Car Accidents

A car accident can change an ordinary day in a matter of seconds. One moment you are driving home on I-95 or the Palmetto, and the next you are sitting on the shoulder with a wrecked car, a racing heart, and no idea what to do next. If you were hurt because another driver was careless, you should not have to carry the cost of their mistake. This page explains, in plain terms, how car accident cases work in Florida, what to do in the days after a crash, and what a claim can cover.

What car accident cases involve

A car accident case is a claim for the harm caused when another driver, and sometimes another company, fails to drive safely. Miami roads give people a great many ways to be careless. Drivers run red lights on Biscayne Boulevard, follow too closely in stop-and-go traffic on the Dolphin Expressway, speed through Brickell side streets, drift out of their lane on the Turnpike, and stare at their phones while the car in front of them slows down. When that carelessness injures someone, the law allows the injured person to seek compensation for what they have lost.

These cases cover a wide range of collisions. Rear-end crashes are among the most common, and they often cause neck and back injuries that do not fully show up until the next morning. Intersection crashes, sideswipes during lane changes, T-bone collisions, chain-reaction pileups on the highway, and single-car crashes caused by a road defect or a mechanical failure all fall under this area of law. So do crashes involving rideshare vehicles, delivery drivers, and hit-and-run drivers who leave the scene. What ties them together is a simple idea: when someone drives carelessly and hurts you, they can be held responsible for the harm.

What to do right after a crash

The hours and days after a collision matter more than most people realize, both for your health and for any claim you may later bring. If you are able to do so safely, these steps help protect both.

1. Check for injuries and call 911. Your health comes first. Even if everyone seems fine, an official police report creates a record of what happened, which is hard to recreate later.
2. Move to safety if you can. On a busy road like the MacArthur Causeway or US-1, a second crash is a real risk. If the cars are drivable and it is safe, move out of live lanes.
3. Get medical care promptly. See a doctor, go to an urgent care center, or visit an emergency room, even if you feel only sore. Some serious injuries, including concussions and internal injuries, hide behind adrenaline for a day or more.
4. Document the scene. Take photos of the vehicles, the damage, the road, any skid marks, traffic signals, and your own injuries. Get the other driver's name, license, insurance, and license plate.
5. Find witnesses. If anyone saw the crash, ask for a name and phone number. A neutral witness can matter a great deal when two drivers tell different stories.
6. Report the crash to your own insurer. Florida requires this in most cases, and your own policy is often the first place a claim is made.
7. Be careful what you say. Do not apologize or guess about fault at the scene. Stick to the facts when you speak with police and insurers.

How fault and liability work in Florida

Florida is a no-fault state for car accidents, which surprises many people. After a crash, your own Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, coverage pays a portion of your medical bills and lost wages regardless of who caused the collision. That is why every Florida auto policy is required to carry it. PIP is meant to get care flowing quickly without fighting first over blame.

PIP is not the whole story, though. Its limits are modest, and for anyone with a real injury they run out fast. To step outside the no-fault system and pursue the at-fault driver for the full range of your losses, including pain and suffering, your injury generally has to be serious in the way the law defines it, such as a permanent injury, significant and permanent scarring, or the loss of an important bodily function. When that threshold is met, you can bring a claim against the driver who caused the crash and their liability insurance.

Comparative fault

Florida follows a comparative fault rule. If you are found partly responsible for a crash, your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame, and if your share passes a certain point you may be barred from recovering at all. Insurance companies know this, and they often try to pin part of the fault on the injured person to shrink what they pay. This is one of the main reasons the way a claim is presented, and the evidence behind it, matters so much.

What a claim can cover

When another driver is responsible for your injuries, a claim can seek compensation for the different ways the crash has cost you. Every case is different, and the value of a claim depends on the specific facts, but the categories generally include:

• Medical bills. Emergency care, hospital stays, surgery, imaging, physical therapy, medication, and the future care your injuries will require.
• Lost wages. The income you missed while you could not work, and in serious cases the reduced ability to earn a living going forward.
• Pain and suffering. The physical pain, the limits on daily life, and the mental toll that an injury brings. This is real harm, and Florida law recognizes it.
• Property damage. The cost to repair or replace your vehicle and the items damaged inside it.
• Out-of-pocket costs. Rides to appointments, medical equipment, home help, and the many small expenses that add up after an injury.

No lawyer can tell you what a case is worth before knowing the facts, and no honest lawyer will promise a number. What a good attorney can do is make sure every real loss is counted and documented, so nothing is left on the table when the claim is presented.

The role of insurance

Almost every car accident case runs through insurance, and it helps to understand how the companies operate. After a crash, you will likely deal with your own insurer for PIP and property damage, and with the other driver's insurer for the rest. An adjuster may call within days, sound friendly, and ask for a recorded statement or a quick settlement. It is worth remembering that the adjuster works for the company, and the company does better when it pays less.

Early offers are often low, made before anyone knows the full extent of an injury. A number that sounds like a relief in the first week can fall far short of the medical bills that arrive over the following months. It also matters whether the at-fault driver carried enough coverage, and whether your own policy includes uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, which can be a lifeline after a crash with a driver who has little or no insurance, a common problem on South Florida roads. Sorting out which policies apply, and in what order, is a large part of what a lawyer does behind the scenes.

The contingency fee: no fee unless you recover

Many injured people avoid calling a lawyer because they are afraid of the cost, at exactly the moment money is tightest. Junie Lamour Law handles car accident cases on a contingency fee. That means you pay no attorney fee up front and no fee at all unless there is a recovery in your case. The fee is a percentage of what is recovered, agreed in writing before any work begins, so there are no surprises. If there is no recovery, you do not owe an attorney fee. This arrangement lets you focus on healing while your case is handled, and it keeps the door to legal help open regardless of what is in your bank account.

Common mistakes to avoid

Many strong cases are weakened by ordinary, understandable mistakes in the days after a crash. A few come up again and again:

• Waiting to get medical care. Gaps in treatment give an insurer a reason to argue you were not really hurt, and can put your PIP benefits at risk.
• Giving a recorded statement too soon. Adjusters are trained to ask questions that can be used to reduce a claim. You are usually not required to give one to the other driver's insurer.
• Accepting the first offer. Once you settle and sign a release, the case is over, even if new medical problems appear later.
• Posting about the crash online. A photo or comment on social media can be taken out of context and used against you.
• Throwing away evidence. Keep the damaged items, the bills, the photos, and any letters from insurers.
• Waiting too long to get advice. Florida's deadline to file an injury lawsuit is limited, and important evidence fades as the weeks pass.

How Junie Lamour Law helps

Junie Lamour Law stands with injured people in Miami and across South Florida after a car accident, so you do not have to face the insurance companies on your own. That work begins with listening to what happened and looking closely at the facts, then handling the parts that wear people down: dealing with the adjusters, gathering the police report, the medical records, and the evidence, identifying every insurance policy that may apply, and presenting your losses fully and clearly. If a fair resolution cannot be reached, Junie is prepared to take the next step and pursue the claim further.

What sets the firm apart for many families is language. Junie works with clients in English, Haitian Creole, French, and Spanish, so you can explain what happened and understand every step in the language you are most comfortable speaking. That matters at a stressful time, when a misunderstanding can cost you. Whether your crash happened on the Julia Tuttle Causeway, at an intersection in Little Haiti or Little Havana, on the way to Kendall or Doral, or anywhere else in the county, the first conversation is free, and it comes with no obligation. You tell Junie what happened, she tells you honestly where you stand, and there is no fee unless there is a recovery in your case.

This page is general information about personal injury law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Personal injury law is fact-specific and every case is different. For guidance on your own situation, speak with an attorney.