Fayetteville, AR Parking Lot Accident Lawyer
Accidents in a parking lot account for a high percentage of the total car accidents that happen each year in the United States. It may be surprising to many car accident victims that low-speed parking lot crashes can still cause such substantial injuries. If you or a loved one suffered serious injuries like whiplash or back injuries because of a car crash in a parking lot or parking deck in Arkansas, talk to Ken Kieklak, Attorney at Law.
Our Fayetteville parking lot accident attorney may be able to help you file a lawsuit against the at-fault party to seek damages for your injury. This could reimburse you for high medical expenses, lost wages, and serious pain and suffering. For a free consultation on your case and help understanding what your claim might be worth, call Ken Kieklak today at (479) 316-0438, or contact us online.
Can You Sue for a Car Crash in a Parking Lot?
Parking lot accidents are still car accidents, and they still follow the same rules that car accidents on the street or the highway follow. That means that you should still be able to file an insurance claim or a lawsuit for vehicle damage and injuries even if your crash took place in a parking lot or parking deck.
When you sue for a car crash, your primary focus should be the injuries you face, not the damage to your vehicle. Because of this, it is vital to talk to a car accident injury lawyer about your case. While your insurance company may work to get you damages, the insurance company is still a business that works to save money where they can, and the insurance policy in question might limit your damages. If you faced injuries that make it hard to go back to work or resulted in high medical expenses, you may need to file a lawsuit instead of relying upon insurance to get full compensation.
After filing a lawsuit, you must prove the other driver was at fault to receive damages. The same rules that apply on the road apply in parking lots, as do common-sense safety rules. This means that a driver who violated traffic laws or drove dangerously should be held responsible for the crash. If you can prove that the other driver did something wrong that resulted in your injuries and damages, you should be able to win your case and receive compensation.
You must also prove the damages you faced to receive payments. This is usually accomplished by presenting hospital bills and medical records to show your injuries, producing paychecks and bank statements to show lost wages and other economic effects, and by testifying to the pain and impact of the injuries to show pain and suffering damages.
Common Types of Parking Lot Accidents
Parking lot car accidents tend to happen in a few common situations. These circumstances can occur in nearly any parking lot across the country and are responsible for many parking lot car accidents in Arkansas:
Backing-Out Accidents
If a driver is not looking where they are going when they back out of a parking space, they can easily run over pedestrians or hit other cars. The car backing out of a space has a duty to yield to traffic and pedestrians, so that driver is usually at fault for these kinds of crashes. Things become more complicated when two cars back out of a space at the same time and hit each other. Typically, these accidents see courts assign partial fault to each party, or potentially say that the driver who started pulling out second was at fault.
Pulling-Through Accidents
Pulling through a space is a great way to avoid the difficulty and danger of backing out of your space later. However, if a driver pulls through a parking space while another driver is turning into the space from the lane of travel, there could be a low-speed crash. One might think that the driver who pulled through was at fault because they crossed solid pavement lines. However, the other driver pulled into an occupied parking space. Juries must usually look at the totality of the circumstances to determine who is at fault.
Disobeying Signs
Many parking lots have stop signs and one-way signs or pavement markings to guide drivers and keep them safe. Still, many drivers roll through stop signs or fail to follow one-way markings. This can lead to accidents when the driver turns a blind corner or suddenly appears in another driver’s lane of travel. Typically, the driver who violated the sign or signal’s instructions is at fault.
Speeding
Parking lots are not designed for high-speed travel. Usually, posted speed limits in parking lots are as low as 10 mph or 15 mph. Driving above these speeds is also dangerous from a reasonable, objective standpoint. Drivers who make unreasonable decisions behind the wheel can be held liable for the injuries those dangerous decisions cause.
Cal Our Arkansas Parking Lot Car Accident Injury Lawyers Today
If you suffered injuries in a car accident in a parking lot, call Ken Kieklak, Attorney at Law, today. Even minor injuries from low-speed crashes could entitle you to compensation in a personal injury lawsuit. For help filing your case and understanding what your injuries might be worth, call our Fayetteville, Arkansas parking lot car accident lawyers today, or contact us online. Our number is (479) 316-0438.