Phoenix Defective Brakes Attorneys

When you drive your vehicle, you expect its parts to function normally. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen. If you have defective brakes, you could drive into oncoming traffic, cause an accident, and suffer serious injuries. You could also face high medical bills or missed work, leaving you with financial stress.

If you sustained injuries from an accident caused by defective brakes lawyer in Phoenix, you could seek compensation from the liable party. While deciding whether you want to secure an attorney’s help, it’s good to know about how brake accident cases work in general. Here, you can get the answers you need to make decisions about your case.

You Have Legal Options After Defective Brakes Cause an Accident

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has recalled 66 million defective car parts over the decades. Brakes comprise a significant portion of that amount. Yet, even if your car’s brakes weren’t recalled (and defective brakes led to your accident), you can still file a claim or lawsuit to recover what you need.

For instance, you could file a product liability lawsuit against the brake’s manufacturer. Here, you would assert that because the brakes didn’t work, you suffered injuries and losses. You could also file a personal injury claim or lawsuit against the driver who caused the collision. In this scenario, you would assert that because another party acted carelessly, you have damages.

The Reason for the Brake’s Failure Determines Liability

Brakes can fail for many reasons. Sometimes, natural wear and tear over the years causes failure. Although, in some cases, brakes have defects from the start. When companies that make motor vehicles realize their vehicles have defective brakes, they send out a recall. When a recall gets sent out, owners of the vehicle can take it to the repair shop to get a new part.

Examples of brake defects include:

• The vehicle has missing brake pads or other components.
• The components around the brakes easily overheat.
• The person who installed the brakes installed them improperly.
• The company that manufactured the brakes used low-quality materials.
• Cracks in the brake drum or disc begin to enlarge and cause problems.

Regardless of how brakes become defective, they can cause significant issues when they fail. What’s more, you have legal options for seeking justice and compensation.

Who Caused the Collision Plays a Vital Role in Your Brake Failure Case?

Depending on how the car accident happened and how the brakes failed, several people or entities could have liability. An attorney can investigate the accident to identify who should pay for your losses. The evidence they find can also strengthen your case.

Possible liable parties in your brake failure accident case could include:

The Vehicle’s Owner

Your collision may have involved you and another motorist. Liability could fall on the other vehicle’s owner in several scenarios. First, if they knew the brakes had issues and failed to fix them, they could hold liability.

For example, if the vehicle owner notices any of the following and doesn’t act, you could hold them liable for the accident:

• Their brake light went on.
• Their brakes made grinding or screeching sounds regularly.
• Their vehicle started to move to one side when they used the brakes.
• Their brake fluid started leaking.
• They noticed a burning smell when braking.

Also, if the vehicle owner receives a notice about a recall for their brakes and ignores it, liability for the accident could fall on them.

A Vehicle’s Manufacturer

Liability could fall on a vehicle’s manufacturer if it failed to outfit a car with proper brakes. Therefore, vehicle manufacturers must conduct quality control checks to ensure the parts they put in their vehicles work. If not, they must replace them or make a swift recall to warn their consumers.

A Brakes Manufacturer

Some car manufacturers rely on third-party manufacturers to make brakes. Sometimes, however, these companies prioritize making parts quickly and cheaply, without much regard for quality. When brakes fail, the manufacturer of the brakes could hold liability.

An Auto Repair Mechanic

Sometimes, liability falls on the mechanic who recently installed the brakes or worked on the vehicle. If they didn’t install the brakes correctly or put the right part in, you could file a claim against the mechanic or their employer.

Determining liability for a collision caused by brake failure can get confusing. Instead of serving as your own investigator, you may instead choose to partner with a lawyer. They can investigate the collision, review all available evidence, and pursue the correct party for damages.

Other Parties Could Have Liability Outside of the Brakes Manufacturer

At first glance, it may seem like the brakes manufacturer has liability for your losses. Yet, an investigation into the matter may reveal multiple liable parties, such as a government agency. If multiple parties have liability for your losses, things can get complicated. They may try blaming each other for the collision or even joining forces to blame you. A lawyer can defend you from these allegations and pursue what you need.

Damages You Could Recover Through Legal Action

Once an attorney identifies the liable party in your defective brakes case in Phoenix, they can work on identifying the damages you incurred. A settlement or court award could offer compensation for your past, present, and future losses.

Compensable damages include:

Lost Income and Other Job-Related Revenue Streams

A large loss you could face includes a loss of your income. Whether you get paid hourly or earn a salary, you could lose potential earnings if you have to miss work because of an injury. While you might have a lot of paid time off (PTO) saved up, your injuries could still require you to stay out of work longer than the days you have.

In this case, you could seek lost:

• Tips
• Bonuses
• Commissions
• Benefits
• Hourly earnings

An attorney may review your employment records and pay stubs to learn how the accident has affected your lost income. What’s more, they may even consult with experts in your field of employment to accurately summarize your expenses.

Future Loss of Earning Capacity

If your injuries require rest and recovery after your case settles, you could include future lost income in your claim. Receiving compensation for future lost income could cover any medical bills after your claim settles. Your injuries could require medical care for years. It’s important to include that in your claim, so you get the money you need.

Medical Bills

Medical bills can comprise a significant portion of your claim’s overall value. Seeking compensation for the medical expenses you accrued could help your financial state significantly.

They could include:

• The cost of receiving emergency room care
• Any diagnostic tests your healthcare team performed
• The cost of going to an urgent care doctor
• Out-of-pocket costs, such as assistive mobility devices or emergency room
• The cost of ambulance transportation
• Surgeries
• Bandages or any over-the-counter medications

Keeping any receipts, hospital bills, and other documentation regarding your medical care could help your case. An attorney can provide guidance on what to keep, so you have evidence proving you incurred these losses.

Property Damage Expenses

The defective brakes accident may have totaled or seriously damaged your car. Now, you may have to rely on alternative forms of transportation to get to and from various obligations. Anything you lost to get from point A to point B is compensable. Like your other economic damages, your lawyer may use receipts and billing statements to learn what you’re owed.

Non-Economic Damages, Including Pain and Suffering

Non-economic damages could compensate you for the emotional turmoil your injuries caused. Also, they can compensate you for the physical pain you endured.

Non-economic damages may include:

• Pain and suffering: Your injuries could cause physical pain that you deal with every day. If you deal with ongoing pain or discomfort because of your injuries, you could seek compensation for this hardship.
• Mental anguish: Your injuries or the trauma from the accident itself could cause emotional pain and suffering. Traumatic events can trigger psychological issues that could require help from a trained professional.
• Loss of consortium. You may have lost a spouse as a result of the collision. If so, you can include the loss of their love and society in your case’s overall value.

Pain and suffering damages refer to non-economic losses, meaning they don’t have a monetary value tied to them. Because these damages get quantified subjectively, it helps to have an attorney calculate their value.

Considerations After Suffering an Accident Caused by Brake Failure in Phoenix

Your health and well-being are paramount after any collision. Seek medical care from a professional and heed their instructions. Be sure to take all medications as prescribed and limit your physical activity, if suggested by your physician.

Other considerations that could bolster your claim or lawsuit’s outcome include:

• Keeping all information related to your case. When you work with a lawyer, they can gather evidence and investigate another party’s liability. Yet, you may also have information that could bolster your case, including written communications between yourself and the insurance company.
• Refusing to give a recorded statement. The insurance company may demand that you give a recorded statement. This conversation does not benefit you. It only gives the claims adjuster more information that could jeopardize your case. When you work with a defective brakes claims lawyer, they can supply all the necessary information.
• Getting legal help. You don’t have to manage the claims process alone. Instead, you can partner with an attorney who can pursue the damages you need. Because of the state’s statute of limitations, it’s in your best interest to consider your legal options sooner rather than later. If the statute of limitations expires before you file a lawsuit, you won’t recover damages.

Why Hire Gallagher Kennedy?

• We understand auto accident lawsuits and have years of experience in this practice area. Our personal injury attorneys are confidently confronting manufacturers and other parties in and out of the courtroom.
• We have obtained record-setting results for past clients across many types of cases. We have represented clients during some of the highest-profile claims in the country.
• We believe our relationships with our clients are what matter most. We go the extra mile to connect with our clients, making sure they know we are here for them every step of the way.
• We have Phoenix defective brakes attorneys who operate on a contingency fee basis. You will not pay a penny out of your pocket for our representation, win or lose.

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Gallagher & Kennedy — Phoenix Office

2575 E Camelback Rd, Suite 1100
Phoenix, AZ 85016
Tel: (602) 530-8400