Arizona Accident Lawyer Blog

My experience as a certified specialist in Arizona injury and wrongful death law has given me the opportunity to help a number of people who suffered a variety of serious injuries due to someone else’s negligence. The first thing that normally occurs after a serious injury is that the injury victim is taken to the hospital, often by ambulance, or in some cases via helicopter. Documentation in any personal injury claim thus begins right at the accident scene. First responders take note of any injuries or conditions that they observe. Personal injury victims are then further evaluated in the ambulance or helicopter by emergency medical technicians. Once the injured person arrives at the hospital, medical providers take more notes. Within the first forty five minutes after any very serious accident, having three sets of notes and observations of the personal injury victim is not unusual.

Beyond these initial observations, medical records and observations of the injury continue to be made. Medical providers always try to document fully and accurately medical conditions, yet sometimes they are recorded inaccurately. This can be due to a number of factors in any accident, but can include how busy the doctors are, communication problems between the injured person and medical personnel, inaccurate memories when recording notes, time lapse between when the doctor saw the injury victim, and a whole host of other factors.

Continue reading "Discussing Accident Claims and Medical Records with an Experienced Arizona Personal Injury Attorney" »

The Maricopa County city of Tempe, Arizona, contains an estimated population of 174,091 and is located in the East Valley of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. Bordered by other major Arizona cities, Tempe is west of Mesa, east of Phoenix and Guadalupe, south of Scottsdale and north of Chandler. Tempe is considered to be the most densely populated city in Arizona, and welcomes residents and daily visitors to enjoy creative events presented at Gammage Auditorium and Tempe Center for the Arts. With such a busy population, accidents such as a slip and fall incidents in Tempe can occur from time to time, which can bring to light certain premises liability issues.

The aftermath of a slip and fall accident can be a disheartening experience that many times leaves a person feeling overwhelmed regarding his or her legal rights. A slip and fall accident can happen in a public environment at no fault of the injured individual. For example, a store may be under maintenance, but if there is no sign to warn a shopper, the person can slip or fall and suffer broken bones, concussions, harm to the spinal cord, or internal bruising.

When a public business or private land fails to give notice of possible danger on their property, the owner of the premises can be held liable for their negligence. If you have been seriously injured, lost money due to medical treatment, or even had to forfeit wages as the result of your slip and fall accident, an experienced Tempe premises liability lawyer can help you seek full compensation for all of your inconveniences.

Husband and Wife Law Team, Mark and Alexis Breyer, at Breyer Law Offices, P.C., are familiar with premise liability cases and slip and fall accidents and will work diligently with clients to recover damages due to a property owner’s negligence. Do not let someone else’s negligence hinder your life enjoyment. Call the experienced premise liability attorneys at Breyer Law Offices today at 480-753-4534 for a free consultation of your case.

“If it isn’t written, it didn’t happen.” Every personal injury claimant should consider this statement. We often use it in our office. The statement, at its root, is of course not true, as many things occur that were not written down. We also know that many other things that are written were written down inaccurately.

It is an unfortunate truth that Arizona personal injury cases are not based on the truth. They are instead based on facts, but are rather decided upon evidence. Evidence is not necessarily accurate, and it may not even reflect what actually happened.

For this reason, anybody that considers filing a personal injury claim should also seriously consider keeping a diary, though it is best to speak with an experienced Arizona personal injury attorney to guide you in this decision. There are definite risks in keeping a diary. They need to be kept accurately and consistently, including certain types of things that a personal injury lawyer may wish to deal with in trial. Yet there may also be advantages to not keeping a diary.

Continue reading "Arizona Personal Injury Lawyer Encourages Injured Claimants to Use a Diary" »

As a specialist certified by the Arizona State Bar in personal injury and wrongful death litigation, I am surprised at how many people trust the insurance company for the driver that caused the accident, yet distrust a lawyer that they hire. More specifically, people often refuse to even consider hiring a personal injury attorney. Instead, many attempt to handle an accident injury case on their own, and end up speaking directly to the insurance company representing the person that caused the injury.

Now, I understand that I am an attorney that deals in Arizona personal injury law, and so realize my own bias when I write about trusting a personal injury lawyer before trusting the other side’s insurance company. Yet I also know that I help people who are hurt due to someone else’s negligence.

But the reason we bring this up is not to plug our Arizona personal injury firm, or even myself as a personal injury lawyer. Yes, we do pride our efforts in fighting for our clients. Further, we know that we deal in a straightforward manner with our clients and are always honest with them so that they know what lies ahead. But as experienced personal injury attorneys, we also know how to protect our clients from making mistakes that might jeopardize their claim. We understand that it is neither about our firm nor is it about our top notch personal injury lawyers, but about having experienced legal representation when speaking with an adverse insurance company about a personal injury claim. And the more serious the personal injury claim, the truer this is.

Continue reading "Do Not Talk to the Other Person's Insurance Company Before Talking to an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney" »

The rapidly growing city of Surprise, Arizona, is approximately populated by 90,717 people as reported by a 2007 census; almost triple the count since the 2000 census. In December 2008, Surprise showed further signs of development when the Demographic and Permit statistics department took a count and found a new population of 109,672. Surprise, located in Maricopa County, also has a significant population of senior citizens, who live in an age-specific retirement community called Sun City Grand. The community is an offset of another large market of homebuilders and homebuyers who are attracted to Surprise’s fairly-priced homes and the city’s accessibility to state capital Phoenix. With many residents and a consistently growing population, it is no shock that Surprise experiences its share of personal injury on the local roads and major highways including instances of motorcycle accidents, which can lead to brain injury.

An estimated 85% of all traffic deaths in the United States will be attributed to a motorcycle accident. Many of those fatalities are preventable with proper precautions, such the use of a helmet. The sad fact is only half of the nation enforces a helmet law, despite that a helmet can protect bikers from fatal head injury. However, a helmet will not completely shield riders from disaster, and the remaining 50,000 who suffer annually from serious motorcycle injuries may have been harmed by another person’s negligence or distracted driving habits. Drivers who are not focused, or even intoxicated, can cause severe injuries at no blame of the motorcyclist. Severe injuries can involve intense physical discomfort, emotional misery, and at worst, a critical injury to the brain.

Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, is the repercussion of a heavy hit to a person’s head or a penetrating blow to the skull. TBI can happen in the aftermath of a motorcycle collision, or any accident that disrupts the natural activity of the brain. An annual approximation of 1.4 million people will suffer from TBI. Although a variety of accidents can trigger dysfunction in the brain, a motorcycle accident in Surprise can significantly increase the chances of traumatic brain injury. If you have been personally injured in a motorcycle accident, or were the victim of brain trauma, a skilled Surprise brain injury attorney is available to assist you in receiving compensation for your losses.

Mark and Alexis Breyer, Husband and Wife pair at Breyer Law Offices, P.C., know how painful a motorcycle injury or brain accident can be for a person and their loved one. The dedicated attorneys have worked diligently with accident victims for years, and have helped the injured recover their physical, financial and emotional expenses in Surprise city trials. Distracted and intoxicated drivers do not have to get away with their negligence, and a motorcycle accident attorney can defend your rights. For a free consultation of your situation, call Breyer Law Offices at 623-930-8064.

1. Insurance companies always try to do what is fair and just, and are not just focused on profit or their bottom line.
2. When their client is at fault, an insurance company will always admit it. They would never dream up ridiculous arguments to try to take the blame away from their negligent client, especially if the person injured was not at fault. An insurance company will, in fact, do an investigation so that the person injured by their client will be treated fairly, even if doing so involves admitting fault and accepting total responsibility.
3. Insurance companies never would deny that the people they insure did not cause an injury when they were negligent in a car accident. Insurance companies are far too moral to blame pre-existing conditions to avoid paying your claim in full. And they certainly would never hire doctors who would try to deny that it was their client that caused an injury.
4. An insurance company would never attempt to short change a payment to a person injured due to the negligence of someone they insure and, in fact, will always agree to settle amicably with the injured party for full and fair compensation. The insurance company will never make an injured person go to extreme lengths to prove how the injury affected his or her life, and will readily offer to pay every penny that is deserved in compensation.
5. Insurance companies will admit exactly how much is available to pay a claim. An injured person never needs to worry that the insurance company will deny that other insurance policies exist that can also be claimed against. Insurance companies are very helpful, and will readily share information about other insurance policies the negligent party holds with them that are available to claim against.

Continue reading "Five Reasons to Not Hire a Top Personal Injury Attorney to Aid in an Insurance Claim after an Accident that Results in Injury" »

Top Arizona auto accident lawyers explain to their clients the uphill battle that is often faced in today’s anti-plaintiff climate. There has been so much misinformation and insurance company advertising and propaganda against honest and serious personal injury claims, that overcoming the preconceived notions of many jurors can be difficult. This is why it is so important to make sure that every injury that is suffered is documented as soon as possible after an accident.

Many people make the mistake of not following up with their doctor when they are in pain following an auto accident because they think they will “get better.” Well, of course you should hope to get better. In fact, there is a very good chance that you will “get better” and will not have needed to go to that extra doctor or to get that extra documentation.

However, the best personal injury lawyers do everything they can to insist upon their clients getting to medical providers and following up as much as possible to eliminate anybody later claiming that they did suffer the injuries that they did in fact suffer. In fact, the real danger is in the situation where an injury, though apparent, does not seem to be as serious as it turns out to be. For instance, it is not unusual for people to suffer shoulder pain and discomfort immediately following a serious car accident. Usually that shoulder pain will resolve on its own. However, what happens to the person who waits a month to follow up with their medical provider and it turns out that the reason they have been unable to move their arm is because they had a rotator cuff tear? What about the person who suffers a torn labrum after a car accident and they fail to follow up with the doctor immediately following the accident and in the days and weeks that follow? What happens is that very often the insurance company for the driver who caused the accident will use that delay in treatment to claim that it was not the car accident that led to the serious shoulder injury.

Continue reading "Have You Proved an Arizona Personal Injury Case?" »

As has been reported by the AP, a bus coming from Mexico to LA was involved in a horrific crash in Sacaton, AZ. Families of those who were tragically killed and those who suffered serious injuries undoubtedly are overwhelmed with concerns and issues most could not begin to imagine. At Breyer Law Offices, our hearts go out to the families of all involved. We know that no words can begin to express the sorrow that is being felt. We also know that, before long, there will be people associated with the bus company that may look to take advantage of families during this terrible time, trying to cut off their rights to recover. In fact, it is likely that there were lawyers and paid experts at the site of the crash for the bus company within hours, maybe even before the police had finished their investigation.

What is a family to do when faced with such a concerted effort to “change history” for the purpose of minimizing legal liability? We strongly encourage anybody who knows someone involved to reject any phone calls or contact with any representative of the busing company. As soon as there is someone in the family who can take the lead emotionally, we strongly encourage anybody involved to contact a certified specialist in personal injury and wrongful death litigation, so that the bus company – and any person responsible for this regrettable tragedy – is held responsible.

A video report posted on azcentral.com has new details regarding the fatal phoenix bus crash that killed 6 people yesterday. According to the report, the company that owned the bus which was traveling from Zacatecas, Mexico to Los Angeles was not licensed to transport passengers.

The Phoenix bus accident attorneys at Breyer Law Offices have seen first hand how stressful legal issues are for clients and their families. They also understand the tragic consequences a personal injury or wrongful death can have. The Breyer Law Offices will continue to monitor the investigation regarding these tragic deaths and provide information to it's readers as it becomes available.

According to the Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, a bus that was recently involved in the fatal accident that took six lives on Interstate 10 just south of downtown Phoenix was being operated illegally. According to an Associated Press news story, the bus, that had been traveling from Central Mexico to Los Angeles, was carrying 22 passengers at the time of the crash in Sacaton, AZ. Reportedly, the bus rolled over after striking a pickup truck, and the six passengers were thrown from the bus in the process, all of whom died. The remaining 16 passengers on the bus were all injured, as was the driver. Injuries sustained during the crash were mostly deemed serious, and resulted in catastrophic injuries such as broken spines and head injuries. Further investigation into the accident is still pending.

Transportation officials revealed that the bus company, Tierra Santa Inc., had been told that it was not allowed to permit its vehicles to engage in commercial interstate transportation of passengers, yet it was doing exactly that at the time of the Phoenix bus crash. While it remains to be seen to whom liability issues will be assigned, many instances involving bus accidents often result in both the driver and the bus company being deemed at fault. According to the article, police are investigating to determine the state of mind of the bus driver at the time of the accident, particularly if the driver was suffering from fatigue, as well as the maintenance history of the bus. Bus companies have an obligation to ensure that their vehicles are properly maintained, and that their drivers do not violate federal transportation guidelines by driving more hours than they are permitted to in a 24-hour period.

Details regarding this horrible fatal Phoenix bus accident are still being uncovered and the bus accident attorneys at The Breyer Law Offices will continue to monitor new information regarding the crash as it becomes available.

Several Arizona car accident personal injury lawyers are familiar with how many people do not know what to do after a serious car accident claim. The reality is, most people who are seriously hurt are not in a position to try to do much that can help their case other than knowing not to talk to anybody from the other insurance company and to focus on getting better. However, many times there are family members who would like to be of help. They need guidance in terms of what to do. There are some general first steps that can be taken.

First, take pictures. Take many pictures - when you think you have taken enough pictures, take more. Pictures of what? Anything that could later be disputed. Pictures of the car. Pictures of the roadway. Pictures of anything near the area where the accident occurred. Pictures of any injuries suffered. Pictures of the hospital room. The reality is that you never know what will be contested down the line. Many, many things that seem obvious at the time of any injury are later contested by the other insurance company or defendant. Therefore, every single digital photograph that you can take is worth taking to help the person who suffered an injury.

Continue reading "What Should I Do after a Car Accident in Arizona?" »

In helping people who have suffered serious injury as the result of the negligent driving of others, it is not uncommon for the person who caused the accident to contest the traffic citation or ticket that they received. When they contest the ticket and push it all the way to a “trial” on that traffic ticket, the person who is injured will often receive a subpoena. Under the subpoena, they are required to appear at court. This causes a great deal of concern to many people.

First, understand that you are subpoenaed to be a witness, you are not “on trial.” Instead, although you were the one who suffered the serious injuries, you are also a witness to what occurred. Therefore, an experienced Phoenix personal injury attorney knows that it is very common that you would be asked to provide that information in order to ensure that the citation or traffic ticket against the person who caused the accident is upheld.

Continue reading "I Have Received a Subpoena after a Car Accident I Did Not Cause: What Should I Do?" »