According to the U.S. Centers for Disease and Prevention (CDC), there were over 24 million physician office visits for unintentional injuries in 2018. Other people's carelessness and misconduct cause many of these injuries, and the victims are often left to live with debilitating injuries and disabilities for the rest of their lives. Filing a personal injury claim can help you recover the expenses and losses incurred due to the injuries.
There are many personal injury cases, from auto accidents — the most common in Dallas and throughout Texas — to product defects and animal bites. Each personal injury case is different because it may require different rules, steps to take when filing a claim, statutes of limitations, and terms of compensation and awards.
Common Types of Personal Injury Claims and Cases
While there are many incidents of personal injury claims and cases, some are more common than others. The Francis Firm is ready to look into the facts of your case and advise you on whether you have a valid claim in Dallas, TX. Most personal injury cases can be put into one of the seven common types of personal injury claims below.
Auto Accident Claims
Motor vehicle accidents, collisions, and crashes are the most common types of personal injury cases in Texas. According to recent data on traffic fatalities released by the Texas Department of Transportation, there were 15,764 serious crashes on Texas roads in 2021, with 19,448 people sustaining severe injuries.
Auto accident claims are further subdivided into the following subtypes of personal injury claims:
- Car accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Truck accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Uber/Lyft accidents
Slip and Fall Claims
Many people do not consider slip-and-fall accidents as serious. On the contrary, falls caused by slipping or tripping are one of the most dangerous accidents and often produce life-altering injuries, such as broken bones, traumatic brain injury, concussions, and neck and spine injuries.
If you experience an injury after slipping or tripping and falling due to a property owner’s negligence, you may be able to receive compensation for damages in a premises liability lawsuit. Property owners and managers must make their premises safe or post a warning for safety hazards they know of or should have known.
Medical Malpractice
Most medical practitioners are skilled, careful, and experienced care providers who take extra precautions to avoid causing any harm to their patients. Unfortunately, even the best doctors can make mistakes (intentional or unintentional) that harm their patients.
If a healthcare provider made a mistake that led to injuries, or worse, the death of a loved one, you may be able to sue them for medical malpractice.
Common forms of medical malpractice include:
- Failing to treat properly diagnose a condition
- Failing to treat a condition
- Recommending treatment that goes against the standard of care
- Incorrect or unnecessary medication
- Incorrect or unnecessary surgery
Assault
Sadly, we live in an increasingly violent society, which is a cause for concern. According to a report published by the Texas Department of Public Safety, there were over one million state-wide incidents of assault in 2021. While a criminal proceeding often follows assault cases, you may also have a right to sue.
Dog Bites
Dog bites and other animal attacks can result in life-altering injuries. Not only are you in danger of a traumatic injury, but a dog bite can also cause a rabies infection.
Typically, Texas applies a “one bite rule,” which means a dog owner could escape liability if the animal had never before demonstrated aggressive retardancies. After that, the dog owner is liable for any dog bite injuries.
Defective Products
Defective products, including defective pharmaceutical products, home appliances, and medical products, can injure or even kill you or a loved one.
Cases involving defective products, also called product liability cases, are a type of personal injury case that uses the strict liability rule instead of the need to prove negligence to determine liability. Generally, in a personal injury claim involving a defective product, you prove strict liability by showing that a product was used for the intended purposes, failed to work as promised (was defective), and the defect caused an injury.
Wrongful Death
Any type of personal injury claim — whether a slip and fall claim or a car accident case — can become a wrongful death claim if the victim dies because of their injuries.
Texas wrongful death laws are rather complex. They allow the decedent's surviving family to obtain compensation for various losses, which is why wrongful death is categorized as a type of personal injury case.
If you don’t see your exact type of personal injury case above, that does not mean you don’t have a case. The list above is not exhaustive.
The experienced Dallas personal injury lawyers at The Francis Firm specialize in all matters related to personal injury law. If you or a loved one has been injured and believe the injury was caused by another’s actions or omissions, get in touch today for a free consultation with our injury attorneys.
The Francis Firm Has Experience Handling All Types of Personal Injury Claims
Now that you are familiar with the common types of personal injury cases, the odds are that you have more questions. For example, how do you file your personal injury claim in Dallas? Do all types of personal injury claims in Texas have the same statute of limitations? Or, if I don’t see my type of case listed above, do I still have a case? The Francis Firm can help answer these questions and any other concerns. Our skilled Dallas personal injury lawyers have years of experience representing the rights and interests of personal injury victims. Please get in touch with The Francis Firm today to schedule your free consultation with a personal injury lawyer in Dallas, TX, that residents trust for quality legal assistance.