The most basic complicating factor in dealing with the insurance company will be New York’s no-fault accident laws. In most accidents, it doesn’t matter who caused the accident: each party is covered by their own insurer. The only way you can bring a claim against the trucking company and their insurance is if your injuries cross the “serious injury threshold.”
Because of how large trucks are, they tend to cause devastating accidents, so it’s more common for injuries to cross this threshold in truck accidents than with ordinary car accidents. But you can expect insurance companies to push back if at all possible, so you’ll need a lawyer to help you prove you have the right to bring a claim.
One of the most basic difficulties you’ll face after a truck accident is simply the number of potential insurers who could be involved. First, there will be commercial liability insurance, which should cover damage caused either by negligence on the part of the driver or the trucking company. However, the accident may not be completely the fault of the truck driver.
Other vehicles and other drivers could be partially to blame, and then their insurance companies would also get involved. Finally, your own insurance will be involved. Part of the difficulty is simply sorting out who you need to talk to about what and when. That makes having an experienced truck accident lawyer in Queens very useful.
Federal regulations can be a confounding factor. These obviously are not going to apply in your average car accident, but with a truck involved, it will matter whether the driver and the trucking company have been complying with rules governing how long they’re allowed to drive without a break, how loads are to be calculated and placed on the truck, and with rules about maintenance. It can be difficult to sort all these things out, particularly if the driver or trucking company are trying to hide something.
The final and most significant factor is the skill of your lawyer. When you’re dealing with all the complications of a truck accident, you definitely want to work with someone who has experience not just with car accidents generally, but specifically with trucks and the way these accidents play out here in New York.
If you’ve been in a truck accident, call us now at Bardizbanian & Associates, P.C. in Queens, NY at 332-264-5169. An attorney will answer the phone, and we can help you with whatever complication you’re facing.
]]>In many cases, yes—you can still pursue compensation, even if symptoms were delayed.
Car accident injuries don’t always cause immediate pain. After a crash, adrenaline and stress hormones can temporarily mask symptoms. Once those effects fade, inflammation and tissue damage become more noticeable.
Delayed injuries are especially common with soft tissue damage, nerve irritation, and head or spinal injuries.
Some injuries that frequently appear days after a crash include:
Symptoms often include neck pain, stiffness, headaches, and reduced mobility that develop within a few days.
Lower back pain, muscle spasms, or pain that radiates into the legs can indicate disc damage.
Dizziness, nausea, memory problems, confusion, or light sensitivity may not appear immediately.
Sprains, strains, and muscle tears tend to worsen over time as swelling increases.
Abdominal pain, deep bruising, or swelling can signal internal trauma and should be evaluated right away.
Yes. Delayed-onset injuries are medically recognized and legally valid. Insurance companies may argue that the accident didn’t cause your injury, but that does not automatically disqualify your claim.
What matters most is how quickly you act once symptoms appear and whether your medical records connect the injury to the crash.
If symptoms appear after you initially felt fine, you should:
Prompt action helps protect your claim and prevents insurers from questioning the cause of your injuries.
Insurance companies often use delayed symptoms to deny or reduce claims. They may say the injury came from another cause or is not serious.
A lawyer can use medical evidence, timelines, and expert opinions to show that delayed symptoms are consistent with car accident injuries.
New York law has strict deadlines for car accident claims, including short timelines for no-fault insurance benefits. These deadlines apply even if injuries appear later.
Waiting too long can result in losing your right to compensation.
Yes. Delayed-injury cases often require careful documentation and legal strategy. Speaking with a Queens car accident lawyer early can help protect your rights and prevent insurance companies from undervaluing your claim.
If your injuries appeared days after a car accident, you may still have a strong case.
For help, contact Bardizbanian & Associates, P.C., free consultations are available to review your situation and explain your options.
]]>Under New York City law, commercial property owners are generally responsible for maintaining their sidewalks in good condition, which includes removing snow and ice. Residential property owners are not required to clear their sidewalks or maintain them, so long as the property that abuts the sidewalk is no bigger than a three-family residence, the building is only used as a residence, and the owner occupies at least one of the residences.
In other words, if you’re talking about a big apartment building, the owner has to maintain the sidewalk. If it’s a smaller building, it will all depend on how big it is and whether the owner lives there. All owners of properties to which this rule applies are required to carry personal injury and property damage liability insurance.
A property owner is only expected to respond to unsafe conditions within a reasonable amount of time. If snow falls before 9 PM and after 7 AM, most property owners should be allowed four hours from the time the snow stops to get things cleared away. This means if you’re out walking around during an active snowstorm, you should expect conditions to be dangerous and, in most cases, will not be able to hold a property owner liable for a fall.
If the snow falls between 9 PM and 7 AM, property owners don’t have any responsibility to remove it during the night. However, they must do what they can to prevent or deal with icy conditions, such as applying salt.
It’s difficult to bring a lawsuit against the city, but there are a few situations where it might be possible. If there is a public sidewalk that no private business is responsible for, and if the city was notified that it was in a dangerous condition, the city is legally obligated to make it safe again within a reasonable amount of time.
The problem here is proving two things: first, that the city was aware of the unsafe condition, and second, that they did not take action within a reasonable amount of time. Since the city has about 12,000 miles of sidewalk, it’s not reasonable to expect the city to fix any given sidewalk immediately. However, if a report has been made, the city is expected to make some kind of response within a couple of days, even if that response is just to mark the hazard.
Contact us today at Bardizbanian & Associates, P.C. in Queens, NY to get help with your case. We also serve Brooklyn, the Bronx, Long Island, and Manhattan.
]]>If a driver has been violating safety regulations, they can face penalties that escalate quickly with each violation. These can be anything from fines to the suspension or even complete revocation of their CDL license. These violations can include exceeding Hours of Service without taking the proper breaks, manipulating their records, failing a drug or alcohol test, overloading a truck or not securing the load properly, and much more. If a driver has violated these rules, this makes it much more likely they will be held at least partially liable in the event of an accident. To determine who is liable in an accident, you have to establish negligence. Negligence happens when someone owes others a duty of care but violates that duty, and that violation specifically causes an accident or materially contributes to how bad the accident is. For example, if a driver has been violating the rules about how long they can drive without taking a break, even if the accident was initiated by a different vehicle, you may be able to show that the driver was badly fatigued and this caused the accident to be much worse than it would’ve been.
The good news is that violations of trucking regulations are serious matters, and if a driver has been violating regulations, proving negligence can be much more straightforward than it would otherwise be. The bad news is that insurance companies can use an FMCSA violation to deny claims in many cases. Many of the insurance policies in place for truckers will state specifically that violating safety regulations is grounds for denial of coverage. If the insurance company denies coverage, then it may be difficult to recover the full amount of your losses and damages.
Sometimes it’s the individual driver, but sometimes it’s a trucking company. This can have a big effect on liability and what your options are for bringing a personal injury claim.
If the driver is an employee, then the driver’s employer can be held responsible for their actions during the course of normal work. But if the driver is considered self-employed, or an independent contractor, then the company may not be liable.
It’s important to know that many companies incorrectly classify employees as independent contractors to avoid taxes and liability in accidents like this. There are specific tests that can be used to determine whether a person actually qualifies as an independent contractor. If you’ve been in an accident, contact us right away at Bardizbanian & Associates in Queens, NY, where we also serve clients in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Long Island.
]]>You need medical records that document your injuries as close to the time of the accident as possible. These records should include emergency room notes, physician reports, diagnostic imaging results, prescriptions, and any follow-up care details.
Medical documentation provides a timeline, demonstrates the severity of the injury, and connects the accident directly to your injuries. Without timely and consistent medical records, insurance adjusters or defense attorneys may argue that your injuries are unrelated or exaggerated.
If the accident occurred near a business, transit stop, or traffic-controlled area, camera footage may be available. Footage from surveillance systems or intersection cameras can capture the exact moment the impact occurred, the behavior of the driver, the walk signal status, and your position in the roadway.
This form of evidence often eliminates doubt in liability disputes and provides an objective account, but by New York law, this footage is erased or overwritten after a certain period. A dependable attorney will act quickly to preserve this footage.
Photos from the accident scene provide a visual record of the road conditions, weather, lighting, vehicle position, and crosswalk markings. If skid marks, signage issues, or obstructed views contributed to the crash, images taken at the time help make that clear.
We can also use diagrams to recreate the event when necessary, especially in cases where visual evidence is unavailable or unclear. These scene reconstructions support your version of events and help establish the physical dynamics of the incident.
Neutral witnesses play an important role in strengthening your claim. When another pedestrian, driver, or bystander saw the event, their statements can confirm your account or identify if there was illegal driver behavior, such as speeding or phone use while behind the wheel.
Under New York law, eyewitness statements carry significant weight, particularly when liability is contested. We’ll locate, interview, and secure affidavits from witnesses to ensure their recollection is captured before memories fade.
You should obtain the official police report filed after the accident. These reports often contain valuable summaries of the incident, preliminary fault assessments, and information about the driver. If law enforcement noted that the driver failed to yield, drove distracted, or was under the influence, for example, those notations will strongly support your claim.
When you pursue compensation after a pedestrian accident in New York, strong evidence makes a decisive difference. Schedule a consultation with us today at Bardizbanian & Associates, P.C. in Richmond Hill and Queens, NY, to defend your legal rights and pursue the recovery you deserve.
]]>If your injury took place at a business, you need to move quickly to defend your rights. Businesses have a lot of motivation to minimize what happened or try to blame it on you. They may start cleaning up the area the moment the accident is over, so that evidence disappears and you can’t get pictures. They may begin erasing store camera footage, as well. If you talk to a lawyer right away, your lawyer will intervene to make sure that the evidence is preserved. A premises liability lawyer in Queens will be able to challenge the narrative if they try to turn the incident back on you or deny it altogether.
In almost every premises liability case, you’ll end up having to talk to an insurance company at some point. This usually holds true for falls and injuries on both private and non-private property. While you concentrate on recovering from your injuries, your lawyer can do the communicating. Bear in mind that most insurance companies don’t have your best interests at heart. Their goal is to minimize their losses as much as possible. If they can get you to say something that can be used against you to minimize your claim in some way, they will. If you leave the negotiating and the communication to your lawyer, then you have an experienced negotiator to counter them.
You’re going to need evidence to prove your case, and this can be tricky if you had to get medical help immediately after the accident. Once you leave the scene, you don’t know what might happen to the evidence, but even if there are attempts to clear it up, talking with the lawyer as soon as possible is going to be in your best interests. An experienced premises liability attorney knows exactly what evidence to look for and how people try to hide the evidence in these situations. Your lawyer will review footage from cameras, interview witnesses, and work with any expert witnesses that may be needed, like medical professionals or accident reconstruction specialists, to figure out what really happened and present it compellingly to strengthen your claim.
Calculating the full worth of your claim isn’t as simple as it might sound. If you’ve never done it before, it’s easy to leave out something important. Your lawyer has done this before and knows exactly what to include in the claim. You should get compensation for every expense you’ve had to pay, for all your lost income if you couldn’t work, and also for the pain and suffering you’ve had to go through. For help with your premises liability case, reach out to Bardizbanian & Associates, P.C. in Queens, NY today. We also serve clients in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and The Bronx.
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