PETRILLO & GOLDBERG
New Jersey Car Accident Lawyers
Dedicated Personal Injury Lawyers Aggressively Representing Auto Accident Victims in Pennsauken, Cherry Hill, and Throughout South Jersey
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Car Accident Attorneys
In Pennsauken & Cherry Hill, South Jersey
At the South Jersey personal injury law firm of Petrillo & Goldberg, our dedicated attorneys have extensive experience connecting car accident victims with meaningful compensation for what they’ve been through. We also understand the challenges that naturally come up after a car accident and do everything we can to make sure the recovery process is as seamless and stress-free as possible.
Driving is one of those things that most of us do on a regular basis but don’t put much thought into. For many drivers, after they’ve done it for a few years, it just comes naturally. However, that isn’t the case for all motorists. Some drivers don’t take this responsibility as seriously as they should, which puts everyone else on the road at risk. In fact, in 2020, there were more than 42,000 people who were seriously hurt in a New Jersey car accident, and another 550 lost their lives. The vast majority of these accidents were entirely preventable, which means those who were injured were put through unnecessary suffering and expense.
New Jersey Car Accidents
On average, there are more than 250,000 car accidents in New Jersey each year. That’s a quarter million accidents; truly an astounding number. While accidents occur all over the state, certain counties see a lot more accidents than others. According to the most recent data from the New Jersey Department of Transportation, the following counties experienced the most motor vehicle accidents in 2020:
- Essex County – 20,071 accidents
- Bergen County – 19,472 accidents
- Middlesex County – 18,132 accidents
- Union County – 13,779 accidents
- Monmouth County – 13,058 accidents
- Passaic County – 12,705 accidents
Of course, not all car accidents are the same; some are more serious than others. It stands to reason that accidents in more urban areas will, on average, involve lower speeds and, presumably, less serious injuries. Thus, when considering which are the most counties to drive, one should look to those counties with the highest number of accidents resulting in serious injury or death.
Below is a list of the New Jersey Counties with the highest number of serious car accidents:
- Middlesex County – 61 fatal accidents and 4,027 injury accidents
- Burlington County – 40 fatal accidents and 2,830 injury accidents
- Essex County – 39 fatal accidents and 1,494 injury accidents
- Bergen County – 38 fatal accidents and 4,176 injury accidents
- Atlantic County – 38 fatal accidents and 1,477 injury accidents
Causes of New Jersey Car Accidents
Driving in New Jersey can be a stressful experience. It’s true; part of the reason is because we’re one of the smaller states with one of the biggest populations. New Jersey also has a number of major cities and several major highways connecting them. Not to mention, anyone traveling into New York City from the west or south ends up driving through New Jersey. Indeed, when it comes to the causes of New Jersey car accidents, there are a lot of contributing factors. However, notwithstanding every other factor, almost every accident boils down to one thing: driver error.
Drivers cause car accidents. Not traffic. Not high-speed limits. Not complex highway systems. With the very rare exception, car accidents are the result of a driver not doing something they should have done (or doing something they shouldn’t have done). Below are some of the most common causes of New Jersey car accidents.
Distracted Driving
It only takes a split second for a driver to miss a pedestrian crossing the road, a car pulling in front of them, or a traffic light changing from green to red. Thus, it isn’t surprising that Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of New Jersey car accidents. In large part, this is due to the prevalence of cell phones. Indeed, talking on the phone and texting while driving are two of the most common types of distracted driving accidents, but they are far from the only ones. Other types of distractions include talking with passengers, grooming, eating, daydreaming, scrolling social media, attending to children in the back seat, and fiddling with the radio or GPS device.
Impaired Driving
In 1906, New Jersey was the first state to make drunk driving illegal. Over a century later, there are still about 120 people each year who are killed in DUI accidents, and thousands more are injured. While most accidents are preventable, every single drunk driving accident could have been avoided had the drunk driver not gotten behind the wheel. Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol affects a driver’s decision-making ability, reaction time, and ability to control their vehicle.
Aggressive Driving
Aggressive driving is a broad term that refers to speeding, road rage, cutting in and out of lanes, brake-checking, turning without signaling and more. While aggressive drivers are on the road at all hours of the day, they tend to appear in high numbers when traffic is at its worst.
Drowsy Driving
Studies have shown that driving while tired has the same impact on a driver’s performance and being legally intoxicated. If you’ve ever driven home from Atlantic City in the early morning hours, chances are you’ve witnessed drowsy driving. But it’s not just gamblers and partiers who engage in drowsy driving; hardworking people with two jobs, parents splitting their time between work and child care, and students may also find themselves dozing off behind the wheel.
Poor Decision-Making (i.e., Bad Drivers)
Drivers don’t need to be distracted, drunk, or aggressive to cause an accident; sometimes, they just make bad decisions. While inexperienced drivers are responsible for the largest number of these accidents, older drivers and those who are not comfortable driving can also make a bad decision that ends up causing an accident that seriously hurts someone else.
THE VERBAL THRESHOLD
No-fault car insurance system
In 1988 New Jersey established a no-fault car insurance system. Because of this system, drivers in the state may choose to give up their right to sue for damages in most cases after an accident in exchange for a lower insurance premium. This is called the verbal threshold option.
There is also the zero threshold option, which is a more expensive choice but allows the driver to recover noneconomic damages, such as pain and suffering, after an accident.
The verbal threshold can complicate recovery after a vehicle accident.
Some drivers are not aware of what the two options can mean when they purchase their auto insurance and it may not be sufficiently explained. Although it saves money on annual insurance rates, it can be very expensive in the event of an accident.
A motorist who has chosen the verbal threshold option on their insurance would only be able to recover noneconomic damages after an accident if a permanent injury has occurred, such as:
- Death
- Dismemberment
- Significant scarring
- Loss of a fetus
- Displaced fractures
- Other permanent injury
Demonstrating that a permanent injury has been sustained is sometimes difficult and requires professional, objective medical evidence. This is where the attorneys of Petrillo & Goldberg Law can be of assistance. In fact, most of our vehicle negligence claims involve this type of case.
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856.249.9288
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Recovering After a New Jersey Car Accident
While every accident is different and has a unique impact on a victim’s life, every car accident immediately disrupts a victim’s life, as well as the lives of those they care about. You may have ended up spending days or weeks in the hospital, maybe you needed surgery, and now you’re looking at a lengthy course of physical therapy. If so, your medical treatment alone could end up costing you tens of thousands of dollars. However, if you are able to physically recover from your injuries and resume your life, you’re one of the “lucky” ones because many accident victims suffer from lifelong medical conditions and lingering pain that significantly limits the activities they can enjoy.
Nothing can change what you’ve been through. Nothing can send you back in time. And nothing is going to erase the impact that an accident has on your life. However, through a personal injury lawsuit, you can pursue a claim for financial compensation to ensure that you and your family are not left bearing the financial burden of the accident.
Proving a Personal Injury Claim after a New Jersey Car Accident
To successfully bring a personal injury claim following a car accident, you must prove that the other driver was negligent. In this context, negligence takes on a specific legal meaning, which requires an accident victim to prove four elements.
- The other driver owed the victim a duty of care;
- The other driver violated the duty of care they owed to the victim;
- The other driver’s actions caused the victim’s injuries; and
- The victim suffered economic or non-economic damages as a result of the accident.
In some cases, accident victims can take a “shortcut” by relying on the fact that another driver violated the law. For example, if a drunk driver caused an accident and was cited for impaired driving, there may be a presumption that the drunk driver was negligent because they violated the law prohibiting drunk driving.
How Do New Jersey Courts Handle Accidents Involving Shared Fault?
New Jersey uses a system called “comparative negligence” when determining which accident victims can recover compensation and in what amounts. For example, a car accident victim is legally entitled to pursue a claim for compensation against any negligent driver, provided the accident victim’s percentage of fault was not greater than the other driver’s percentage of fault. Additionally, courts will reduce the victim’s total damages award by their own percentage of fault.
An Example of Comparative Fault
John and Meryl get into an accident after John runs a red light and crashes into the side of Meryl’s car as she’s traveling through an intersection. However, at the time, Meryl had entered the intersection without checking to see if it was clear because she was using her cell phone to text a friend. Meryl suffers a broken leg, misses a few weeks of work, and a jury determines her damages to be $120,000. The jury also found that Meryl was 20 percent at fault for the accident and John was 70 percent at fault. In this case, Meryl would be able to sue John because she was less at fault than John was. However, the court will reduce Meryl’s damages award from $120,000 to $96,000, representing a 20 percent reduction, due to her own fault.
Damages Available Through a New Jersey Car Accident Claim
There are two main types of damages accident victims can obtain following a car accident.
Economic Damages
Economic damages include the out-of-pocket costs an accident victim must pay as a result of the accident. These damages also include any money that an accident victim would have earned if they were not injured in the accident. For example, some of the most common types of economic damages include the following:
- Past and future medical expenses,
- Rehabilitation costs,
- Medical equipment (wheelchairs, crutches, etc.),
- Transportation costs,
- Loss of income,
- Reduced ability to earn income in the future, and
- All other financial losses.
Non-economic Damages
Non-economic damages include the less tangible expenses related to the emotional and psychological that the impact had on the victim’s life. For example, typical non-economic damages in a car accident case may include:
- Pain and suffering,
- Loss of quality of life,
- Loss of familial relationships, and
- Scarring and disfigurement.
It is critical for victims to identify the full extent of their economic and non-economic damages to ensure a full and fair recovery. Otherwise, a victim may settle their case, only to learn that their damages award doesn’t adequately cover their future expenses, leaving them on the hook for a portion of their accident-related expenses.
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856.249.9288
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Our team works together
At Petrillo & Goldberg Law we have a unique, shared approach to every case. Our team works together, with each of our four attorneys handling one stage of service for our clients. For example, when our firm takes a case, a different attorney will handle one stage of service, such as pre-litigation development, deposition, or trial.
This gives each of our clients the advantage of the total pool of knowledge and years of experience of our four attorneys as well as their individual talents. Our team-based method is efficient and highly successful, and it sets our firm apart from the others.
A trusted personal injury firm
This method also allows our lawyers to give each car accident case our full attention. When dealing with an automotive accident, attention to detail is particularly important. There are considerations such as crash damage to vehicles and other property, proper investigation of claims, ascertainment of available insurance coverage and proper medical evidence necessary to prove a verbal threshold claim.
Our team approach method is different from the way other practices do things and that is exactly how we like it. It was developed and perfected here by our own attorneys. That is why no one else does it like we do, and why we are one of the most trusted firms in New Jersey. We serve as referral counsel for vehicle accident and other claims to more than 20 regional law firms.
Speak With an Experienced New Jersey Car Accident Lawyer About Your Case Today
If you or a loved one was recently injured in a New Jersey car accident, the South Jersey injury lawyers at Petrillo & Goldberg are here to help. At Petrillo & Goldberg, we’ve been successfully representing families in motor vehicle accident cases since 1993 and know what it takes to build a successful case. Our skilled negotiators resolve the majority of cases without the need for a long, drawn-out trial, so you can get back to your life as quickly as possible. To learn more, and to schedule a free consultation with one of our New Jersey car accident lawyers, call 856-249-9288 today. Calling is free, and because we take all cases on a contingency basis, we won’t collect a fee for our representation unless we can recover compensation on your behalf.
TRUST
Meet our attorneys
The highly competent lawyers at Petrillo and Goldberg represent clients with personal injury claims, workers compensation claims, slip-and-fall cases and automobile accident victims. We work for you, and take our job of getting the best possible results for you seriously.
Scott M. Goldberg
Steven Petrillo
Scott D. Schulman
NEW JERSEY
6951 North Park Drive
Pennsauken, NJ 08109
70 South Broad Street
Woodbury, NJ 08096
PHILADELPHIA
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