fault is necessary.

When you’re in a car accident that meets the severe injury threshold you may step outside of the no-fault system to pursue a claim with the other driver’s insurance. To do this you must be able to prove the other driver’s negligence. This means that if you can prove that the other driver was traveling at too high of a rate of speed you can prove that they’re breaching their duty of care for others as a driver.

To win your case here you not only need to prove this, but you must also prove that they caused the crash and your injuries. It’s also important for you to defend against accusations that you contributed to the accident and the injuries that were incurred therein.

When you get into a car accident in St. Petersburg, reach out to us at Blenner Law Group. We may be able to forego a lawsuit and still negotiate a fair insurance settlement for you. Put our dedication to the test. Contact us today.

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Unfortunately, there will be times when an insurance company will reject a legitimate claim or take its time when it comes to paying it. There will also be times when someone who’s injured in the accident, whether a driver or a passenger, will be offered less money than they expect to receive. This may not even be enough money for them to pay for things like repairs, injuries, or other costs that are associated with the accident. Fortunately, the laws in Florida do protect those who are injured in a car accident.

Understanding the Costs of a Car Accident

The money that you’re offered by an insurance company after an accident won’t always be enough to help you cover all the costs that you’ve incurred. Unfortunately, you’ll be responsible for anything that the insurance company doesn’t pay for unless you seek fair compensation.

Many people are surprised when this happens to them because being in a car accident isn’t cheap. You need to figure in the cost of car repairs, taxis, medical treatment (don’t forget medication, long-term medical costs), lost wages at work (these may be significant if you’re seriously injured), and other incidentals. Sometimes you’ll also have the added cost of replacing your personal property (e.g. phone, jewelry) if it was damaged in the accident.

Filing a Claim

Since car collisions are so expensive you must get all the documentation you need at the time of the accident. This includes pictures and contact information of the other drivers and any witnesses. You should also spend time notating any details you remember as soon as possible as they may prove helpful later.

It’s also important to keep any receipts that are related to your injuries and damages (e.g. medicine, taxis, specialist visits). Saving these alongside any notes regarding your treatment or the accident itself is helpful. Simply store them in an envelope so they’re available when you need them.

Fortunately, it’s fairly straightforward to file a claim. Simply contact your insurance company and ask them to start the claims process. The insurance company will then inform you about what steps you need to take. Make sure you take notes of this conversation.

You’ll want to make sure you have all this information in order as your next step should be to contact the Blenner Law Group in Palm Harbor, FL.

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