In the blink of an eye, a serious car accident can absolutely devastate a person’s life. Car accident victims not only deal with agonizing injuries, but they are also often left with massive financial stress as well. If you were hurt in an accident, you may be facing steep medical bills and vehicle repair costs as well as the financial burden caused by being out of work. These and other damages may be recoverable through a personal injury lawsuit. Accident reconstruction is often a crucial element of bringing a successful case.

How Can Accident Reconstruction Benefit My Case?

Car accidents are rarely straightforward. The at-fault party or parties may deny responsibility for the crash or even blame the victim for the injuries caused in the collision. Pile-up and multiple-car collisions are often especially confusing. Accident reconstruction is a process of evaluating evidence and data and “reconstructing” the accident scene. An accident reconstructionist may generate reports, models, diagrams, or computer animations that your lawyer can use to explain the accident and demonstrate liability. Accident reconstructionists may also provide expert testimony during a personal injury lawsuit. Statements and evidence from a well-respected, experienced accident reconstructionist will carry significant weight in a complex case.

What Is Involved in Accident Reconstruction?

Accident reconstruction starts with gathering data and evidence. Physical evidence like the position of the vehicles and the location of vehicle debris, guardrail damage, or skid marks are important clues in accident reconstruction. Many modern vehicles are equipped with accident data recorders (ADR) or event data recorders (EDR) that capture information about the force of the impact, the vehicle’s speed, brake application, and other vehicle data. Camera footage and photographs are also crucial pieces of evidence. The accident reconstructionist pieces together these clues to understand how the accident occurred and develop a timeline of events.

Individuals above a certain age may remember news stories about a woman suing the McDonald’s restaurant chain because her coffee was too hot. The 1994 lawsuit made international headlines and became the go-to example of “frivolous” lawsuits. For almost 30 years, the McDonald’s hot coffee lawsuit has been touted as the epitome of American litigiousness. However, the real story behind the infamous product liability lawsuit may surprise you.

The Real Facts of Stella Liebeck’s Hot Coffee Claim

If you are like most people, you may remember reacting to the “hot coffee” lawsuit by rolling your eyes in disbelief. After all, everyone knows that coffee is hot. You may remember hearing that the woman spilled the coffee on herself because she was attempting to simultaneously remove the lid while driving. You may have also heard that the woman received an exorbitantly high payout for the incident.

Unfortunately, the real story is much more disturbing. The coffee that the 79-year-old plaintiff spilled on herself was not just hot – it was outrageously hot. The coffee was approximately 190 degrees Fahrenheit. That is only 22 degrees shy of boiling. At temperatures this high, coffee is capable of causing full-thickness burns in less than three seconds. Furthermore, the woman was not driving at the time of the incident. She was in the passenger seat, and the vehicle was parked. When she took off the lid to add sugar to the coffee, the coffee spilled on her lap. Liebeck suffered third-degree burns down to the fatty tissue and muscle on nearly 20 percent of her body. Her burns were so severe that she required multiple surgeries and years of recovery. McDonald’s had also received hundreds of reports of the coffee burning customers previously, but the company did not lower the temperature at which coffee was served. Liebeck eventually settled for an undisclosed amount.

The year is not even half over and there have already been 137 fatal crashes in Illinois. Car accidents resulting in serious injury or death are not uncommon in Illinois – especially in populous areas like Cook County and DuPage County. Distracted driving, drunk driving, and other forms of negligent driving are often to blame for these accidents. However, the party who is liable for a car crash is not always another driver. In fact, sometimes the liable party is a municipality or government entity.  

Car Accidents Caused by Poorly Designed Roads

We trust that the government will design and construct roads that reduce the risk of car accidents. After all, this is what our taxes help pay for. Mistakes in the design, construction, or maintenance of roads can cause or contribute to crashes. Inadequate road markings, unsafe shoulders, unreasonably complicated intersections, or dangerous exit ramps may all be examples of poor road design. Insufficient or conflicting road signs and traffic signals may increase the chances of an accident at an intersection. Roadside hazards, hidden obstructions, and unmarked construction zones may also be the fault of a government entity.

Did you know that heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) jobs are listed in the top 25 most dangerous professions? Burns, electrocutions, falls, and other HVAC accidents can lead to severe injuries and even death. In 2018, just under 7,000 HVAC workers suffered injuries and 40 workers were killed in a work-related accident. If you or a loved one were harmed in an HVAC work accident, it is important to know your rights. You may be entitled to compensation through your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance and/or a third-party claim.

Types of Work Injuries for Which You May Be Owed Compensation

Per Illinois law, workers’ compensation coverage is “no-fault.” This means that you do not have to show that your employer or another party’s actions caused your work injury to be covered by workers’ compensation. As long as the injured person is an employee and not an independent contractor and the injury occurred during the course of work, the injured person is typically covered.

A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. When a truck collides with another vehicle or a pedestrian, the results are often catastrophic. If you were injured or a loved one was killed in a truck crash, you may be interested in pursuing a personal injury claim against the at-fault party. An injury claim may allow you to hold the liable party accountable for the truck collision and recover compensation for your damages. However, in order to build a credible claim, you will need to show evidence of the defendant’s negligence, the connection between your injuries and the defendant’s actions, as well as your damages.

Basic Components of a Successful Truck Accident Claim

Most truck accidents occur because a party acted negligently or carelessly. Legal responsibility for the accident may lie with the truck driver, the trucking company, the designer of a defective truck part, or a number of other parties.