If you or someone close to you suffered injuries in a Madison car accident, you probably have lots of questions, and you deserve clear answers about what comes next. This page is here to help you understand what Wisconsin law says about your situation, what compensation you may be able to recover, and what steps you can take to move forward.
At LawtonCates, we’ve been fighting for accident victims in South Central Wisconsin since 1958. Our lawyers are ready to review your case, explain your options in plain English, and prepare a legal strategy focused on getting you maximum compensation. Contact us today to arrange a free initial consultation with a car accident lawyer in Madison who won’t back down.
How Can Our Madison Car Accident Lawyers Help You After an Accident?
Car accident claims often involve lots of moving parts, and the steps you take in the days after a crash can have a big impact on the outcome of your claim. Our attorneys know exactly what it takes to build a strong claim and pursue maximum compensation on your behalf.
The following are what a Madison auto accident lawyer from our firm can do for you:
- Conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident
- Gather and preserve critical evidence like traffic camera footage and witness statements
- Work with accident reconstruction specialists to establish how the crash occurred
- Identify all liable parties, including negligent drivers, employers, and commercial entities
- Calculate the full value of your claim by accounting for both current and future losses
- Handle all communications with insurance adjusters so you don’t have to
- Push back against any attempts to minimize your injuries or inflate your share of the fault
- Prepare and file all claim documents accurately and on time
- Take your case to trial if the insurance company refuses to offer fair compensation
What Causes Most Car Accidents in Madison?
In Wisconsin car accident claims, attorneys and courts work to identify the “proximate cause” of the accident. The proximate cause is the action or condition that directly led to the collision. That determination shapes everything from who is liable to how your lawyer builds your case.
Depending on the circumstances, any of the following factors may count as the proximate cause of an accident:
- Failure to Maintain a Safe Following Distance – Madison’s Beltline Highway sees heavy commuter traffic and frequent sudden slowdowns. Drivers who follow too closely on the Beltline or other busy roads may not leave themselves enough time to react to changing traffic patterns.
- Distracted Driving – A driver who takes their eyes off the road to check their phone, adjust the stereo, or interact with a passenger makes a conscious choice to divert their attention from traffic. That kind of decision can have serious consequences for everyone around them.
- Driving Too Fast for Winter Road Conditions – Wisconsin winters can leave Madison roads icy and unpredictable for months at a time. A driver who refuses to adjust their speed accordingly can put themselves and every other person on the road at risk.
What Compensation Can I Recover After a Wisconsin Car Accident?
Depending on the facts of your case, you could be entitled to monetary awards for a wide range of crash-related losses. Courts refer to these monetary awards as “damages,” and there are several different categories of damages that may be available to you, including:
- Economic Damages: Economic damages are meant to compensate you for the measurable financial losses you incurred due to the accident. These can include past and future medical expenses as well as lost wages and earning capacity. Property repair costs and other out-of-pocket expenses tied to the accident also fall into this category.
- Non-Economic Damages: Non-economic damages compensate you for the personal, intangible losses connected to the accident. Pain and suffering is the most well-known example. These damages can also cover loss of enjoyment of life and the psychological toll of the trauma, anxiety, or depression you experience following the crash.
- Punitive Damages: Unlike economic and non-economic damages, punitive damages are not meant to compensate you for a specific loss. Instead, courts award these damages in rare cases to punish defendants whose conduct was especially reckless or egregious.
What Happens If Someone Is Blaming Me for the Car Accident?
If the other driver or their insurance company is pointing the finger at you, don’t panic. Wisconsin law says that you could still be entitled to compensation even if you were partly at fault for the accident.
In a case involving multiple at-fault parties, the court will assign each party a percentage of fault. As long as your share of fault doesn’t exceed 50 percent, you can still recover compensation from other at-fault parties. However, your total payout will decrease based on your percentage of fault.
So, for example, if a court determined that you were 20 percent at fault, it would reduce your monetary award by 20 percent. Insurers often try to inflate victims’ share of fault to reduce or eliminate payouts, which is why it’s so important to have legal representation if someone else blames you for an accident.
How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Claim in Wisconsin?
In most cases, Wisconsin law gives you three years from the date of a crash to file a personal injury lawsuit against another party. That might sound like plenty of time, but it can go by faster than you might expect, especially when it comes to healing from serious injuries or preparing a complex claim.
If you miss the filing deadline, Wisconsin courts will almost certainly refuse to hear your case, and you’ll lose your right to sue for compensation entirely. It’s also worth noting that some claims have much shorter filing windows. For example, if you have a claim against a government entity like the Madison Metro Transit system, you may have just 120 days to file a formal notice of claim.
The safest move is to contact a car crash lawyer in Madison as soon as possible after an accident. An attorney can identify every applicable deadline and keep your claim on track from day one.
Contact Our Madison Car Accident Lawyer Today for a Free Consultation
LawtonCates has built a trial-tested reputation over more than six decades of fighting for accident victims in South Central Wisconsin, and we know what it takes to get results. Contact us today for your free, no-obligation case evaluation and find out what your case may be worth. Our team is available 24/7, so there’s never a wrong time to reach out.