Loveland Personal Injury Attorney

Personal Injury Attorney in Loveland, Colorado

If you have been injured due to the negligence of another person or entity, you could benefit from speaking to a Loveland, CO personal injury attorney. According to the CDC, some 39.5 million people see their physician for an unintentional injury each year, while another 24.5 million go to the ER for an unintentional injury.

An unintentional injury could be an injury caused by the negligence of another, or an injury an individual sustained at home. An estimated two million of these injuries are severe enough to require hospitalization, and at least 162,000 are fatal. The vast majority of personal injury lawsuits are the result of automobile accidents, although slip and fall/trip and fall is also a significant cause of personal injury claims.

Driverknowledge.com estimates there are about 6 million car accidents every year in the United States. Of those accidents, there are about 3 million injuries, 2 million of which are severe enough to cause some level of permanent injury. As of 2018, CNBC reported that medical errors are believed to cause as many as 250,000 deaths per year, making these errors the third leading cause of death in the United States.

Why Choose Loveland Personal Injury Attorney Dianne Sawaya?

Being seriously injured through no fault of your own can be a traumatic experience. You may be left with injuries that could take weeks, months, or years to heal—or you could be left with a permanent disability. Depending on the extent of your injuries, you could be unable to return to work, making it impossible to pay your normal monthly expenses. At the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya, our legal team helps people just like you every day.

Attorney Dianne Sawaya fully understands that you have plenty of choices when deciding on a personal injury attorney. Because you have choices, Dianne consistently goes far above and beyond the “normal” service you receive from a personal injury attorney. Dianne and her team are compassionate, understanding this is a very emotional time for you. You will simply not find the level of commitment to you and your family our law firm offers anywhere else.  Consider the following:

• The Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya have more than 180 positive Google reviews.
• We are smart, aggressive, and compassionate.
• We will maximize the settlement you need and deserve.
• Our consultations are always 100% free.
• If there is no recovery, there are no attorney fees owed.
• Not only do we help you get the settlement you deserve, we help you get the medical treatment you need.

When you need an experienced, knowledgeable personal injury law firm, we hope you will choose the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya.

What is the Primary Cause of Personal Injury Claims?

As noted, most personal injury claims are the result of auto accidents. This is partially the case because in most cases when an auto accident occurs, one or both of the drivers committed driver error. In Colorado, the driver with the majority of fault remains liable for injuries caused.  Even if that driver error was unintentional, the action still deviated from what a reasonable driver would have done, given the same situation. Drivers may be overly fatigued, distracted, impaired, driving recklessly, or exceeding the speed limit. When these behaviors cause an accident, the other driver is entitled to file a personal injury claim to pay for the damages resulting from the accident.

What Are Other Types of Personal Injury Claims?

In addition to personal injury claims triggered by auto accidents (including truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, bicycle accidents, and pedestrian accidents), other common causes of personal injury claims include the following:

• Premise Liability Claims — Premise liability claims occur when an individual is injured on someone’s property, whether public or private, due to negligence. Slip and fall accidents are considered premise liability claims.
• Medical Malpractice — When individuals are injured because a medical professional failed to act in the same manner as another reasonable, similarly trained medical professional would have, given the same set of circumstances, medical malpractice may have occurred.
• Dog Bites or Aggressive Animals — When a dog bites a visitor to the property, there are many determinations to make, such as whether the visitor was a trespasser or was invited onto the property. The state of Colorado imposes strict liability on dog owners when a person is lawfully on public or private property; the owner is liable even if the dog never displayed violent tendencies prior to the bite or attack.
• Product Liability Claims — We expect the products we purchase to be safe. When it turns out they are not safe and have caused injury, a product liability claim may be filed.
• Wrongful Death — When an individual is injured through the negligence of another, then later dies, a personal injury claim turns into a wrongful death claim. Relatives are entitled to file a wrongful death claim for funeral expenses, medical expenses, lost future wages, and other things like loss of consortium, or loss of guidance and care.
• Construction Accidents — Construction sites are inherently dangerous. When construction workers sustain injuries due to defective equipment, no safety rules in place, falling sections of roofing or scaffolding, or other types of accidents, they may be able to file a personal injury claim. Visitors to a construction site who are injured due to negligence may also be able to file a personal injury claim.

How Do Personal Injury Claims Work in Colorado?

Since no two accidents are exactly the same, no two personal injury claims will follow exactly the same path. That being said, there is a certain order of steps that are usually taken, including:

• You are injured by the negligence of another person or entity. You must show that a duty was owed to you by the defendant, i.e., the other driver owed you a duty to drive carefully and obey traffic laws. If a duty existed, you must show the defendant breached that duty by his or her actions. If the defendant did breach his or her duty of care, then there must be injuries that result from that breach of duty. Finally, if all the above is true, you must have suffered some type of damages stemming from your injuries, such as medical expenses, damage to your vehicle, lost wages, etc.
• Next, your attorney—after determining what the total of your current and future damages is—will negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf in an attempt to secure a fair settlement. If you agree with the settlement amount, you will receive a settlement check, and the matter is ended.
• If you do not agree to the settlement, a lawsuit can be filed against the defendant. Many times, a settlement agreement will be reached, even after a lawsuit is filed, but before the case is decided. If no settlement is agreed upon, then a judge or jury will decide what your claim is worth.

All of these steps can benefit greatly from having an experienced personal injury attorney from the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya on board. We will fully explain the personal injury process to you, answering all your questions in a thorough, understandable manner.

What are Damages in a Loveland, CO Personal Injury Claim?

You may wonder what damages you are entitled to receive from your Loveland, CO personal injury claim. Of course, your settlement will depend on the cause of your accident, the circumstances surrounding your accident, and the extent of your injuries. Generally speaking, the following damages are available:

• Medical Expenses—medical bills incurred since your accident are reimbursable, and medical bills you can reasonably expect to incur are also included in damages. Medical expenses may involve long-term injuries or permanent disability. If your health insurer has been paying your medical bills related to the accident, you may be required to turn over a portion of your settlement as reimbursement to the insurer.
• Lost Wages—If you are unable to return to your job for a few days or weeks, you are entitled to lost wages compensation. If you will be unable to return to your job for months or years, you may be entitled to receive future lost wages.
• Pain and Suffering—Medical bills and lost income are considered economic damages since they are quantifiable, or easily assigned a dollar figure. Other damages are less easy to quantify because they are more subjective. Pain and suffering can include physical pain, as well as mental anguish suffered from the accident like sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
• Punitive Damages—Punitive damages are not common, as they are awarded when the defendant acted maliciously or deliberately. Punitive damages are meant to punish the defendant for particularly egregious behavior.
• Permanent Impairment or Disfigurement

Colorado law allows for recovery for all the above, however, there is a cap on the amount recoverable for non-economic damages. Colorado caps non-economic loss at $250,000, plus inflation, although the court can increase the award to no more than $500,000 if it finds clear and convincing evidence. Medical malpractice claims have a cap on non-economic damages of $300,000, with a total cap of $1 million. For those plaintiffs that have suffered a permanent physical impairment, there is no cap on pain and suffering damages.

Why Do I Need a Loveland, CO Personal Injury Attorney?

Having an experienced Loveland, CO personal injury attorney by your side vastly increases your chances of a fair settlement. If your attorney is dealing with the insurance company, then that is one less thing you have to do. You can concentrate all your efforts on healing from your injuries and getting your life back on track while your attorney handles all the legal details, including the statutes of limitations—the time limit you have to file a personal injury claim after it occurs. 

How Can the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya Help with Your Loveland, CO Personal Injury Claim?

Having a Loveland personal injury attorney from the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya can make a significant difference in the outcome of your personal injury claim. Attorney Dianne Sawaya is compassionate, experienced, and well-respected. Dianne and her team of attorneys at the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya will work long and hard for you and your family. We take a highly personal approach to injury law, working for you and your family, rather than for insurance companies, or big corporations. We stay in constant communication with you and each of our clients every step of the way as we fight aggressively for your rights and your future. Contact the Law Offices of Dianne Sawaya today, there’s no cost or obligation.