Virginia Personal Injury Lawyers

If you were hurt in an accident that was not your fault, you may be entitled to compensation. Car accidents and incidents that are the results of someone else's negligence, recklessness, or carelessness, are all considered personal injury claims. If you have a personal injury claim, then you need a team of layers and staff members that have the experience and the knowledge to help you and your family recover, both physically as well as the monetary compensation for the injuries that you have sustained.

Joe Blaszkow has been fighting for injured people all over Virginia for almost four decades. He defends injured people, and protects their rights with passion and zeal. He and his team are committed to providing the dedicated and individual representation that clients want and need.

Blaszkow Legal is based in Alexandria, but we handle personal injury cases all over Virginia, from Alexandria to Fredericksburg and Richmond, to smaller communities such as Woodbridge, Lorton, Sterling, Herndon, and beyond. From Fairfax County to Fauquier County, from Arlington to Appomattox, Blaszkow Legal is here to help you.

Our firm handles cases both big and small, from fender benders to fatal car accidents. With the help of virtual intake software, we can speak to clients all over the Commonwealth, and provide the same representation anywhere, as we do the people who live next door.

Call Blaszkow Legal today, and get our experienced team of Virginia personal injury lawyers on your side to help you get all of the compensation that you deserve. Call 703-879-5910, or contact us via our website for a free consultation.

Personal injury cases and Insurance Adjusters

Many clients come to us, after they have hit a dead end in speaking with the insurance company and their insurance adjusters. You should never, ever speak to an insurance company without the benefit of an attorney! Insurance adjusters are chosen through a rigorous process, and they are very highly trained to sound very sweet and very friendly, like they're only goal is to help you with your claim. This could not be farther from the truth!

Insurance adjusters work for insurance companies. Insurance companies report to their stockholders, and their business model is not to get you the compensation that you deserve. Instead, their goal is to get information from you that they can use to attack your claim. They will chip at one piece at a time, until they are able to minimize your claim, or deny it outright. They have the ability to lull you into a false sense of security through false empathy and sweet voices. Some insurance adjusters will openly suggest that people don't need an attorney, and that "you get to keep more money" for yourself.

The truth is that insurance adjusters know that once a lawyer is involved, the average claim value triples! They are betting on the statistics that show that almost 65% of people who are involved in personal injury incidents, such as car accidents, do not call an attorney until it's too late, if at all.

Information gathered by the Insurance Companies

Insurance adjusters will do many things to trick you so that they can get the information they need to minimize your claim. They will often convince you to take a recorded statement, but this statement will be used as ammunition to begin shipping away at your claim, and your damages. Insurance adjusters will also get you to sign medical release forms (called HIPAA waivers), so that they can get your medical records. They are doing this so that they can use your records to show that you had some pre-existing r injury, and thus allow them to argue that any injuries you want to claim from the accident were already there!

Insurance adjusters also offer small, lump sum settlements immediately, sometimes aggressively. They do this because they recognize that you do not know everything that you can claim in your case. But as soon as you accept that money, and as soon as you sign the settlement release, you have waived any future claim. Don't sign your rights away! Call Blaszkow Legal, so we can help you determine the true value of your case, and get you the compensation that you deserve.

Kinds of personal injury cases we handle

Blaszkow Legal handles all manner of personal injury cases all over Virginia. We have personal injury lawyers that can help you today! Some of the cases that we work include:

• Car accidents

• Bus accidents

• Bicycle accidents

• Distracted driving accidents

• DUI/Drunk driving crashes

• Motorcycle accidents

• Pedestrian accidents

• Premises liability claims

• Slip and Falls

• Spinal cord injuries

• Traumatic brain injuries

• Truck accidents

• Uber, Lyft, and Rideshare accidents

• Wrongful death claims

• Worker's compensation Third party liability claims

Negligence in Virginia

In order to pursue a claim for personal injury, whether a Virginia car accident, or a Virginia slip and fall, we have to be able to prove negligence. Negligence is defined, generally, as someone failing to do something that they should have done in that situation, or doing something that they should not have - that is, doing something wrong. One of the concerns in a negligence case is duty. Does the at fault party have a duty to you?

Fault is also a concern. Virginia is a contributory negligence jurisdiction, meaning that a person who is injured cannot pursue a claim if the injured person is even partially responsible for the accident. This is sometimes called pure negligence, and also "the 1% rule." The other person has to have been negligent, and you cannot have been negligent at all. DC and Maryland are also jurisdictions that practice contributory negligence.

Because of this very high standard, many insurance companies use this argument to attack clients' cases. This is one reason of many why it is so important to talk to an experienced Virginia personal injury lawyer right away.

Damages arising from Virginia Personal Injury Claims

After an incident where you have been injured as the result of someone else's negligence, you have the right to claim your damages. Damages are referred to in two different parts: economic damages and a non-economic damages. Economic damages are also called "specials," or "special damages." They have an objective financial value, that is often proven with documented evidence, such as medical bills and prescription receipts. Non-economic damage are subjective, and they vary from case to case, and person to person. Examples of non-economic damages are pain and suffering, and scarring.

Some of the damages that make up part of a personal injury claim include:

• Medical expenses

• Prescription expenses

• Future medical expenses

• Time lost from work

• Future lost wages

• Loss of earning capacity

• Property damage

• Diminished value

• Pain and suffering

• Emotional anguish

• Trauma inconvenience

• Loss of enjoyment of life

• Punitive damages

Note: punitive damages can only be obtained in certain situations, as outlined by statute, and at law. One of the more common incidents where punitive damages can be claimed is in a DUI accident, where the drunk drivers blood alcohol content was twice the legal limit, or more.

The statute of limitations in Virginia

Virginia Code 8.01-243(A) generally gives an injured person 2 years from the date of their accident to file a lawsuit for their injuries. The statute of limitations is slightly different for a wrongful death claim. In this circumstance, the date of the statute calculation is the date of death, rather than the date of the accident.

If the person injured is a minor, then the two year period does not begin to run until the minor becomes 18.

However, there are other circumstances when the there are timelines that have to be met, other than the statute of limitations. If for example, your claim is against a state or local government, or the Federal government, state and federal law imposes a notice deadline (this deadline is not universal, but different depending on who the claim is against). If the notice deadline is not met, regardless of the time you file the lawsuit, your claim will be barred by law. Always contact an attorney as soon as possible after an accident or personal injury incident.

Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer in Virginia today

If you have been involved in an accident that was not your fault, or you have lost a family member due to someone else's negligence, you should never fight alone. Call an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. Blaszkow Legal has been helping people all over Virginia recover their damages, and hold negligent parties accountable. Our team of attorneys, paralegals, and investigators are ready and willing to fight for you, just as hard as the insurance companies are fighting against you.

Call us at 703-879-5910, or email us through our website to schedule a free consultation.

Get Justice with Joe!