National Safety Council says that the average driver suffers at least one major or minor car accident throughout their driving lifetime. If we have a look at the history of driving over the past 40 to 50 years, the average driver has likely been involved in about 2-3 car accidents.
While not all accidents result in deaths, injuries and property loss are a common occurrence. If a driver gets licensed by the age of 16, statistics tell us that chances are high that by age 34, he or she would have been involved in one type of car accident or another. Such accidents can range from crashes that may result in death, severe bodily injuries or minor fender benders that cause damage to the vehicle. Although no exact method is available to predict the odds of a driver being killed or injured in a car accident, several methods are available that can predict the chances of a driver being involved in an accident.
Gladly, there are minimal chances of a fatal car crash for the average driver, even though around 10 million car accidents happen each year, including all types of property damages and passenger injuries. Car accident statistics also show us the prevalence of various other vehicle-related incidents like small fender benders, multi-vehicle pileups, minor parking lot scrapes, head-on and rear-end collisions.
Youngsters’ Car Accident Statistics
As per the National Safety Council, out of every 1,000 accidents, only three involve fatalities. Most of these crashes are minor and only include minimal injuries. Drivers who are less than 25 years of age are far more likely to be involved in severe car accidents as compared to more experienced and older drivers.
The fatality rate is high among young and teenage drivers. Some statistics show that the leading cause of death among youngsters age 15-21 is due to motor vehicle accidents. According to 2016 statistics, 2,433 young people aged between 16 and 19 died due to car crashes. A total of 292,742 people were injured and treated in the hospital emergency departments in the same year. This means that every day, six teenagers die aged between 16 – 19. In the U.S., about 8 percent of motor vehicle deaths involve teenage drivers.
Other statistics show that about 9 percent of teens die in passenger vehicles, including vans, cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs. Out of that, 6 percent of deaths are pedestrian, and 3 percent of them are motorcyclist death. Other than these, all-terrain vehicles and bicycle deaths also occur.
Car Insurance Industry Estimates
The estimates of the car insurance industry show that the average vehicle driver will file a claim for a car accident about once after every 17 to 18 years. And that is when the average driver follows traffic rules and practice good driving habits.
Every year in the United States, more than 2 million people are killed in motor vehicle accidents. Gladly, the majority of these insurance claims do not involve fatalities or serious injuries, but they are nevertheless very costly to the industry.
The average claim from car crash injuries in 2010 was $23,450, covering drivers and other victims’ injuries. The average car accident claim increased by 8 percent from 2010 to 2012.
Car Accident Lawyer or Insurance Companies?
When it comes to paying out the claim for a car accident, time and time again insurance companies have proven to be rather difficult to deal with. One tactic they often employ in maximizing their revenue or profits is by trying as much as it is possible to minimize the compensation and payouts they make for the physical and financial loss incurred by their policyholders.
Sadly, more often than not, the average policy-holder will not have the necessary skill or know-how to deal with these insurance companies in order to claim for a vehicle accident.
The fact of the matter is that a qualified and experienced car accident lawyer is more likely to know how to deal with insurance companies so that their clients can get fair and just compensation following a car accident and any incidental injuries.
How a car accident attorney helps its clients.
File Claim within the Deadline
There is a statute of limitations in civil cases that specifies the timeframe to file a claim against the party at fault. Since various types of claims might have different deadlines, it is highly advisable that you hire a personal injury attorney who specializes in auto accident injuries so that you don’t miss any deadlines to file a claim.
Help You throughout the Claims or Legal Process
The other challenge you might face is understanding the legal system. While you may have a general knowledge of the legal system, chances are that you may not know how to deal with the complications of a case, court system, and other requirements if your attempt to get compensated by your insurance goes to trial for whatever reason.
However, a lawyer with experience will likely know the intricacies of the court system, including the best way to deal with insurance companies, is your best bet to come out on the winning side of the situation. It is, therefore, a good idea to hire a professional attorney just like Pacific Attorney Group to get the best outcome for your claim.
Gather Evidence
Simply filing a claim does not guarantee that the claim will be honored or paid out. The tough part comes when you have to prove your claim. For this, you need credible evidence to present, first to the insurance company, then to the court if it goes that far. You may lose your case if you fail to show the relevant evidence.
A car accident attorney knows how to obtain relevant evidence for a case and helps the client to gather and properly present it. Also, a lawyer has resources and chance of gaining access to expert and police report that helps in proving your claim.
Allow To Focus On Healing
The thing that slows down or detrimental to the emotional and physical healing is undue stress. Dealing with other parties, courts, and insurance company creates extreme stress. A car accident attorney helps you in keeping track of every aspect of your legal process.