Type of Car Accidents in St. Louis 

If you have been injured in an accident and you intend to report that accident to an insurance company, you should know that there are several different categories for car accidents in the state of Missouri. The behavior and age of an at-fault driver may factor into any charges against them. Criminal charges against a driver may help you and your attorney establish their fault to their insurance company.

Missouri is a fault state when it comes to auto insurance, which means the person who causes an accident is responsible for paying the bills related to the crash. Because it is a “pure comparative fault state,” the at-fault driver’s insurance company will only have to pay for the percentage of the accident that they caused. If a driver caused 60 percent of an accident, they are responsible for 60 percent of the medical bills associated with the collision.

When you file a claim with an at-fault driver’s insurance company, the company will try everything they can to refute that claim and keep the money to which you are entitled. Before contacting them, you should gather all the information you can that will establish the other driver’s responsibility. Be sure to get a good car accident lawyer and learn a bit about the different categories of car accidents.

Car Accident Types

Pedestrian Accidents

When a car hits a pedestrian, the results can be devastating. No matter how bad your injuries are, the driver’s insurance company may not be willing to pay. Although the pedestrian technically always has the right of way, there are some cases in which an accident may well be considered the fault of the pedestrian. If you were jaywalking on a road where pedestrians are not allowed, you may be considered responsible for the accident. Sometimes the culpability for a crash may be shared.  Depending on the circumstances of the accident, a personal injury attorney may be able to negotiate with the insurance company to get you a settlement. 

Aggressive or Reckless Driving Accidents 

If a driver is swerving in and out of traffic, speeding or cutting in front of other drivers without the use of signals, they may be guilty of reckless driving. If a driver leans on the horn, 

threatens other drivers or tailgates consistently they may be considered an aggressive driver. 

You should never confront an aggressive or reckless driver and if you witness such behavior, you should pull over to the side of the road and call the police. If you see an aggressive driver crash into someone else you should stay a safe distance away, contact the police and wait for them to arrive as you are an important witness to the accident. 

If you are hit by an aggressive or reckless driver, you should call the police, wait for them to arrive and then exchange information with the other driver. Take a picture of the damages to your car and their license plate number, as such drivers may be inclined to flee the scene.

Distracted Driving Accidents 

Distracted driving accidents are one of the most common causes of death in the United States. Texting, tweeting and posting on social media have proven to be deadly habits for drivers. 

The state of Missouri has rather vague laws for distracted drivers. Only those persons 21 years of age and under are legally forbidden from driving and texting. Fortunately, there are currently several bills before the state legislature to make driving while texting illegal.

If you suspect the person who hit you was texting or posting on social media while driving, you may want to talk to your attorney about looking at the at-fault drivers social media pages to determine if they were actively posting at the time of the accident. If your accident results in a lawsuit and not just an insurance claim, you may want to talk to your lawyer about the possibility of subpoenaing the other driver’s phone records.