Articles Posted in Car Accidents

Most states require drivers to buy car insurance. The logic behind this rule is that most people wouldn’t be able to afford to pay the damages that could result from a car accident. Imagine getting into a wreck with someone driving a really expensive car. Even if it was just a fender bender, the cost of repairing the other driver’s fancy ride could break your budget.

This equation works the opposite way too. Insurance is there to protect you in case you were involved in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence. But, what if that person’s insurance limits aren’t enough to cover your damages? After all, we can’t control what insurance policy the driver who hit us decided to buy.

This is where Illinois law steps in with a protection for insurance purchasers who find themselves in precisely this type of situation. But, it’s important to know the rules in order to make sure they’re working for you.

At about 1:15 early Sunday morning two cars collided in Chicago’s Chinatown neighborhood after one of the drivers failed to stop at a red light. Two people were injured in the crash, including an off duty police officer.

The condition of those injured has been reported as stable.

To contact attorney Joseph Klest about this post, click here, or call 312-380-5467.

There are more cameras in public places now then there ever were before, and camera footage is often used to aid police in criminal investigations. Increasingly though, accident victims are also benefiting from the use pictures and video from public cameras in their cases.

Take, for instance, a car accident that occurs at an airport departure drop-off point. Or, a collision near a Chicago street camera. Many municipalities put cameras inside buses and trains that are part of a city’s public transportation system.

With the advent of digital video, it has become much easier and more practice to store large amounts of data. However, digital storage is not infinite. Because video can only be stored for a limited time to make room for future footage, it is important to act fast to preserve evidence in an accident case.

When you’ve been hurt in a car accident caused by a negligent driver, you are likely to get a phone call from that driver’s insurance company soon after the accident looking to resolve the case. Of course, an injury victim will want their case resolved quickly, too. Medical bills pile up fast. Car repairs may have left you without transportation. On top of that, if you your injuries are forcing you to miss work, you are likely to want to settle your case as quickly as possible to avoid further delay and inconvenience. You may even feel pressure from an insurance adjuster offering you a check right away if you sign a release. However, settling your case two quickly can turn out to be a huge mistake jeoprdizing your ability to recover future medical costs, lost wages, as well as damages from pain and suffering.

The insurance adjusters calling you to settle your case are paid to protect the insurance company’s interests, not yours. Protect your rights by having someone on your side. With over 30 years experience fighting for injury victims in Illinois, attorney Joseph Klest and his team at The Klest Injury Law Firm are here to answer your questions, help you deal with the insurance company, and understand your options.

Please click here, or dial 866-264-7639 to speak to an experienced injury attorney today at no cost to you.

A tragic accident on Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive early this morning left one driver dead and at least three others hospitalized. Shortly before 3:00 a.m. a 26 year-old male drove his car the wrong way on Lake Shore Drive colliding with oncoming traffic. He was killed as a result of the crash and police investigators had not ruled out that alcohol may have been a contributing factor. Three other people had been transported to area hospitals due to their injuries resulting from the car accident.

Under current Illinois law, victims who are injured as a result of another driver’s negligence must file a lawsuit within two years of the date of the accident. If a case is not settled and no lawsuit has been filed before the expiration of that two-year period, the person seeking compensation will be forever barred from bringing their claim.

Additionally, a claimant in Illinois is not able to sue a person who has died directly, however, suit may be brought against a person’s estate. In such cases, it is important not to wait in pursuing a claim because of other deadlines imposed on when a creditor may bring a claim against an estate. It is important for anyone injured by a person who has died to seek advice from an experienced attorney regarding these matters.

A Cook County Judge set a $400,000 bail for Maciej Machniewicz who is charged with felony aggravated DUI following a car accident. Machniewicz, who prosecutors are saying never had a valid drivers license, was charged with aggravated DUI after striking and killing a 62 year-old woman Tuesday on the Chicago’s Northwest Side who had just exited a bus.

This straightforward case, however, considering a circumstance where a driver didn’t have a license, it’s possible that he did not have valid insurance coverage either.

In a 2010 case, the Illinois Supreme Court upheld exclusionary provisions in a car insurance contract that allowed an insurance company to deny coverage where the driver was the owner of the vehicle but did not have a driver’s license or was driving with a suspended license. Essentially, this means that someone driving around without a license, even if that person is paying for car insurance, may not actually have coverage if he or she negligently causes an accident.

Effective January 1, 2014, a new law came in to effect in Illinois. Drivers must now use a hands-free device to talk on a cell phone while driving. Prior to the law taking effect, one troubling statistic facing Illinois drivers showed that traffic deaths in the state rose for the second straight year in 2013.

As police hand out more and more tickets for illegal cell phone use on Illinois roadways, the hope is that drivers decide to put away their cell phones when they get behind the wheel and by the end of the year, perhaps there will be fewer families dealing with what could have been an avoidable tragedy.

To contact Joseph Klest about this topic, please, click here, or dial 866-264-7639 to reach the Klest Injury Law Firm.

It’s no surprise that drunk driving causes fatal car accidents. But many people may be shocked to learn that according to results of a study recently published on the matter, 65 percent of children who are killed in drunk driving accidents were actually passengers in the car of the impaired driver as opposed to passengers in a car hit by a drunk driver.

Perhaps the greatest tragedy of this heart breaking statistic is that it’s entirely avoidable.

If you or someone you love has been hurt or killed by a drunk driver you should contact an experience injury attorney right away to assure your rights are preserved.

According to witnesses, at around 10 o’clock, Monday morning, an SUV crossed the center line of a street striking a Chicago Transit Authority bus on the city’s South Side. The crashed caused 15 people to be injured with at least one person seriously injured.

Car accidents sometimes seem like a common occurrence on Chicago streets. Often times people are injured in car accidents through no fault of their own. If someone negligently causes a wreck, that driver’s insurance company should compensate the victims. Nevertheless, insurance companies may not offer an accident victim fair compensation for their case.

An experienced, aggressive Chicago accident attorney may be the difference between receiving fair value for a case and being left with outstanding medical costs.

The statistics in Illinois are frightening. As of only February 12, 2013, the date of this posting, there have been more car accident fatalities in Illinois than there were at the same time last year. Also, more people lost their lives in car crashes in 2012 than did in 2011 in this state.

There are some steps you can take that may save your life or the life of a loved one. Statistics gathered by the Illinois Department of Transportation show that approximately a quarter of the fatal crashes in Illinois since the beginning of the year happened when someone was either not wearing a seat-belt or was improperly restrained.

Make it a point to wear your seat-belt and make sure, if you’re a driver, to have your passengers wear seat-belts too. When it comes to children, this couldn’t be more important. Make sure that all children riding in your car are properly restrained and that any car seats are correctly secured; it may save a life.