An injury can happen at any time and alter the plans you’ve made for your life. You may have to deal with physical pain, emotional distress, and significant financial burdens. When an injury occurs because someone else was negligent, a Middletown personal injury attorney may be able to help you recover monetary compensation for your losses.
At Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC, our legal team is dedicated to helping injury victims get the justice they deserve. We have over 85 years of experience helping our clients regain financial stability after devastating accidents. Contact us today for a free review of your case.
Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC Will Fight For Your Rights
When you’re injured, you may feel overwhelmed and disoriented. The complicated claim paperwork and aggressive communication from insurance companies may make a personal injury claim feel daunting. As your Middletown personal injury lawyers, we’ll take on the complex legal process and let you focus on recovering.
Our goal is to get you the financial compensation that you deserve, not the minimum that is offered by the insurance company. We have a proven track record of success, having recovered millions for injury victims, and have built a reputation of honesty and dedication amongst our clients.
If you become a client of Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC, we can:
- Ensure the accuracy and completeness of paperwork
- Thoroughly investigate your accident and gather evidence to build a compelling case for compensation
- Negotiate a settlement with insurers and advise you on any offers you receive
- File any needed appeals
- Represent you in court to fight for a verdict if necessary
Our legal team is compassionate and responsive. We are available 24/7 and will keep you updated throughout the progress of your case.
Your Personal Injury Case in Middletown
At Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC, we have attorneys who can help you with a wide variety of cases. Depending on your needs, you can seek help from our:
- Middletown Car Accident Lawyers: Negligent acts such as drunk driving or speeding can lead to tragic results.
- Middletown Truck Accident Lawyers: These devastating accidents can be caused by negligent trucking companies undertraining their employees to save costs.
- Middletown Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers: Stores owe a duty of care to their customers and accidents can happen when this duty is ignored.
- Middletown Workers’ Compensation Lawyers: Job-related accidents and illness can have long-lasting impacts.
- Middletown Medical Malpractice Lawyers: These types of cases include misdiagnosis and mistakes made with medications.
- Middletown Pedestrian Accident Lawyers: Whether someone has run a red light or was distracted at a crosswalk, when vehicles hit pedestrians, the results are often catastrophic.
- Middletown Wrongful Death Lawyers: When a loved one has passed away due to someone else’s negligence, you can pursue compensation and justice.
We represent these types of cases and many more. If you were injured and it was someone else’s fault, contact us to discuss your legal options for recovering financial compensation.
What Compensation Is Recoverable in Middletown Personal Injury Cases?
Some common injuries people suffer after an accident include broken bones, lacerations, road rash, scarring, internal injuries, spinal cord injuries, and traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). These injuries may mean costly medical care, lost wages from missing work, long-term care needs, home modifications to address changed accessibility needs, and more. In addition to the financial burden, you will also have to deal with pain and emotional trauma after the injury.
Fair compensation in personal injury claims means compensation that covers all your losses, both those you’ve already accrued as well as ones you can expect in the future. Our Middletown personal injury lawyers will carefully listen to your story and delve into your losses so that they can advocate for the maximum compensation that you may be eligible for.
Recoverable losses may include:
Medical Expenses
Often, one of the most significant losses after an injury is the cost of medical care. Depending on your injury, you may have one-time expenses such as an emergency room visit or surgery or ongoing medical needs such as physical therapy or medications.
Assistance Needs
Severe injuries may result in the need for long-term care such as assistance with your activities of daily living (ADLs) or mobility aids (such as a wheelchair). You may also need to make modifications to your home, such as wider doorways to account for a wheelchair or installing grab bars in the shower and near beds.
Job-Related Losses
An injury may lead to short-term job impacts such as lost income while recovering. It may also affect possible job benefits, such as PTO, salary increases, and bonuses. When injuries are severe, they may also lead to a reduced working capacity, or in some cases, you may never be able to work again.
Non-Economic Losses
While financial losses are difficult, they aren’t the only way that an injury causes harm to your life. Recoverable losses often include those losses which don’t have a direct financial component. These include physical pain and suffering from injuries, mental trauma, and loss of consortium.
Who Was at Fault for Your Personal Injury?
Determining that someone else acted negligently or recklessly and it led to your injury is an essential factor in recovering compensation. In some cases, who was at fault may be clear. However, in other cases, especially where multiple parties are at fault, it may be much more difficult.
Some examples of possible at-fault parties in different types of accidents include:
- Other drivers, government entities, and mechanics may be at fault for car accidents
- Trucking companies or their drivers could be at fault in a truck accident
- Doctors, nursing staff, or hospital administration in medical malpractice cases
- Property owners in slip and fall or other premises liability cases
Proving that a party was negligent typically requires an investigation into the accident. One of our Middletown personal injury attorneys will gather evidence to determine fault. They may do so by:
- Reviewing official documentation related to your accident, such as driving records, police reports, incident reports, and maintenance logs
- Interviewing witnesses, such as bystanders, other drivers, coworkers, and staff
- Analyzing footage of the event, such as from business security cameras, cellphones, traffic cameras, and dash cams
- Consulting with experts such as those in highway safety, safety standards, and accident reconstruction
It’s important to note that time can impact the ability to recover evidence. For example, as time passes a witness’s memory may become less reliable or important video footage may be deleted. To get started on your case right away, contact our Middletown personal injury lawyers at Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC.
How Do Connecticut Laws Affect Your Middletown Personal Injury Case?
The state of Connecticut operates under a modified comparative negligence system. Under this system, at-fault parties are the ones who are liable for damages. However, if you hold some degree of fault in your accident, you may still be able to recover financial compensation for your losses.
If you are 50 percent or less at fault, you can recover damages. However, the amount of damages that can be rewarded is reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if your compensation could be $100,000 but you were 25 percent at fault, you could only recover $75,000.
In addition to negligence laws, your case is also affected by the state’s statute of limitations. Under CT Gen. Stat. § 52-584, you generally only have two years (from the date of your injury) to pursue a personal injury lawsuit. In cases where a loved one passed away due to their injuries, under CT Gen. Stat. § 52-555 you typically have two years to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
One of our personal injury lawyers in Middletown will ensure that your case is handled according to all local, state, and federal laws that may pertain to it.
Affording a Personal Injury Lawyer for Your Middletown Case
Injuries may cause you to feel insecure about your financial situation. You may be worried about paying medical bills while dealing with lost wages on top of your daily expenses. While you may be nervous about filing a personal injury claim on your own, affording a lawyer on top of everything else can seem out of reach.
Injury victims deserve legal representation, regardless of their current financial situation. The Middletown personal injury lawyers at Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC work on a contingency fee basis. This basis of operations means that you don’t need to worry about affording the upfront costs of a lawyer. You will not pay any fees unless we recover compensation for you.
Upon recovering compensation, our fees are taken as a percentage of your settlement. We want you to be able to access the legal representation you deserve, without being worried about the financial impact of doing so.
What Actions Are Helpful After a Personal Injury Occurs?
In the immediate aftermath of an accident, it can be difficult to know what you should do. The most important thing to remember is to protect yourself: get to safety and seek immediate medical attention.
In addition to these actions, there are a few actions you can take and some that you should avoid. However, if you are unable to do things like gathering contact info or contacting law enforcement, your lawyer will be able to take care of many of these actions on your behalf.
Seek Medical Attention
Whether you need emergency care or choose to make an appointment with your primary care physician, receiving care from a medical professional is essential. Doctors will be able to perform tests, such as X-rays or CT scans, to diagnose your injuries. They will then come up with a treatment plan based on that diagnosis. Untreated injuries can have lasting repercussions.
Alert the Proper Authorities
Depending on the event that has led to your injury, you should report it to the proper authorities.
- For motor vehicle accidents, call 9-1-1 or the Middletown Police Department
- For slip and fall cases, alert a store manager
- For dog bites, contact Middletown Animal Control
- For on-the-job incidents, alert your supervisor
Document the Accident
Take photos of the accident scene as well as of your injuries. This time-stamped evidence can be helpful for any personal injury claim that you later make.
In addition to these actions, there are also some things that are helpful to avoid. These include taking any blame for your injury when talking to police or insurance adjusters. You should also avoid posting about the incident on your social media accounts, as these posts can be used against you.
What to Expect When You File a Personal Injury Claim
If you need to file an insurance claim, the sooner you can do so, the better. If you wait too long, insurers may try to deny your claim saying you missed the deadline to submit your claim. Your lawyer can help you submit this claim and help you navigate any delay tactics and conversations with insurers.
Once your claim has been processed, insurers may:
Deny Your Claim
Rejections are formal documents which are required to give the reason(s) that your claim was denied.
If you face a denied claim, your lawyer can file an appeal on your behalf. This appeal should directly respond to the reasons for denial. For example, if you were denied due to a lack of evidence, your lawyer may need to further investigate your case to provide additional support.
Offer a Settlement
If your claim is accepted, then you will be offered a settlement. In some cases, this settlement may be a fair amount. You will then formally accept the offer, and the settlement will be paid.
However, in cases where an initial offer is lower than your needs, your lawyer can re-enter negotiations on your behalf. To do so, you will need to formally reject the offer. Your lawyer may also choose to gather additional evidence that supports your need for a higher amount of damages to be awarded. For example, they may consult with medical professionals to better explain the long-term impacts of your injury.
In rare cases where a settlement agreement cannot be reached, your lawyer may take your case to court.
Contact a Middletown Personal Injury Attorney Today
When an injury occurs, your life can feel like it’s been turned upside down. Recovering should be your primary focus. One of our Middletown personal injury attorneys can take on the legal process of your claim for you. We’re not afraid to fight big insurance companies as we advocate for fair compensation. At Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC you have a team backing you up, you never fight solo.
Contact the law team at Trantolo & Trantolo, LLC, today for a free initial consultation.