Experienced Knoxville Car Accident Lawyers Fight for Your Future

Helping drivers, passengers, cyclists, and pedestrians throughout East Tennessee

Car accidents can happen anywhere — on local roads or highways, or even in parking lots. If you are involved in a car accident, do not admit fault. Auto collisions can cause shock and disorientation, and immediately taking responsibility for the accident can greatly affect your right to compensation. First, you should seek medical attention. Once your injuries are treated, focus on securing competent legal representation.

At Banks & Jones, our skilled team of Knoxville car accident lawyers fights in court every day, and many of the cases we handle involve injuries resulting from distracted or impaired driving. For more than 25 years, our firm has handled countless accident cases, and we work diligently to help you to take legal action against the party responsible for causing your injuries.

T.Scott Jones and his firm have been very professional and pleasant to work with. He is the best at what he does! Would highly recommend.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [Google Review]

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Where do most car accidents happen in Knoxville?

Although major interstates and thoroughfares see a tremendous number of cars every day, they’re not necessarily the most dangerous roads in the Knoxville area. Lots of times, crashes and wrecks happen at intersections and on ramps. These are the most dangerous roads and intersections:

  1. Canton Hollow Road between Kingston Pike and Fox Road
  2. Fox Lonas Road between Walker Springs and Crest Forrest Road
  3. Andersonville Pike between McCloud Road and Hill Road
  4. Joe Hinton Road
  5. Gallahar View between Gleason Avenue and Westland Drive
  6. Gleason Drive between Ebenezer Road and South Gallahar View
  7. Sevierville Pike between Heliz Lane and E. Norton Road
  8. Brown Gap Road between Maynardville Pike and Carter Road
  9. Gray Hendrix Road between Beaver Ridge and Byington-Solway Road
  10. Brown Gap Road between Carter Road and Crippen Road

Their findings were based on an annual Knox County survey of more than 600 roads, to see which ones had the most car accidents and traffic fatalities.

What are the causes of car accidents in Knoxville?

There are many factors which contribute to car accidents in Knox County and throughout Tennessee. Our experienced team of Knoxville car crash attorneys can help you obtain justice if you were hurt, or if your loved one was killed, in a crash related to:

  • Drunk driving. Alcohol has contributed to 107 accidents in Knox County in 2017. Though most people realize that driving under the influence, or DUI, is illegal and highly dangerous, it doesn’t stop them from getting behind the wheel. Tennessee’s opioid epidemic is a good indicator that people are driving under the influence of drugs; its meth problem means that those drugs aren’t always prescribed.
  • We all have somewhere to be but ignoring speed limits is a dangerous game. Drivers who speed do not have full control over their cars and may be unable to stop in time to avoid a collision.
  • Distracted driving. Distracted driving is fast becoming a major safety hazard for Tennessee drivers. Distracted drivers jeopardize other motorists’ safety and that of pedestrians and bicyclists. Texting, eating and drinking, using electronics, or interacting with passengers are reckless behaviors that endanger the lives of everyone on the road.
  • Reckless driving. Tailgating, swerving in and out of traffic, intimidation tactics: a reckless driver has no concern with anyone else’s well-being. These behaviors often result in crashes, and those crashes often lead to serious injuries.
  • Act of nature. Did a deer running across your path cause your accident? Or was there dense fog or icy road conditions? Mother Nature creates some of the worst types of vehicle wrecks.
  • Defective roadways. If you’ve spent any time on The Dragon, you know that we have some gorgeous roads here in Tennessee. You also know that just because something is beautiful, doesn’t mean it isn’t dangerous. Poor visibility, road debris, poor maintenance, and covered road signs can all lead to catastrophic injuries.

Car accidents may also be due to defective car parts such as faulty brakes, airbags that malfunction, or steering columns that don’t work. If a defective car part causes death or personal injury, the manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of the cars may be strictly liable for the harm they cause.

What types of car accidents are there?

  • Head-on crashes. These accidents usually happen because the other driver was drunk or distracted – which causes him/her to drive in the wrong lane. Head-on crashes are often deadly.
  • Rear-end-collisions. These car accidents are most always due to driver distraction or speeding. The driver in the rear is almost always at fault.
  • Broadside accidents. These car crashes, also called T-bone crashes, involve the front of one car striking the side of another car. Many intersection accidents are broadside accidents.
  • Side-swipes. The passenger side of one car and the driver’s side of another car often collide when a driver passes improperly or merges improperly.
  • Multi-car pileups. When a car strikes another vehicle or object at a bad angle, the car may swerve into other cars or cause other cars to crash into each other to avoid the first car. Multi-vehicle crashes are very complex cases which require experienced car accident lawyers.
  • Single-car accidents. When a driver goes too fast, is distracted, or drunk, the driver may crash into a pole, veer into a ditch, or overturn. Any passengers in the car and any pedestrians or bicycle riders who are injured have the right to hold the driver accountable.

The way an accident happens is often an indicator of who is at fault for the accident and what injuries are likely to occur. For example, in a rear-end crash the rear driver is normally at fault. The occupants of the car in front often suffer whiplash and soft-tissue injuries.

What types of injuries happen in Knoxville car accidents?

The severity of other injuries and types of injuries often depend on how the accident happened, how fast the vehicles were going, road conditions, and other factors. Common car accident injuries include:

Car accident victims often need emergency care. Many victims need to treat with specialists such as neurologists, orthopedists, and pain management doctors. Car accident victims also may need to treat with psychologists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, chiropractors, and other health providers.

In the most tragic cases, drivers, passengers, pedestrians, and bicycle riders are killed by a careless driver. In wrongful death cases, the families of the victim are entitled to compensation for the funeral and burial bills, any outstanding medical bills, the loss of companionship of the decedent, the financial losses due to the decedent’s death, and other damages.

What witnesses may be involved in car accident in Tennessee?

Experienced Knoxville attorneys understand that the best way to obtain a strong insurance settlement or verdict is through preparation. Preparation means investigating the cause of the accident, working with the victim’s witnesses, and questioning any other witnesses who may have relevant information. In most car accident cases, we speak with or question the following people:

  • The police officers who made the initial investigation of the accident
  • Our own investigators who examine the scene of the accident and investigate how the crash occurred
  • Your physicians who understand and report on your medical diagnosis, your prognosis, and why you are having so much pain and emotional suffering
  • Any witnesses who have information on how much it will cost to fix or replace your damaged vehicle
  • Your employers who can document how much income you’ve lost
  • Your family and friends who can support how difficult your life has become due to the accident

We may speak with other witnesses such as traffic reconstruction experts or eyewitnesses depending on the facts of your case.

What should you do immediately after a car accident?

Car crashes can be traumatic. After the shock and confusion wears off, you may not know what to do or who to call. First, remain calm; panicking will only fog your judgment. Second, seek medical attention — nothing is more important than your health. After a doctor treats your injuries, contact a Knoxville car accident lawyer who can provide you with a prompt and honest case assessment and explain your options.

How does Tennessee’s comparative negligence laws affect your compensation award?

One of the most important elements of your case is determining who is at fault for your car crash. In Tennessee, we use a modified comparative negligence system to determine how much compensation you may be able to recover. Briefly, this means that if you are in some way responsible for your accident, that proportion of responsibility is deducted from your overall recovery.

Let’s look at an example of how this might work, using some made-up numbers. Imagine you were driving along on I-40, and you were fiddling with the radio. Out of nowhere, a car crosses a line and smashes into the rear driver-side door. Though you were the one that was hit, a jury might find you 20% responsible, because you were distracted at the time of the collision. If a jury awarded you $100,000, that amount would be decreased by $20,000 (20%), and you would only be able to recover $80,000 instead.

If, however, you were found by the jury to be at least 50% at fault, you recover nothing. So, to obtain compensation after an auto accident in Knoxville, you must be found no more than 49% responsible for the injuries which resulted from the crash.

Consult with an experienced team of Knoxville car accident lawyers

At Banks & Jones, we focus on getting our results for our clients who have been injured. If a car accident injury has disrupted your life, our aggressive trial attorneys are prepared to fight for your right to compensation. To schedule a consultation with one of our skilled Knoxville car accident lawyers, contact us or call 865-546-2141 today.

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