Posted on August 30,2024 in Car Accident

Accidents happen every day, with various causes producing unique injuries. When you think about car crashes and truck accidents, you probably assume they happen because of things like speeding, distracted driving, or alcohol. Did you know that a lack of proper maintenance can also lead to motor vehicle accidents?

Poorly maintained vehicles and roads are often contributing factors in collisions. Proving liability in these cases is sometimes challenging, however. An experienced attorney from Hoggatt Law Office, P.C. will investigate your accident, discover why it happened and who is to blame, and help you get the compensation you deserve.

How Can Vehicles Be Hazardous?

Every driver, whether operating a small passenger car or an 18-wheeler, has a legal duty of care to drive safely to avoid harming others. This duty extends beyond driving behaviors to ensuring that vehicles are safe to drive. Drivers should not operate vehicles with:

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 Posted on August 21,2024 in Wrongful Death

You have probably heard that you may be able to receive a settlement if you are injured in an accident by filing a personal injury claim. Unfortunately, almost any kind of accident has the potential to be fatal. If you have lost a loved one in an accident recently, you may have questions. Can you still get compensation if a loved one loses their life? What types of damages might you obtain?

A wrongful death claim allows eligible survivors of fatal accident victims to collect damages, but these cases have strict regulations in Colorado. If you think your situation qualifies, a free consultation with our knowledgeable Colorado personal injury lawyer from Hoggatt Law Office, P.C. can answer your questions.

What Are Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Claims?

Most personal injury claims rest on proving that someone’s negligence or intentional act directly caused injuries and associated damages. If the injured victim qualifies, he may receive a settlement that reimburses accident-related expenses and compensates for adverse impacts on his quality of life.

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 Posted on August 12,2024 in Personal Injury

If you are injured in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you probably know that you may be eligible to receive compensation through a personal injury claim. Getting a fair settlement should be simple, right? Unfortunately, that is all too often not the case. There can be multiple challenges along the way that you will have to face alone unless you have an effective lawyer from Hoggatt Law Office, P.C. by your side.

How Can a Qualified Attorney Help You Overcome Challenges in a Personal Injury Claim?

A wide variety of accidents can cause injuries, illnesses, and other qualifying losses that may make you eligible to receive a payout from the responsible party. Typically, you can settle these cases through an insurance claim without needing to file a civil lawsuit. However, receiving a reasonable settlement amount is not easy. Depending on factors unique to your case, you might have to navigate through many obstacles in pursuit of that goal. Your personal injury lawyer can help.

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 Posted on August 06,2024 in Car Accident

Car and truck accidents can happen for many reasons; sometimes, multiple factors combine to cause a collision. You probably think of things like speeding and distracted driving as car accident causes, but have you thought about the underlying reasons why these negligent actions are so dangerous? 

A driver’s delayed reaction time increases the likelihood of causing a motor vehicle collision. Your Fort Collins, CO motor vehicle accident lawyer from Hoggatt Law Office, P.C. can help you recover damages when someone else’s negligence results in a crash that injures you.

What Is Driver Reaction Time?

When drivers encounter common traffic situations, they need to respond to them to avoid causing accidents. Examples include upcoming yellow or red traffic lights, animals darting onto the road, sudden brake lights ahead, and other vehicles veering into the lane. Seeing these indicators should trigger a driver reaction, such as braking and steering adjustments. Although this concept may sound simple, it is actually a complex set of variables.

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 Posted on August 01,2024 in Personal Injury

Car accidents are known to cause serious injuries and deaths. Pedestrians, being more vulnerable than vehicles, are at an even greater risk of serious injury and death from car crashes. In 2022, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) recorded over 7,500 pedestrian deaths. This calculates to an average of 20 deaths per day and over 17 percent of traffic fatalities.

However, some pedestrian accidents are more complex than others. If you were hit by a drunk driver while standing on the sidewalk, for instance, your claim is likely to be straightforward in terms of who was at fault. But what if you were hit by a car while jaywalking? If you were crossing against a red light, can you still collect compensation for your injuries?

To answer the above question, it is important to first discuss a legal principle called modified comparative negligence. Remember that a personal injury attorney is your best legal resource. Any questions about car accidents should be directed to a Colorado car accident lawyer.

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 Posted on July 29,2024 in Workers' Compensation

Suppose you work in a corporate office in Fort Collins. One rainy day, as employees and visitors track water through the lobby, a puddle forms. You alert maintenance, but an hour later the area is neither mopped up nor marked with a caution sign. Crossing through the lobby to your lunch break, you forget about the puddle. You slip and fall hard, suffering a fracture in your wrist and a severely bruised knee. You are outfitted with a brace and crutches, and you are confined to at least two weeks’ bed rest.

You file a workers’ compensation claim with the human resources department, which orders you to take a drug test. You know that you smoked marijuana — which is legal in Colorado — the night before your injury. Still, you wonder: can a positive drug test affect your workers’ compensation claim?

This article will discuss how marijuana use can affect a workers’ compensation claim. Be sure to consult a Colorado workers’ compensation attorney if you were injured at work after using marijuana.

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 Posted on July 25,2024 in Workers' Compensation

Workers’ compensation is a complex area of law that is often changing and it is important for employers and employees alike to stay abreast of these changes. This is especially true in Colorado, where workplace injuries have been known to surpass the national average.

Last month, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed two bills that modified the state’s workers’ compensation laws. This article will explore those changes and how they might impact Coloradoans who suffer injuries in the workplace. To understand how the new legislation may affect your case, speak with a Colorado worker’s compensation attorney.

Modified Employment

House Bill 1220 made modifications to an existing law that many workers may find welcome.

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 Posted on July 09,2024 in Personal Injury

Social media is an integral part of our lives. For many people, it is a great way of keeping in touch with family and friends on a regular basis. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter) are public spaces where you can share your thoughts and life updates.

However, personal injury victims often forget that because these are public spaces, what they post can affect their personal injury claims. It is common practice for insurance companies and legal teams to comb through the social media accounts of personal injury victims, looking for anything that might contradict the victims’ claims.

If you are claiming compensation for damages, it is a good idea to have your Colorado personal injury attorney review your social media activity. He or she will advise you whether any content should be removed and will guide you on how to post to social media without jeopardizing your case.

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 Posted on July 02,2024 in Car Accident

Car accidents are traumatic experiences. Even if a car crash victim suffers little to no injuries or damage, it can still be a jarring ordeal. Drivers who are involved in car accidents often suffer confusion, disorientation, and anxiety. This is why some drivers who are involved in car accidents fail to take immediate measures that can help them recover compensation for injury-related damages.

Usually, compensation is recovered by settling with the victim’s car insurance company or the other driver’s car insurance company. However, it is best to first consult with a Colorado car accident attorney who can guide you on what steps to take to increase your chances of an attractive settlement offer.

Here are three ways you can help maximize your settlement after a car accident.

Report the Accident

In Colorado, you must report  any car accidents resulting in bodily injury or death to the police. However, you should report all accidents, even if not required.

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 Posted on June 27,2024 in Truck Accident

People who are involved in truck accidents often sustain severe injuries. When it comes to personal injury lawsuits, generally speaking, the more severe an injury, the more severe the damages. Victims usually try to claim compensation for those damages by hiring a Colorado truck accident attorney. The lawyer may bring a claim against the truck driver’s insurance company or the trucking company for damages like medical expenses and lost wages.

But what if you were texting at the time of the accident? Can you still claim compensation if you were partly at fault? To answer these questions, it is important to first understand Colorado’s modified comparative negligence law.

What Is Modified Comparative Negligence?

Some states have comparative negligence laws, which means that more than one person can be found negligent, or at fault, for an injury. This includes the victim. If a victim wants to claim compensation for damages, the insurance company or court may find that he or she also contributed to the injury, known as contributory fault. In that case, the amount of the victim’s compensation is reduced by the percentage of his or her fault.

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