What To Do If Your Loved One Was Killed in a Fatal Car Accident And The Insurance Company Wants You to Settle Your Claim

2019 is winding down and Las Vegas is winding up with close to 100 traffic-related deaths in its metro area. The latest one occurred in the early morning hours of this past December 13.

Too often a vehicle or motorcycle or truck insurance policy is devastatingly inadequate to compensate for such a catastrophic loss.

Even if you do your part and submit everything requested, you still should not trust an insurance company to look out for your best welfare. Insurance companies are in business to make money. An insurance company’s first priority is not to give their money away.

In the flash of a pay-out algorithm, an insurance company will estimate the smallest settlement amount they think they can get away with.
Insurance companies are notorious for taking advantage of families in their worst time and will generally offer the family the least amount of money in order to settle a wrongful death claim. That is why it is vitally important for the family of the deceased to be represented by a qualified and compassionate Las Vegas Wrongful Death Attorney who will be committed to your case and is highly experienced in standing up to insurance companies. And if necessary, will aggressively fight in court to ensue you recover the maximum compensation amount your family deserves.

If you accept the lump sum they offer you, you will have no other channel to recover additional compensation, especially if your loved one was the primary wage earner in your household. It takes great skill and comprehensive knowledge of wrongful death and personal injury law to win your case. Your case is too important to be settled quickly for the lowest settlement amount.

A wrongful death action is a very serious lawsuit. Negotiating a settlement with an insurance company rather than filing for a wrongful death suit can significantly save on your time and the expense of going to trail. But it’s very easy to understand why a family would want to have the person accused of causing the death of their loved one to have to stand up in a public arena and have to answer for their actions.

In the state of Nevada, a wrongful death lawsuit is processed as a civil personal injury legal procedure and is brought on behalf of a deceased party against the party who intentionally or negligently caused the death. A wrongful death claim can also be brought against multiple individuals or organizations or companies related to the incident that caused the death.

A wrongful death lawsuit is not a charge for homicide. Damages recovered through a wrongful death action is through monetary compensation only. A wrongful death lawsuit has no provision for imprisonment. However, even if a criminal case is already ongoing, you can still file for a wrongful death claim.

Furthermore, a wrongful death claim is easier to win than a murder case since the plaintiff (which would be the family or legal guardian of the deceased) does not have to prove the defendant (which is the suspected individual thought to be responsible for the fatal crash) guilty beyond all reasonable doubt, as required by law in a murder case. And even if the individual suspected of causing the fatal crash is acquitted, as in the O.J. Simpson murder trial, the victim’s family can still file for a wrongful death action and seek payment for damages in money.

Understanding the Types of Damages You Can Pursue in a Wrongful Death Claim

Claim Damages sought for in Nevada Wrongful Death suits after a Fatal Car Accident can include the following:

• Hospital and medical expenses if the victim was hospitalized prior to death.
• Funeral and burial expenses.
• Economic damages for property damage; generally it means the loss of the vehicle the victim was driving at the time of the crash.
• Economic damages for lost wages.
• Economic damages for lost future earnings. This is a critical component of the overall damages dollar amount sought, for it is estimated on the victim’s life expectancy and health prior to death, and his or her earnings prior to their death.
• Lost future earnings, or the money the victim potentially could have earned had they not died, is one factor most insurance companies do not take into consideration when doling up a settlement amount offering for the victim’s family and heirs.
• Also to be considered are damages sought for the trauma and emotional loss that involves not only the mental pain and suffering that attaches to the initial bereavement period, but the emotional after affects of losing a loved one’s companionship and the tremendous impact and mental hardship and distress that loss brings to the victim’s family sense of emotional and financial security, and how that unexpected sorrow and enormous stress may affect the victim’s youngest family members long-term.
• If the victim left behind young children, the emotional loss stemming from the victim’s absent parental guidance and presence in his or her children’s lives needs to calculated in the damage dollar amount. Oftentimes a child of any age that loses a parent in such circumstances never quite recovers from the shock and may require long-term counseling. Also if the child’s or children’s school attendance and scholastic work is interrupted, this may present as handicaps to the child’s quality of life. Such psychological long-term effects should be considered in damages sought for emotional losses.

Las Vegas Wrongful Death Claims: Time Limits and Filing Deadlines You Should Know

The statute of limitations on a wrongful death suit in the state of Nevada is two years from the date of death. Not from the date of the fatal car accident, but the victim’s actual date of death. If the victim did not die at the scene of the accident and was taken to a hospital and later died at the hospital, the statute of limitations for that wrongful death suit filed on behalf of that victim would start from the day the victim died in the hospital.

To File a Wrongful Death Claim and Recover Monetary Compensation for Your Financial and Emotional Losses Get a Consultation with a Las Vegas Injury Attorney

If your loved one lost their life in a car accident, our personal injury attorneys are fully knowledgable and well trained in Nevada laws regarding wrongful death lawsuits.

While insurance companies often aim to minimize their payouts, there are situations where the damages exceed the insurance limits. In such cases, it’s crucial to understand your rights and explore avenues to recover the full amount you deserve. Learn more about recovering compensation exceeding insurance limits.

To speak with a compassionate and highly experienced Las Vegas wrongful death attorney and have your case evaluated for free, Call The Law Office of Gina Corena today. For a no obligation consultation, call (702) 680-1111. To contact Gina Corena through email, please fill out the form on our contact page.