Baton Rouge is one of the greatest capital cities in the United States. mix of Cajun, Creole, Hispanic, and African influences, Baton Rouge is the cultural center of Louisiana. In addition to hosting popular festivals like the Blues Festival and Bayou Country Superfest (and let’s not forget a Mardi Gras celebration MUCH nicer than the one “down the road”)—Baton Rouge is also an emerging economic powerhouse, attracting hundreds of thousands of new people each year to attend colleges like Louisiana State University or to work in emerging technology fields. There is no wonder that Business Facilities named Baton Rouge as the number one metro area for economic growth.
The downside of living in such an attractive place, however, is congested roads and careless drivers, which cause thousands of accidents each year.
After a wreck, you may be in a lot of pain and you may have no idea who to contact. Please know that the team of attorneys and legal professionals at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers offers injured motorists a free consultation, 24/7, by calling 800-898-4877 or submitting information on this contact form. This is a FREE consultation with absolutely NO strings attached. You won’t pay a DIME for this call, and we encourage you to ask any questions that you may have regarding your accident. If you hire us, we don’t get paid unless you get paid, so there is no risk in picking up the phone and telling us about your injuries.
With decades of experience and thousands of satisfied clients, our team of Baton Rouge car accident attorneys is prepared to go the extra mile to maximize your financial compensation. We’ve built our reputation as the “go-to” firm in this region by treating clients like family and insurance companies like the underhanded corporations they are. Contact us today!
Baton Rouge Car Accident Stats
Visitors and residents alike have noticed more and more car accidents on Louisiana’s roads. According to statistics kept by the state’s Department of Transportation and Development, Baton Rouge recently saw:
- 40 fatal crashes resulting in 41 fatalities
- 3,566 injury crashes resulting in 5,921 injuries
- 18 fatalities caused by alcohol
- 313 injuries caused by alcohol-related crashes
These numbers represent an unsettling increase from the previous year, which saw:
- 34 fatal crashes resulting in 34 fatalities
- 4,272 injury crashes resulting in 6,959 injuries
- 13 fatalities caused by alcohol
- 350 injuries caused by alcohol
If these trends persist, Baton Rouge might see even more fatalities in 2018 than it has in the previous two years-particularly, alcohol-induced car accidents.
What Causes Car Accidents?
Cars are safer than ever. Unfortunately, drivers have not evolved to meet that safety. The team of legal professionals at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers regularly handles a variety of accidents, and many of them are caused by dangerous driving behavior, such as:
- Distracted driving. The presence of distracted driving has exploded during the past few years. Distracted driving is now responsible for almost nine deaths a day nationally and almost 1,000 injuries each day. Cell phone calls and texting constitute some of the most serious of the many types of distractions. Even eating and drinking pose hazards. Given how fast vehicles travel, taking your eyes off the road for only a couple of seconds can dramatically increase your risk of a crash.
- Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Alcohol suppresses reaction time, depriving drivers of the ability to avert a crash. Some drugs, like marijuana, have similar effects. Other drugs like amphetamines and cocaine actually increase risk-taking actions, and can even induce hallucinations, leading directly to crashes.
- Speeding. Everyone is in a hurry to get to a destination, but speeding causes accidents. Not only does speeding deprive you of time to react to changing conditions—like a car in front of you suddenly braking—but speeding can also cause more serious injuries since faster cars generate more force.
- Aggressive driving. Swerving, illegal passing, failing to yield—all of these are signs of aggressive drivers. Risky behavior can take over drivers in the grips of road rage.
- Tailgating. Drivers should leave a cautionary several feet and/or seconds between themselves and the cars in front of them. If you don’t, there is a high risk of plowing into the back end of the car in front of you if it stops unexpectedly.
- Falling asleep. Exhausted drivers are at risk of dozing off behind the wheel while operating a moving vehicle, which inevitably leads them to lose control. This increases the risk of either swerving into oncoming traffic or driving off the road.
- Rollovers. Any car can flip, landing on its side or roof. This usually occurs when trying to make a turn while going downhill or after accelerating in loose gravel. Top-heavy vehicles like SUVs are also prone to flipping over, although any vehicle can.
Insurance Agents are not Your Friends
The attorneys at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers hear the same story week after week:
Everything seems to go along fine. The agent asks how you are doing and requests that you kindly explain what happened in the moments before and after the crash. Although doctors may have heavily medicated you, you try your best to recall hazy memories, explaining what happened and what you did. The agent then makes a quick promise of cash if you will just agree to a settlement.
So many things are wrong with this scenario, so let’s walk through each of them one by one:
- The insurance agent does not represent you. They do not know you. They do not have your best interest at heart. The agent is friendly because they need something from you.
- While building their case, the insurance company can—and will ALWAYS— use anything you say against you. Anything. It can be something as simple as, “I’m feeling fine today” to argue that you did not suffer any serious injuries. An insurance company can twist, “I don’t really remember what happened” into “Our client did nothing wrong.” You must take great care about what you say to insurance agents so that they do not have a single opportunity to wist everything to suit their purposes.
- The insurance agent has an incentive to pay you less compensation than you deserve. Do you know how much a concussion and broken arm will ultimately cost you? We can guarantee you will not get an honest answer from the insurance company because their very jobs, including their raises and bonuses, depend on paying out as little as possible on every claim on their docket.
- Any settlement with the insurance company comes with strings! To name only one: You must agree not to sue the insurer for more compensation later. These waivers are fully and legally effective, and insurers use them to cheat injured victims out of their full and fair compensation.
To protect your rights, put down the phone and don’t talk to insurance agents. Instead, call the legal team at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers right now. We have your best interest at heart, will protect your rights, and shield you from insurance adjusters’ harassment tactics.
At Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers, our lawyers will:
- Investigate the accident to better understand what happened. For example, we can ask you to tell us what happened, check the police report, and interview witnesses to get a broader picture of how you ended up crunched in a car accident.
- Negotiate with insurers. Louisiana’s large insurance companies are used to having their way with injured motorists—and, sometimes, clueless lawyers. With our 20 years of experience, we have dealt with every trick in the insurance company’s playbook, and we understand how to fight for your rights. We take the insurance companies head-on in order to secure full and fair compensation for your injuries.
- File a lawsuit if necessary. Not every case can settle outside of litigation, so our Baton Rouge attorneys are prepared to march into court and press for your rights. We have handled countless trials and can see your case from start to finish.
Each case is unique and calls for its own approach, so call us today for a free consultation to begin your case review. Our intake specialists are ready 24/7 to hear your side of the story, and can begin to analyze whether you have a valid legal claim against another driver.
Are Your Injuries Serious Enough to Sue?
Some of our clients believe that their injuries are so minor that they would waste everybody’s time pursuing treatment. Please do not make this common mistake. Car accidents can cause many injuries, some big, some small, but you should take all injuries seriously.
It is important to note that some injuries get much worse over time:
- Back injuries can increase in severity if you don’t get adequate treatment and rest
- Neck injuries can lead to crippling and chronic pain if you don’t find out, and treat what is pinching your nerves
- Spinal column injuries can progress from loss of sensation to full-scale paralysis if you do not stabilize your spine
- Cuts and lacerations can become infected if not cleaned and dressed properly
- Concussions can worsen into traumatic brain injuries if you do not stabilize your condition and take it easy
You are also entitled to compensation for all economic and non-economic losses. At the firm of Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers, our car accident attorneys can seek compensation for:
- Medical care to treat your injuries
- Future medical care, if you are in need of ongoing treatment
- Lost wages, if you were out of work while recovering
- Lost future wages, if your injuries are so bad you must take a lower-paying job
- Property damage to replace your car that got totaled in the crash
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress or mental anguish
- Lost enjoyment of life
- Disfigurement
The truth is that you don’t know how much these injuries are worth until you discuss your accident with an experienced Baton Rouge attorney who can look over everything and estimate the compensation available. Don’t assume your injuries are too “minor” to worry about. At Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers, our lawyers have collected six- and seven-figure awards for badly injured clients and are prepared to use our experience to help you.
Finally, some defendants must pay punitive damages to deter them from engaging in future bad conduct. In those cases, you may receive punitive damages in addition to the compensatory damages listed above.
Should You Call Stewart J. Guss and His Attorneys Now? Yes!
Louisiana law doesn’t give car accident victims infinite time to pursue compensation in court. Generally, Louisiana’s statute of limitations only gives injured victims one year from the date of the accident to file a claim if a negligent or reckless driver injured them. If you wait too long, a judge will tell you that you are out of luck and dismiss your case.
To protect your rights, the team of Baton Rouge accident lawyers at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers, needs to hear from you. One year might sound like a lot of time, but while you are busy recovering from your injuries, before you know it, a year after your accident has passed, you are still injured, and you have forfeited your right to pursue a lawsuit. That means NO compensation for your medical expenses and NO money to compensate you for pain and suffering that someone else has caused you.
Unfortunately, insurance companies only fear lawsuits, so protecting your right to bring a lawsuit is vital to achieving a fair and reasonable settlement. Pick up the phone and call us today. We will move quickly and aggressively to protect your rights and preserve the leverage you have with an insurance company that does not want to pay you a reasonable settlement for your injuries.
Were You Injured in a Baton Rouge Car Accident? Call the Office of Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers
Accident victims are easy prey for insurance companies looking to settle claims for pennies on the dollar. You’ve already been in one accident. Don’t let the insurance companies victimize you a second time. To check whether you have a valid claim under Louisiana law for compensation, please call the lawyers and legal team of Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers.
The attorneys of Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers are nationally recognized car accident lawyers who have protected the rights of injured victims for more than 20 years. If you were injured in a car accident, call our office right now to schedule a free consultation! Because we take all of our personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis, you will not owe us a DIME unless we win your case. We are available 24/7 to evaluate your case at 800-898-4877 or by email by CLICKING HERE.
See what past clients have to say:
Review: 5/5
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“Mr. Guss was wonderful. He fought hard against the insurance company to get us what we deserved. I went from owing almost $5000 in medical bills to actually getting money in my pocket. Absolutely Amazing!!!!! A big thank you from me and my family!!!”
-Karley B.
