Personal Injury Claims for Failure to Yield Accidents
When it comes to sharing the road with other drivers and pedestrians, you must learn when you have the right-of-way and when you should yield. For example, a driver at a four-way stop must wait until it is their turn to go or they risk crashing into another vehicle who actually had the right-of-way. Failure to yield accidents lead to some very serious injuries every year. If you were the victim of a failure to yield accident, you may find this article helpful.
What is failure to yield the right-of-way?
When a driver is guilty of failure to yield the right-of-way, it means that they didn’t allow other traffic, such as cars or pedestrians, to go when they had the right-of-way.
What is a failure to yield accident?
A failure to yield accident is when a driver fails to yield the road when they are supposed to and it causes a collision. Failure to yield crashes are responsible for some of the most severe or fatal types of car accidents. When a driver fails to yield the right-of-way when it is required by law, it can lead to traffic citations and liability from any resulting accidents. What is a little bit unique about failure to yield accidents is that it is often the injury victim that crashes into the at-fault driver who had failed to yield the right-of-way.
Examples of failure to yield accidents:
- A driver enters a roundabout and crashes into a vehicle who is already driving in the roundabout
- A driver drives straight through a crosswalk and crashes into a pedestrian crossing the street
- A driver turning left fails to yield to oncoming traffic
- A driver drives straight through a flashing red light
- A driver side-swipes or crashes into a vehicle while merging onto the highway
Personal injury claims for failure to yield accidents
When failure to yield is deemed the cause of a crash, the injured person may be able to pursue a personal injury claim to recover damages. If the at-fault-driver was issued a traffic citation for failure to yield at the scene of the crash, that can help bolster your claim.
Victims of failure to yield accidents are entitled to recover both economic and non-economic damages, including:
- Medical bills
- Physical therapy
- Mental health therapy
- Lost income
- Disability
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium
What to do if you are the victim of a failure to yield accident
There are several things that you can do to increase your chances of receiving maximum compensation for your injuries after a failure to yield accident:
- Take pictures of the scene of the accident, any visible injuries and any damage to the vehicles involved
- Calmly exchange insurance information with the other driver
- Collect contact information from any witnesses
- Call the police for an accident report
- Do not admit any fault for the accident at the scene of the accident or to the at-fault driver’s insurance company
- Speak to a personal injury attorney to discuss your legal rights
Seek the help of a car accident attorney
If you or a loved one was injured because of the negligence of another, contact a personal injury lawyer to discuss your legal rights. Let an experienced car accident attorney fight for the full compensation that you deserve. It is not uncommon to receive a settlement from the insurance company that is five to ten times larger with the help of a lawyer. Call the personal injury lawyers at Tario & Associates, P.S. in Bellingham, WA today for a FREE consultation! We have been representing residents of Whatcom County, Skagit County, Island County and Snohomish County since 1979. You will pay nothing up front and no attorney fees at all unless we recover damages for you!
