Boulder T-Bone Accident Lawyer
Side-impact collisions, sometimes known as “T-Bone” accidents, are among the most dangerous kinds of auto accidents. This is because, when struck on the side, most passenger vehicles offer little insulation to their occupants from the full impact of the oncoming vehicle. When they survive, passengers are often left with catastrophic injuries, not to mention a mountain of medical bills.
If you were injured in a side-impact collision, you should have your case reviewed by a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible to protect your right to compensation. The Wilhite Law Firm has advocated for the rights of injury victims in Boulder and throughout Colorado for more than 40 years. We are ready to help you too. Contact us today for a free consultation with an experienced Boulder T-Bone accident lawyer.
What Is a T-Bone Accident?
Imagine that two vehicles — Vehicle A and Vehicle B — are approaching an intersection. Vehicle A is driving south as it approaches a green light. Vehicle B is driving east as it approaches a red light, but it does not slow down to stop. Instead, Vehicle B runs its red light and collides with Vehicle A in the middle of the intersection. The impact forms a perfect 90-degree angle.
Because the right angle formed by the collision resembles the angle of a T-bone steak, this kind of wreck is colloquially referred to as a “T-Bone accident.” You may sometimes also hear it referred to as a “broadside collision” or simply a “side-impact collision.” No matter what you choose to call it, this kind of crash can be devastating to the occupants of the vehicle struck on its side.
Common Injuries Sustained in T-Bone Accidents
Side-impact collisions are among the deadliest kinds of auto accidents. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), 24,019 passenger vehicle occupants were killed in car crashes in 2020 alone. Of these, 5,475 (23 percent) were killed in side-impact collisions. A number of factors conspire to make these accidents so dangerous.
First, while the design of most vehicles creates a buffer in front-end and rear-end collisions, passengers in a side-impact collision are only insulated by the doors of their vehicle. Second, though most vehicles have airbags, they are primarily designed to protect front-seat passengers in front-end collisions. Third, while seat belts can protect you from being thrown through the windshield in the event of a crash, they do little to insulate you from the force of a side-impact collision. Talk to a Boulder personal injury attorney at The Wilhite Firm today.
In sum, passengers in side-impact collisions are much more vulnerable than those in other types of crashes. The larger the oncoming vehicle and the faster it is traveling at the time of the crash, the more risk there is of passengers suffering severe injuries and even death. Some of the most common injuries sustained in side-impact accidents include:
- Broken and fractured bones
- Cuts and puncture wounds
- Strains, sprains, bruises, and other soft-tissue injuries
- Internal bleeding and organ damage
- Head and brain injuries
- Facial and dental injuries
- Back and neck injuries
- Amputated limbs
- Permanent disfigurement
- Emotional distress
- Wrongful death
How is Fault Determined in a Boulder T-Bone Accident?
As with most auto accidents, determining fault in a side-impact collision normally requires proving that at least one person was negligent. To prove negligence, injured parties must show that the at-fault driver failed to use reasonable care to avoid harming others through their actions.
In many cases, more than one party is at fault. In these situations, a court will weigh the comparative fault of all drivers involved in the crash. The compensation available for injured victims will be reduced proportionately to the amount they contributed to the cause of the crash if any. If they contributed more than 50 percent to the accident, they would be legally barred from recovering compensation.
An experienced personal injury attorney will gather available evidence to show that their client was minimally at fault or not at all. However, reducing each driver’s fault in an auto accident to a clean percentage is often more complex than it may seem, not to mention convincing a jury that one party’s calculation is more accurate than another’s.
The Wilhite Law Firm is ready to evaluate your accident, investigate the law, gather evidence, and build a strong case on your behalf. Among other things, our attorneys deploy the following kinds of evidence when fighting for your right to full and fair compensation:
- Official police reports
- Photographs and videos of the scene
- Traffic cameras, dash cameras, and surveillance footage
- Eyewitness testimony
- Expert reconstructions of the accident
- Medical treatment and billing records
What Compensation is Available for a T-Bone Accident Injury?
The kinds of compensation available in a side-impact collision are much the same as that available in any other kind of auto accident. However, the amount of compensation will vary depending on the severity of your injuries and other losses.
Compensation normally comes in two forms: economic damages, which include things that can be easily reduced to an objective monetary value, and non-economic damages, which include things that do not easily reduce in this way due to their more subjective nature. Together, these forms of damages can compensate you for:
- Medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Permanent disability and disfigurement
- Diminished quality of life
- Emotional anguish
- Damaged personal property
If someone is killed in an accident, their family members or estate can also seek compensation from the at-fault party by bringing a wrongful death or survival action.
Is There a Deadline in Colorado for Filing a T-Bone Accident Injury Claim?
Yes. Under Colorado law, you have three years from the date of a car accident to file a lawsuit against an at-fault party. If the surviving family members of someone killed in the accident want to seek compensation for the loss of their loved one, the deadline is extended to four years.
Subject to few exceptions, failure to file your claim before the controlling deadline passes results in it being dismissed in court. By eliminating your ability to sue the at-fault party and their insurers in court, missing the deadline will also destroy your bargaining power in out-of-court settlement negotiations.
Because of the serious consequences that missing the filing deadline can have on your case, it is best to contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after an accident. Our attorneys are ready to help.
Call Our Boulder T-Bone Accident Lawyers Today
Side-impact collisions can lead to devastating injuries. In many cases, victims lose their lives. If you or a loved one was injured in one of these accidents, you should have your case reviewed by a personal injury attorney as soon as possible. The Wilhite Law Firm is a phone call away. Call today for a free consultation with an experienced injury attorney near you.
