See what to do to protect your interests and build a strong injury claim after a North Carolina car accident.
Vehicle accident deaths and injuries are on the rise in North Carolina, increasing to 1,783 fatalities and 114,772 injuries annually.¹
When you or a family member are injured in a crash caused by someone else, you have the right to pursue compensation from the at-fault driver. Here we review what you can do after an accident to protect your rights and build a strong personal injury claim.
What to Do After a North Carolina Car Accident
Here are five steps you can take to protect your legal and financial interests after an accident.
1. Stay At the Scene and Exchange Information
North Carolina car accident law requires drivers to stop at the scene of a crash. Drivers must stay at the scene until police arrive and give permission to leave. Drivers must provide their name, address, driver’s license number, and vehicle registration number to the other driver and anyone else in the accident.
2. Call 911 and Help the Injured
North Carolina drivers are required to render reasonable aid and call for medical assistance when anyone is obviously injured or asking for help.
Calling 911 to report the crash and ask for an ambulance satisfies your legal requirements. Do what you can to assist the injured until help arrives.
3. Seek Prompt Medical Treatment
Refusing or delaying medical attention after a crash is not only risky for your health, it gives the insurance company an easy excuse to deny or limit your injury claims.
If an ambulance arrives on the scene, let the medics look you over. Cooperate if they want to take you to the hospital. If you aren’t taken to the hospital by ambulance, go to an urgent care center or see your primary care provider.
Discuss all your injuries and symptoms with the doctor. You’re entitled to full compensation for all your injuries, even minor ones, but your medical records must link the injuries to the collision.
4. Gather Evidence From the Scene
North Carolina is a traditional fault or “tort” state, so the burden is on you to prove the other driver did something wrong, or failed to do what any responsible driver would do to avoid an accident. The driver’s insurance company won’t pay your claim without evidence of their insured’s fault.
The police crash report is strong evidence of fault, especially if the other driver was cited for a traffic violation. Other types of evidence include:
- Photographs and video of the crash scene
- Names and contact information from witnesses
- Your personal notes about the accident
5. Notify Both Insurance Companies
When your accident-related injuries were caused by someone else, you’ll need to notify the at-fault driver’s insurance company of your intent to file a claim. You don’t have to be fully recovered from the crash to initiate an injury claim.
In most cases, you’ll get a letter from the insurance company with a claim number and the contact information for the adjuster assigned to handle your claim. You might get a call from the adjuster with a fast low-ball settlement offer. It’s okay to politely tell the adjuster you won’t discuss settlement until you’ve fully recovered from your injuries.
If you decide to hire an attorney, the insurance adjuster won’t be allowed to contact you. Your attorney will handle all communications with the at-fault driver’s insurer and your own insurance company.
No matter who caused the accident, you must notify your own insurance company that you were in an accident. Your auto policy is a contract between you and your insurer. It contains a notification clause, creating a legal obligation for you to tell them there was an accident. In return, your insurer has a duty to defend you if you are sued by someone else involved in the crash.
North Carolina Fault and Liability Rules
North Carolina is a traditional fault state. If you or a loved one are injured in a car accident, you can file an insurance claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company. You don’t have to use your own insurance for injury claims, like in a no-fault state.
You also have the right to file a lawsuit against any parties that may share liability, including the driver, the vehicle owner (if not the driver), or the driver’s employer if the accident occurred when the driver was working.
Whether you file an insurance claim or a lawsuit, the burden is on you or your attorney to prove the other driver’s fault for the accident.
North Carolina Shared Fault Rules
North Carolina follows a pure contributory negligence rule. If the at-fault driver can prove you shared any amount of blame for the accident, your claim will be denied.
You don’t have to accept the insurance company’s shared fault decision. Talk to a personal injury lawyer when you disagree with the adjuster’s determination.
Example of Pure Contributory Fault in North Carolina
Belinda was driving down Liberty Street in Durham late one day as the sun was setting. Belinda knew her brake lights weren’t working, but expected to get home before it was fully dark. Shannon was also driving down Liberty Street, following behind Belinda.
Belinda was startled when a dog ran into the roadway. She slammed on her brakes to avoid hitting the animal. Just as Belinda was realizing she had managed to avoid the dog, she was violently thrown forward by the impact of Shannon’s car plowing into her car’s rear end.
Both drivers were cited by the investigating officer. Shannon was cited for following too closely in traffic. Belinda was cited for driving a car with non-working brake lights.
Belinda filed a $10,000 whiplash claim against Shannon’s insurance company. Her claim was denied on the basis that she contributed to the accident by knowingly driving without functioning brake lights.
North Carolina Car Accident Compensation
The average settlement for a moderate car accident claim in North Carolina is $26,079, with average payouts ranging from $7,248 to $640,964. Settlements and awards range from $813 for minor injuries to $3,250,000 for multiple disabling fractures.
Injury settlements in North Carolina can vary widely, depending on the circumstances surrounding the crash, the scope and severity of the victim’s injuries, and the available insurance limits. Accidents involving severe injuries and commercial liability insurance will have the largest payouts.
For example, look at these two rear-end accident cases with low and high payouts:
- In Gaston County, White v. Cannon, 10CVS467, a jury awarded $813 to a passenger who claimed back and neck injuries which were challenged by the defendant.
- In Wake County, Yager v. Morgan Enterprises, 02CVS10942, Plaintiff negotiated a $225,000 mediated settlement for a closed head injury and multiple fractures. The trucking company initially denied liability.
Factors that impact North Carolina accident compensation include:
- Scope and severity of injuries
- Shared fault for the crash
- Available insurance coverage
- Number of vehicles involved
- Number of injured victims
If you and others are seriously injured, the at-fault driver’s liability insurance might not be enough to fully compensate all the victims for their damages. Serious or fatal injury claims are best handled by an experienced attorney.
North Carolina State Minimum Insurance Requirements
North Carolina requires all drivers to carry no less than $30,000 per person/$60,000 per accident for bodily injury liability, and $25,000 for property damage.
Drivers in North Carolina are also required to carry uninsured motorist (UM) coverage equal to their liability coverage. UM coverage will help pay for damages when you’ve been injured by a hit-and-run, a driver without insurance, or inadequate insurance to cover your injuries.
How to Calculate a Minor Injury Settlement
You can estimate the settlement value of a mild to moderate injury claim by totaling your economic damages, also called “special” damages, such as medical bills and lost income, then adding one to three times that amount to account for your non-economic or “general” damages, better known as pain and suffering.
The amount you can get the insurance company to pay for pain and suffering depends on how badly the injuries affected your activities after the crash.
You can expect a nominal amount if you spent a few days on the couch with a heating pad on your sore back. A multiple of two or three is reasonable when you couldn’t swim, mow your lawn, or walk your dog all summer long because of a fractured leg.
For severe injuries or wrongful death claims, you’ll need an experienced personal injury attorney to get a fair payout. Your attorney will seek compensatory damages including the future value of medical expenses, future lost wages, long-term pain and suffering, and in some cases, punitive damages.
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