Austell, Georgia is an Atlanta suburb known for its proximity to Six Flags Over Georgia (only seven miles away) and summer softball games. Unfortunately, it’s also close to one of the most dangerous intersections in the Atlanta metro area, Austell Road at East-West Connector (477 crashes in a three-year period) in Cobb County. Like many intersections, this one sees high volumes of traffic, increasing the risk of accidents.
Car crashes can lead to serious injury and even death. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in any kind of auto accident, it’s important to seek legal help right away. Your medical bills may grow rapidly, and if you’re unable to work because of your injuries, your financial situation could also quickly degrade. Austell personal injury lawyer Ali Awad can help, by bringing no-nonsense legal advice to the people from the courtroom to the mediation room to Instagram.
After your car accident, don’t wait to call Ali Awad for a no-obligation consultation of your case. The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm team works on a contingency basis, which means they don’t get paid until you do. There is nothing to lose by calling (470) 323-8779 to discuss the details of your case.
Why Are Intersections So Dangerous?
There are several reasons that around half of all traffic accidents occur at or around intersections. First, the busier they are, the more opportunities there are for accidents. Intersections like Austell Road at East-West Connector can see anywhere from dozens to hundreds of vehicles an hour. This particular intersection is situated in an area with a lot of retailers, so there are also many people turning in and out of the intersection as well as entering and exiting parking lots.
This leads us to the second reason intersections are dangerous: Sometimes people disobey or don’t understand traffic laws and rules about intersections. Two very common situations in intersection accidents are a driver running a red light or a driver “hurrying up” and trying to get through a yellow before it turns red. Both of these things can increase the risk of an accident. It’s better to spend a minute or less waiting out a red light than to get in a collision where you or someone else might be seriously hurt.
Distracted drivers also wreak havoc at intersections. Distractions can range from phones to makeup to radio dials to malfunctioning GPS units. Anything that takes your eyes and attention off the road can increase the risk that you won’t see another car coming, or won’t notice a red or yellow light in the first place. It’s important to learn to ignore distractions in your car until you arrive at your destination or have the opportunity to pull over. If it helps, put your phone on silent mode or use an app that stops notifications while the car is in motion.
Understanding Yield Signs
Another common issue with intersection accidents is drivers simply not understanding what to do at a yield sign. Some smaller intersections that lack stoplights rely on these to handle traffic at certain intersections. Yield signs are similar to stop signs, but drivers aren’t required to stop at the sign if it is safe to keep going. The key here is understanding when that is. Some people aren’t sure who has the right of way when they get to a yield sign, and that can lead to collisions.
When approaching a yield sign, you should slow down to a “reasonable” speed so that you can stop easily if necessary. Look both ways for other traffic. If you don’t see any, it’s okay to go through the intersection. If you do see other traffic, you should yield to other cars that are already in the intersection or close enough to it that you proceeding into the intersection would cause a hazard. As you might guess, some motorists misjudge what “close enough to pose a hazard” means. We recommend erring on the side of caution and yielding to the approaching vehicle. In most cases, this will only take a few seconds, while an accident could take up the rest of your day.
Running Stop Signs
Although people generally have a better understanding of stop signs than yield signs, sometimes drivers also run stop signs. One common scenario is when the driver approaches the stop sign, slowing but not stopping, and keeps going because they don’t think anyone is coming, but they miss something. This is especially an issue with motorcycles, which are easy to miss due to their small size, but motorists can overlook larger vehicles too. You should always come to a complete stop at a stop sign, then thoroughly look both ways before continuing.
Some motorists also run into trouble at four-way stops, intersections with four stop signs instead of a traffic light. Often people are confused by who should go first in this situation. Some rules:
- Whoever arrives first has the right of way.
- If two or more cars arrive at about the same time, yield to the vehicle on your right.
- Vehicles that have a turn signal on should yield to those going straight. (This is also one reason why it’s important to always use your turning signals correctly and keep them in good working order.)
- Cars turning right have the right of way over cars turning left.
- Regardless of whether you think you have the right of way, proceed slowly into the intersection after coming to a complete stop, so other drivers can see what you’re doing and have a chance to stop, if necessary. If another driver is aggressively entering the intersection without the right of way, you may have time to stop before crossing their path.
- Always be alert and pay attention when coming up at an intersection.
What If You Were Hit By a Driver Who Didn’t Yield At A Yield or Stop Sign?
In most cases, a driver who doesn’t stop at a yield sign and hits another car in the intersection is considered to be at fault for failing to yield. Usually, the police will ticket the driver on the grounds that the accident proves they didn’t obey the yield sign correctly. The same is generally true of drivers who run stop signs or fail to yield correctly in a four-way stop. If you were the victim of this kind of accident, contact an Austell personal injury lawyer right away to talk about your options for compensation.
Pursuing Damages After a Car Accident
Being hurt in a car wreck may lead to many painful injuries, including broken bones, soft tissue damage, concussions or traumatic brain injuries (TBI), and internal bleeding. You may need surgery, medication, and physical therapy for a prolonged period of time. These are only the physical injuries – car collisions can be traumatic and may lead to mental health issues like anxiety, depression, PTSD, or insomnia as well. While the medical expenses for your care accrue, you might have to take off work due to your injuries. If you work a very physically demanding job, you could even be out of work for days, weeks, or months.
When you consult with an Austell lawyer for personal injury claims, they will go over your bills and make a list of all these costs, from lost wages to hospital bills. They will also ask about your other losses – the enjoyment of life, being able to spend time with friends and family, being able to participate in hobbies and typical activities, loss of companionship if a loved one has died, etc. At this point, the attorney will have a good idea of what kind of damages you should ask for when making a claim against the other driver’s insurance.
Can You Just Make An Insurance Claim Yourself?
Yes, but this isn’t recommended for several reasons. First, Georgia has comparative negligence laws for personal injury claims. This means that if the other party can demonstrate that you were partly at fault for the accident, by more than 49 percent, they don’t have to pay you any damages. If the court finds you were at fault for less than 49 percent but more than 0 percent, your damages will be reduced by the difference.
The other driver is unlikely to say, “Yes, the accident was 100 percent my fault,” because they don’t want their insurance rates going up. But even if they did, their insurance carrier doesn’t want to pay any more than they have to or pay at all if they can avoid it. The bottom line is that the insurance adjuster will be eager to frame the wreck as your fault, and they may take things you say out of context in an effort to use them against you.
Worse, if you’ve had to take pain medication for your injuries, or are still in a lot of pain, you could get confused, forget something that happened during the crash, or make an honest mistake while talking to the insurance adjuster. Rest assured, the adjuster won’t hesitate to use this against you, either.
Even if you do make it through your conversation with the insurance company rep unscathed and receive an offer, there’s still another problem: Insurance companies love to make low initial offers that may not fully cover all your expenses or damages, especially if you are still in treatment for your injuries and don’t even know what your total medical costs will be. Sometimes the initial offer may sound good, but really isn’t. Without speaking to an attorney, it’s hard to know what your case is worth and if you should accept an offer. We strongly recommend you do not accept any offer until you’ve spoken with a qualified personal injury attorney in Austell who can accurately estimate the value of your case.
Another issue is that the insurance policy may have limits and your damages may exceed these by quite a lot. The minimum requirement for auto insurance policies in Georgia is $25,000 in liability per person and $50,000 per crash. If your damages are higher than these amounts and the other driver only had the minimum insurance, the policy will, at most, only pay to its limit. In this case, an attorney may be able to help you file a claim directly against the other driver, or in less common cases, against a third party who may also be responsible.
If you’re struggling to pay your bills after a car crash, talking with an injury and accident attorney is the best way to learn all your options for recovering both physically and financially. When you’re feeling overwhelmed by your injuries, call attorney Ali Awad, the CEO Lawyer. He specializes in standing up for your legal rights after a serious auto accident. Don’t accept any offer without legal advice, and don’t take insurers at face value. Arm yourself with the legal representation you need to get the car crash settlement you deserve by contacting us online or calling (470) 323-8779 today.
