Hillsboro Car Accident Lawyer

Being involved in a car accident is one of the most traumatic experiences that can change your life in an instant. The more serious the accident is, the greater the chance of suffering severe and debilitating injuries that can leave you unable to work and facing costly medical bills and a long-term recovery period. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be eligible to recover compensation for your losses.

I received great advice pertaining to my case and felt that Mr. Rizk and Sam Pope worked hard to accomplish the best results in my favor.
– Client of Rizk Law

At Rizk Law, our dedicated Hillsboro auto accident lawyers understands the difficulties that car accident victims face and are ready to assist during their time of need. We will devote our skills and resources to helping you recover the compensation you deserve. Our law office is conveniently located just off of Interstate 5, which connects to U.S. Highway 26, passing through the northern edge of Hillsboro, Oregon’s fifth-largest city.

Let us review your case and discuss your legal options during a free, no-obligation consultation. We do not charge any upfront fees unless we help you recover fair compensation for your case.

Free Consultation. Call 503.245.5677.

Why Hire a Car Accident Lawyer in Hillsboro, Oregon?

Injured drivers that hire a lawyer recover more financial compensation when compared to other injured drivers that do not hire an attorney.

Help You Build a Strong Case

Our knowledgeable lawyers can inform you of your rights after an accident and will work hard to build a strong case on your behalf by collecting police and accident scene reports, gathering medical records to show the full extent of your injuries, reconstructing the accident scene to obtain an accurate account of the accident, interviewing witnesses present at the time of your accident, and working with medical experts who can testify to the severity of your injuries. We will gather all of these critical pieces of evidence and more to show that the other driver is at fault for your accident.

Handle the Insurance Companies

We will also handle all communications with the other driver’s insurance company to help ensure that your claim is being fairly evaluated. Our firm has years of experience negotiating with insurance adjusters to reach favorable settlements for our clients. It is not unusual for an insurer to offer you less than you deserve. After all, an insurer is only looking out for its best interests. We will only accept an offer that accurately reflects the damages you have suffered and will not hesitate to help you file a lawsuit and pursue other additional options if need be.

Fill out our Free Case Evaluation form to get started.

Deadline to File a Lawsuit

Sometimes you cannot obtain fair compensation from a car insurance company after an accident. When this happens, your last resort may be to file a personal injury lawsuit to pursue compensation.

However, Oregon has a two-year statute of limitations to file a personal injury lawsuit after a car accident, according to ORS 12.110. It is critical that you act fast to meet this two-year limit. Failing to do so will likely result in your case being dismissed, and you will lose the right to obtain compensation for your case.

You should not hesitate to consult with a skilled personal injury lawyer in Hillsboro to help ensure your claim is filed with the deadline. The faster you contact us, the faster we can get to work pursuing insurance compensation – this will also give us more time to file a lawsuit before the statute of limitations runs out. Our firm is aware of the statute of limitations for personal injury claims and will work to ensure your claim is filed on time.

Complete our Free Case Evaluation form today.

Compensation After a Car Accident

After a car accident, many victims incur various financial damages. This is made worse if you are unable to work and earn money due to your injury.

Our Hillsboro auto accident attorneys understand the financial burdens people suffer after car crashes and may be able to help you recover compensation for these damages, including:

Economic Damages

These types of damages are monetary losses you have suffered after an accident, such as:

  • Past and future medical expenses
  • Lost wages or income
  • Loss of earning capacity
  • Property damage
  • Long-term care assistance
  • Rehabilitation services

Non-Economic Damages

Under certain situations, you may be entitled to recover non-economic damages. This is compensation for losses that do not have a set economic value such as:

  • Pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress
  • Loss of companionship
  • Disability and disfigurement
  • Loss of enjoyment of life

However, your ability to obtain compensation for your injury will be determined by your percentage of fault in the accident. Oregon’s contributory negligence law states that you can recover compensation if you are found to be less than 50 percent at fault. If you are more than 50 percent at fault you will be barred from obtaining compensation, no matter how severe your injury.

During your free consultation, our car accident lawyers in Hillsboro will review your claim to determine the strength of your case against the other driver. If we conclude that you may be entitled to compensation, we will relentlessly pursue your case to recover what you deserve.

We look forward to helping you. Call 503.245.5677.

Reporting a Car Accident in Oregon

If you are involved in car accident in Oregon, you must report your accident to Driver and Motor Vehicle Services (DMV) within 72 hours by filing an Oregon Traffic Accident and Insurance Report. State law requires any drivers involved in the accident to file the report if the accident caused:

  • More than $2,500 in damage to your vehicle
  • More than $2,500 in damage to any one person’s property
  • A vehicle to get towed from the scene as a result of the damage
  • Injury to any person (no matter how minor)
  • The death of any person

If the accident resulted in damages less than $2,500 and the other driver is found not to have car insurance, you can still report the accident to the DMV.

Oregon Revised Statutes 811.725, 811.730 and 811.735 also outline the consequences of failing to report an accident. Drivers and owners of a vehicle would be committing a Class B traffic violation.

The accident report must contain the following details:

  • Names, address and phone numbers of all drivers and occupants involved
  • Driver’s license numbers for any driver involved in the accident
  • License plate numbers and registration information for all vehicles
  • Insurance information and contact details for the insurer of a driver or occupant
  • Date, location and time of the accident
  • Weather, road or light conditions during the accident

To obtain a copy of the police report, you must fill out the Public Records Request Form. You would need to include the date, time and location of the accident, the case number, and the names of the persons involved. This form must be returned to the Hillsboro Police Department either in person or via mail to 250 SE 10th Avenue. Requests usually take at least 24 hours to process.

Our Hillsboro car accident attorneys can make sure that you have filed all the necessary paperwork needed to obtain compensation for your injury. We have helped many car accident victims through this process and can guide you every step of the way.

Call Rizk Law today by calling 503.245.5677.

Car Insurance Requirements

Oregon legally requires all drivers to carry the following types of car insurance coverage:

Liability Insurance

This type of insurance helps to cover the costs of any injuries to another person or property damage sustained in an accident that you caused. You must have a minimum of $25,000 in bodily injury coverage per person and $50,0000 in total bodily injury coverage per accident to pay for medical expenses. This is in addition to $20,000 for property damage coverage to pay for damage to the other driver’s vehicle.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

Your car insurance policy must also include a minimum of $15,000 in PIP coverage per person injured in the crash and covered by the policy. This coverage pays for medical bills and other living expenses, such as ongoing lost wages, medication and in-home assistance care while you are recovering from a car accident.  

Uninsured Motorist Coverage

This type of insurance helps to cover your medical expenses if you are involved in a car accident with an uninsured driver or one whose policy is not worth enough to cover your costs. However, it does not cover any damages to your vehicle. You must have a minimum of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident.

If an insurer has wrongfully denied a medical bill or wage loss payment, you should consider consulting with an attorney. He or she can draft a demand letter detailing your side of the story, the value of your property damage, medical expenses and other damages you sustained and why the other driver is liable for the accident.

Complete a Free Case Evaluation form today.

Proving Negligence in a Car Accident Case

Before our lawyers can take legal action against the other driver involved in your accident, we must be able to prove that his or her negligence resulted in your injury. In order to do this, we must prove the four elements of negligence:

  • Duty of care – We need to establish that the other driver owed you a duty of care to protect you from any injury or harm. In other words, the other driver needed to take reasonable steps to ensure your safety and the safety of others on the road.
  • Breach of duty – We need to show that the other driver failed to uphold his or her duty of care and caused you harm by failing to act as a reasonable person would in a similar situation. For instance, a driver who is using a cellphone while driving or decides to run a red light is breaching the duty of care.
  • Causation – We need to establish that the other driver’s breach of the duty of care was directly linked to your injuries. For example, in a drunk driving crash we would need to prove that if the driver had been sober the crash would not have happened.
  • Damages – We need to show that you suffered monetary damages as a result of the accident caused by the other driver’s actions. This could include financial damages related to medical expenses or loss of income.

A Hillsboro car accident attorney can conduct a thorough investigation into your claim to review everything that occurred before and during your accident. If we can determine that the accident was caused by the other driver’s negligence, you may be able to obtain compensation for your losses.

Call 503.245.5677 now for our free consultation.

Types of Car Accident Cases We Handle

Many car accidents are caused by negligent drivers. We are ready to represent clients who have been injured in many types of accidents that resulted from negligence, including:

If you or someone you love has been involved in a car accident, contact a qualified Hillsboro car accident attorney who can explore your legal options and help with your claim.

Call Rizk Law now at 503.245.5677 to get started on your claim.

Contact Our Hillsboro Car Accident Lawyers

If a driver fails to operate his or her vehicle safely and causes a car accident that results in you suffering injuries, you should not hesitate to contact our Hillsboro car accident lawyers for a free consultation. We can help identity the cause of your accident and bring the at-fault driver to justice for your injury. We are also committed to recovering fair compensation for your damages.

All of our services are provided on a contingency fee basis, which means we only charge legal fees if we obtain fair compensation for your case.

Our team is here for you. Call 503.245.5677 right now.

Frequently Asked Questions About Car Accidents in Hillsboro, OR

Yes, you can still recover car accident damages even if you were not wearing a seatbelt. However, your damages can be reduced up to 5% if it is proven that not wearing a seatbelt contributed to injuries. Again, the injured person will not receive any damages if the injured person is 51% or more at fault.

Car accident awards in Hillsboro are not as great as in Multnomah County as the juror pool in Washington county tends to be more conservative. Evidence of significant impact and bad acts of the other driver (such as road rage, driving without a license or drunk driving) can drive up awards if the judge allows such evidence to be admitted. Pain and suffering claims for car accidents cannot exceed $500,000 per person.

Your property damage rights are the same all over Oregon. What matters is not where in Oregon the property damages occurred, but what insurance is available to cover the loss. Collision coverage (insurance to cover the damage to a car) is not required in Oregon. First look to your own auto insurance policy (see the declarations page) to check to determine whether you purchased collision coverage. If so, ask your own insurance company to pay for property damage to your car.

If you do not have property damage coverage, you can ask the other insurance company to pay for the damage. But allowing the opposing insurance company to fix your car is not always in your best interest as you have no contract (insurance policy) with the other driver’s insurance company, which may make it easier for the opposing insurance company to cut corners when repairing. It’s rarely a good idea to give your car to the other side if you were injured in the crash as the opposing insurance company may use those property damage photos to call into question injuries.