FAQs

If you are involved in an automobile accident, these guidelines may help lessen your legal risk and help assure your health and safety.

The first consideration must be for the safety of everyone. In any accident situation, stop at once. Get yourself and any others you can to a position of safety. But do not move anyone with a back or head injury unless you absolutely have to.

Check to see if the occupants of your car or the other car are hurt, and call paramedics as needed. Call the police in any accident situation. This is generally the safest thing to do, even when damage is apparently minimal. Get the name and badge number of police officers who respond to the scene.

Do not make any statements about who you think was at fault. Do not admit blame to the other parties or witnesses. Liability is a legal question to be determined only after all the facts have been gathered and studied. Give your name, address, date of birth, car license, driver’s license number, and name of your insurance company and policy number to the other driver. Get the same information from the other driver. Write down the names and addresses of all passengers and possible witnesses.

As soon as possible after the accident, notify your insurance company.

If your car was damaged in an accident and is not driveable, you will need to obtain a rental car if you don’t have other transportation. Many insurance companies will not authorize rental cars on a direct billing to them until they have verified liability for the accident, by either interviewing their own insured or reviewing a report filed by the investigating police officer.

If you are injured, you may want to call us at (801)255-2102 and allow us to coordinate rental car arrangements for you. If you are not injured, you can contact the insurance company for the party at fault and request rental car arrangements, or you can contact your own insurance company if you have rental car coverage on your own policy.

You may have to rent a car on your own credit card and get reimbursement from the insurance company. Some companies offer special rates for rented cars in an automobile accident case.

If you have questions about your rights regarding rental cars, repairing or replacing your car, or other matters relating to an automobile accident you may want to consider getting advice by calling Nuttall, Brown & Coutts at (801)255-2102.

If you have been injured in an accident that was caused by a driver who has no liability insurance, you should call us at (801)255-2102 at once. Sometimes drivers who believe they are not covered may in fact have insurance from another source that will pay for injuries and damages caused in an accident. It is also possible that the cancellation of that party’s insurance was wrongful, and we may be able to help you prove that the driver actually was covered by insurance.

If you have uninsured motorist coverage on your own policy, or are a member of a household where the insurance coverage exists, you may be able to recover in full for your injuries, medical bills, or lost earnings for the same amount that you would have received if the other party had been insured. The attorneys at Nuttall, Brown & Coutts can assist you in making this claim. Your insurance company then has the right to pursue the party at fault for reimbursement.

You may want to call us at (801)255-2102 before contacting your own insurance company and giving a recorded statement. With our experience we can more fully explain how uninsured motorist claims work and the procedures that are followed in such cases. If you are not injured, but your car is damaged by an uninsured driver, have your own insurance company repair your car under your collision coverage. If you do not have collision coverage, you will have to make a claim against the uninsured driver personally for damages.

If you are injured by another driver, either in your vehicle or another person’s vehicle, and it is not your fault, and if your bodily injury claim is worth more than the liability coverage purchased by the driver at fault, your insurance company may pay the difference between the value of your claim, and what you received from the liability insurance of the driver at fault.

For example, let’s say you have a bodily injury claim worth thirty five thousand dollars and the driver at fault has liability coverage limits of twenty five thousand dollars. In this example, you would receive twenty five thousand dollars from the liability coverage of the at fault driver, and ten thousand dollars from the underinsured coverage on your policy.

This is an important coverage as it protects you and your family for catastrophic injuries you may suffer in an auto accident.

There are other times when underinsured coverage may benefit you. If you have a question regarding insurance coverage, call us at (801)255-2102 as we have over 35 years of experience with accident cases.

The owner of a dog is generally responsible for injuries caused by the dog to other persons. It doesn’t matter if the dog owner is unaware that the dog may be vicious or that the dog has bitten others before—the dog owner is still liable.

The dog owner’s homeowner insurance policy will normally pay for dog bite injuries caused by the insured person’s dog. There may be other coverage for medical bills from a dog bite in addition to the liability insurance coverage.

You may want to call us at (801)255-2102 before speaking with any insurance investigators or adjusters, so that you will know and protect your rights. Dog bites can be very serious injuries, particularly when children are bitten.

The owner of a dog is responsible for injuries caused to others who are bitten by the dog. These injuries are often painful and serious, especially when children are the victims. The damages claimed in a dog bite case can include all medical bills, any required plastic surgery, an award for any permanent scars, pain and suffering, lost earnings, and other damages that are standard in injury cases, including, of course, future medical expenses. Some victims of dog bites need psychological counseling, and there may be a claim for emotional damages as well as the cost of treatment or counseling.

It is a good idea to call us at (801)255-2102 before giving an interview or recorded statement to any insurance investigators and adjustors.

Many victims of accidents miss time on the job due to the injuries they received in an accident. They may lose pay or valuable personal leave time because of the accident. Lost earnings can be a devastating consequence of injury accidents. If the accident is someone else’s fault, a claim should be made for the injuries and part of this claim can be for lost earnings from employment. We can obtain documentation from your employer of all lost earnings, and make it a part of your claim. If your education has been delayed, or you have missed opportunities for advancement in your employment, the law recognizes your ability to seek compensation for these damages as well.

The measure of your damages for earnings lost due to an accident is usually the gross pay you would have received, before taxes are deducted. If you have been injured in an accident, and have lost earnings or other employment opportunities due to your injuries, you may wish to call us at (801)255-2102 as we are willing to personally answer your questions regarding how you can be reimbursed for your losses. We can also assist you in gathering the necessary evidence to prove your losses to the insurance company, or in court if necessary.

General damages for pain and suffering compensate a person for the physical and mental distress suffered from an injury, including actual broken bones and internal ruptures, but also the aches, pain, temporary and permanent limitations on activity, potential shortening of life, depression and embarrassment from scarring, all of which are part of the “general damages” recoverable by someone injured by another’s negligence or intentional attack. The dollar value of damages for pain and suffering is subjective, as distinguished from medical bills, future medical costs and lost wages which can be calculated, called “special damages (LAW.com). The attorneys at Nuttall, Brown & Coutts can be extremely helpful in proving and collecting such damages.

Evaluating a personal injury claim can only be done after a complete investigation of all aspects of the case. This includes a detailed analysis of the injury itself; past, present, and future medical status; the rights and liabilities of the parties, as well as their ability to pay.

The opposing lawyers, with their respective client’s consent, often settle personal injury cases out of court. In those rare instances when a case does go all the way to trial, a jury usually decides the question of liability and damages. Damages awarded in personal injury cases usually include payment of medical bills and reimbursement of lost wages, but may also include payment for future medical bills and future wage loss. In most cases, damages are also awarded for physical pain and suffering, disfigurement, or disability that results from the injury.

The unexpected death of a loved one is always a tragic event. The loss of a husband, or wife, or family member often has painful consequences for the entire family. If a family member dies due to the wrongful or negligent act of another person, family members may be entitled to damages for their pecuniary loss. Pecuniary loss is a monetary value that includes not only lost wages and support, but also the advice, comfort, assistance, and protection which the family member would have given had they lived.

The surviving spouse and children may be entitled to recover damages for the loss of future earnings caused by the death of a spouse or parent. To determine a fair amount to provide for the future financial needs of the family, the deceased’s previous occupation, earnings, and health are considered.

Other family members may recover damages for pecuniary loss based on their relationship with the deceased, and the guidance, comfort, assistance, and protection lost because of the death.

There are two major types of head injury. One is an injury to the brain, caused by a penetration of the skull. The other type is a closed head injury which may result from a severe whiplash, with or without striking the head, or by a blunt trauma to the head. Either type of traumatic brain injury may trigger a wide range of symptoms including attention and memory deficits, vision or balance problems, personality changes and problem-solving difficulties.

Spinal injuries caused by an accident can include soft tissue injury to the neck, often called whiplash. This occurs when the neck is forced violently back and forth. Damage can also occur to the discs between the vertebrae. A disc injury may range from grade 1, called a bulging disc, to grade 3, called a herniated disc, depending upon the severity of the symptoms and CT or MRI scan results. If you suspect a disc injury, you should consult a specialist right away. These are potentially serious injuries that could have a long term impact on your life. Prompt evaluation, treatment, and documentation of these injuries maximizes your chances of recovery, physically and financially.

Calling the attorneys at Nuttall, Brown & Coutts at (801)255-2102, as soon as possible after the injury, helps preserve the evidence, advance the claim, and secure the compensation to which you may be entitled.