Car Accident Lawyer St. Louis, MO. After you have suffered injuries in a car or truck accident, having concerns about family or work should be your lowest priority. Between mental trauma, car repairs, and getting back to full fitness, the impact of an car accident in St. Louis, MO can easily take over anyone’s life, doubly so when insurance companies refuse to deal with you or you do not receive the monetary reward you deserve.
Contact Our St. Louis, MO Car Accident Lawyers Here
Combs Waterkotte is here to help St. Louis, MO residents who have been in car accidents and do not know about what steps to take afterwards. Our St. Louis car accident lawyer works with insurance agents, looks over accident reports, and compiles all evidence for their clients. We fight aggressively for all our St. Louis, MO auto accident clients to win them not only their rightful financial rewards, but also a measure of justice following an incredibly traumatic experience.
After you’ve been in a St. Louis, MO auto accident, don’t hesitate to contact Combs Waterkotte, either online or by calling (314) 900-HELP, and put a veteran St. Louis, MO auto accident attorney to work for you. Our firm offers complimentary initial consultations, and guarantees that won’t owe us a penny if we do not get a positive outcome in your case.
Giving You Peace Of Mind
A Full-Service St. Louis, MO Car Accident Lawyer
On any given day, thousands of vehicles are on the road in and around St. Louis in order to go to work, deliver goods, run errands, or just to enjoy the open road. Unfortunately, however, car accidents are an everyday occurence, whether due to poorly maintained roads, the negligence of other motorists, or adverse weather conditions. Automotive damages and personal injuries can range from bumps and bruises and small scratches and dings, to totaled cars and permanent injuries.
As veteran St. Louis, MO car accident lawyers, Combs Waterkotte has handled all kinds of car accident claims and personally viewed how the results of a car accident in St. Louis can alter someone’s life, forever in some situations. Our firm has years of experience in the courtroom, and knows the tactics insurance companies use to avoid paying proper compensation to St. Louis accident victims. We provide client-centered legal strategies that are tailor-made to satisfy your particular needs and give our clients justice as well as a fair reward for their injuries and losses.
What To Do After A Car Accident In St. Louis, MO
Following a car accident, it is likely that people will be stunned and unsure of how to proceed. However, having dealt with many car accident clients across St. Louis, MO, the staff at Combs Waterkotte suggests that all our clients take these steps after their car accident:
- Make sure you are safe. Find a place to stop away from traffic, if possible, and check to see if you are hurt.
- Call 911. Not only will you need to file a police report after your accident, but if you or a passenger is badly injured you may need to have an ambulance come and take them to a hospital. When the police arrive, be honest about the accident but choose your words wisely: statements that suggest guilt can and will be used against you by insurance providers when finding fault.
- Collect all relevant information. Exchange not only your license, registration, and insurance details, which you are required to do by law, but also phone numbers and other contact details.
- Take photos. Everyone now having a camera on their phone means that it is very easy to document your St. Louis, MO accident and gather evidence. Get shots of skid marks, property damage, physical surroundings, and the point of impact of your accident. If there were pedestrians or passersby who witnessed your accident, it is smart to record their accounts of the accident, as it can help your case immensely.
- Get medical attention. If you were injured as a result of your St. Louis car accident, immediately get emergency medical care. For more minor injuries, a local urgent care center is a more convenient and cost-effective option than a trip to the emergency room. However, larger and more serious injuries will likely require a trip to the hospital, or if they are available a visit to your personal doctor.
- Contact a car accident lawyer. The sooner you call a trustworthy and understanding St. Louis, MO car accident lawyer, the faster they can get to work on your behalf and allow you to get on with recovering from your accident.
In addition to these steps, our firm urges all our clients to hold on to the following paperwork. They can help immeasurably when negotiating a settlement, or to paint a full picture of the effect a car accident in St. Louis, MO had on your life.
- Medical records
- Photos of the accident scene
- The full police report of the accident
- Witness accounts
- All medical-related bills (ambulance fees, physical therapy costs, medications, etc.)
- Doctor’s reports and observations
- Repair records
- Incidental bills including rental car receipts
- Lost earning opportunities
- Records of pain and suffering directly caused by your accident
What Damages Can I Recover After A Car Accident?
In general, there are five kinds of damages someone can claim following a car accident in St. Louis, MO. These are:
- Medical damages: these are not strictly restricted to hospital bills or doctor’s visits, either. An auto accident victim can claim costs for medications, visits to mental health professionals, rehab or physical therapy due to accident injuries, and required medical equipment such as casts, too.
- Lost wages/earning potential: generally this is based off of what you were earning prior to the accident, how much the accident impacted your ability to adequately perform labor, and how the knock-on effects of your accident/injuries may stop you from working to your full ability in the future.
- Property damage: this includes repair/replacement of your car in addition to any/all personal effects that were damaged as a result of your St. Louis auto accident.
- Pain and suffering: these damages can be hard to put into words, since for the most part the amount of discomfort one goes through after an accident varies from person to person. As a rule, though, recording changes in mental health, lingering symptoms, and attitude is a smart rule of thumb.
- Disability or disfigurement: in more severe situations, a St. Louis, MO car accident may result in a victim sustaining life-changing injuries. While in a large number of cases those injuries are permanent and compensation cannot take away the immense pain and difficulty these injuries cause, it can help provide an accident victim more opportunity to adapt to their new normal.
It is also critical to note that Missouri is a comparative fault state, which means that the amount of damages one or more parties can take home is reduced based on how much at fault they were for causing a car accident. Missouri is a pure comparative fault state, which allows for even someone who was judged 99% responsible for an accident to collect a commensurate amount of damages.
Contact A St. Louis, MO Car Accident Lawyer Who Cares
At Combs Waterkotte, we offer the muscle and legal knowledge of a competitive St. Louis, MO car accident law firm as well as the personal attention of an individual practice. Our firm has partnered with St. Louis residents from all walks of life to secure the justice they merit following a car accident in St. Louis, MO. We take all our cases on what is called a contingency basis, which means that unless you win your St. Louis, MO car accident case or obtain a favorable settlement, you will not need to owe us a fee.
If you have been injured in a car accident in St. Louis, MO caused by another party’s negligence, do not wait: contact a St. Louis car accident lawyer at Combs Waterkotte today by dialing (314) 900-HELP or online for a free, no-strings-attched document review.
