St. Louis Injury Law Journal : St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Aaron Farmer Law Firm : Car Accidents, Medical Malpractice : Missouri, Jefferson County

If you are injured in a Missouri hit and run accident you should call the police and wait at the scene of the accident until a law enforcement officer tell you it’s ok to leave. Whether a car wreck involves a pedestrian, a moving car, a parked car, or someone’s property, you must stop and report the accident or you can be charged with hit and run even if the accident was not your fault. Hit and run penalties are severe. Depending on the damage or injuries, you may be fined, sent to jail, or both. You also could lose your driver’s license. Under no circumstances should you attempt to follow someone leaving the scene of an accident because you will not be able to return to the scene of the accident to have a police report taken.

A hit-and-run accident occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, a pedestrian or an object, and the driver of the offending vehicle drives away without stopping first. The general reasons why a driver leaves the scene of a car accident at which there were at fault are they’re scared, intoxicated, or uninsured. If you're the victim of a hit and run car accident, you should call the police as quickly as possible, and report the incident to your insurance company. An accurate police report will be vital to the success of your case. Be sure to ask the officers to take the statements of the other drivers and witnesses. In addition, you should take pictures of your damaged car.

If you are injured in a Missouri hit and run accident, you may be able to make a claim under your own accident insurance policy if you have uninsured motorists' coverage. If the hit and run driver was in a work vehicle, or on a work errand, you may be able to pursue a claim against the employer or vehicle owner. 

In the State of Missouri, leaving the scene of an accident is a misdemeanor unless anyone was hurt in the car wreck, or if the amount of property damage will exceed a thousand dollars, or if the driver has been found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident before. In that case, a hit and run becomes a Class D felony.

For the above reasons, it is imperative that drivers follow the instructions laid out by the Missouri Department of Revenue when involved in any Missouri auto collision:

1. Help anyone who is hurt. Contact the police. 
2. Use flares, reflectors, or flashlights if the accident happened at night or in bad weather to warn other traffic. 
3. Exchange name, address, driver license number, vehicle identification, license plate number, name of insurance company, and policy number with everyone involved. 
4. Do not leave the accident until a law enforcement officer tells you that you may.

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Lately I’ve received quite a few questions regarding lawyer fees. While there are numerous ways to structure payment of attorney fees, I have highlighted some of the most common below.

A contingency fee means the attorney get a percentage of the total settlement.  Contingency fee’s typically range from 25% to 50% of the entire settlement. The fee is usually the first deduction from the overall settlement. For example, if a St. Louis auto collision case settles for $10,000, and the attorney fee is 35%, the attorney will receive the first $3,500 of the settlement. In most Missouri car wreck cases a contingency fee is used. In this type of agreement the attorney usually finances the cost of litigation including medical records fees, filing fees, copying fees, expert witness fee’s, and much more. At the conclusion of the case, the attorney is reimbursed for all expenses out of the settlement.

A flat fee is when the attorney handles a matter for one flat fee. So, if an attorney quotes you $2,000 to handle a case, then this is how much you will pay, regardless of the amount of work the attorney does. If the attorney does two hours of work, he makes a lot of money for two hours of work. If he takes 200 hours to do the work, he is making close to minimum wage. But you always know how much you are going to pay.

Most people are familiar with the concept of paying an attorney by the hour. Typically a retainer ($3,000 to $5,000) is paid up front. As the attorney works on your case, deductions are taken from your retainer on a monthly or quarterly basis. Time is typically rounded up in increments of a quarter or sixth of an hour. Most retainer agreements have a written component detailing how time is computed and when payments will be taken from the retainer. Any portion of the retainer leftover at the conclusion of the case is returned to the client.

A hybrid attorney fee is any combination of the above attorney fees or any other thing you can think of. I’ve heard stories that lawyers accept jewelry and other consumer goods as payment. A more realistic example of a hybrid fee is a flat fee for up to a specified amount of work, and if the case turns out to require more work then an hourly fee will be charged thereafter. Another example is a flat fee with a contingency fee on any settlement, which is typically how social security/disability cases are handled.

This overview covers the major types of attorney fees. While only contingency fee agreements are required to be in writing under Missouri law, it’s always best to have an agreement for legal services in writing. Always make sure you get a copy of the signed attorney-client fee agreement. Most bar associations have attorney fee arbitration programs where clients can attempt to settle disputes with their attorneys over compensation.

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Drunk drivers causing accidents can face both criminal and civil charges for their actions. In Missouri, anyone harmed in an auto collision caused by the negligence of another can sue to recover for pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages.   If a drunk driving accident results in a fatality, the family or estate of the deceased victim may pursue a wrongful death claim against the drunk driver. The St. Louis metropolitan area has recently seen a spike in drunk driving auto collisions.

Under Missouri law, drivers owe the highest duty of care to other motorists. This means that if you are driving on a publicly maintained road, you must drive very carefully the same way a prudent person would in the same or similar circumstances.   A drunk driving accident is not only against the law, a very careful driver would never drink and drive. Drinking and driving clearly violates this standard of driving. If a driver violates this duty of care and causes damages, a negligence lawsuit may be filed to put the injury victim back in the place they would have been prior to the drunk driving collision.

In some cases, an additional party may be added to the lawsuit. In many states, businesses that provide alcohol to an intoxicated person who subsequently causes a drunk driving accident are subject to liability under Dram Shop liability. The business must knowingly provide alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person to be held accountable for their actions. 

Unfortunately, drunk driving accidents are becoming more common in Missouri. In many drunk driving collisions immediate steps must be taken adequately to preserve evidence. If you or a loved one has been injured by a drunk driver, protect yourself by consulting with an experienced Missouri accident lawyer as soon as possible.

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Many people suffer whiplash injuries as a result of a rear-end car accident. During this type of wreck, the head of anyone in the vehicle that was rear-ended is forcefully jolted back, and then forward, causing damage to the structure of both the front and the back of the neck. This kind of violent movement can lead to extreme stretching, compression and shifting of structures in the spine, ligaments, muscles, and nerve tissues, especially if twisting also occurs. Driving speed during a rear end auto accident does not determine the severity of a whiplash injury. Rather, the force at which the back and neck are jolted determines the severity of a whiplash injury. Many whiplash victims do not seek immediate medical treatment because they only feel shaken up and do not believe medical attention is necessary.

The movement of the spine is guided by neck vertebrae that are made of posterior joints called facets that link each vertebrae. The discs linking the bodies of vertebrae together are composed of a dense cartilage that covers a soft material in the center. These discs act as shock absorbers and spacers between the vertebrae. In a canal positioned between the body and facets of the vertebrae is the spinal cord. Spinal nerves leave the spine between the vertebrae and supply energy to the muscles and organs of the body. The nerves that exit from the neck are responsible for the entire upper extremity including the shoulder, elbow and hand, as well as structures of the head and neck.

Even at low speeds, the amount of force placed on the spinal cord in a rear-end car accident can be very strong and can cause damage to the ligaments, muscles, facet joints, discs, and spinal nerves. In additional to neck pain and immobility, symptoms of whiplash include headaches, nausea, vertigo, arm and shoulder pain, and tingling in the hands and fingers. Rear-end auto accident victims should get an x-ray as soon as possible to rule out the possibility of a fracture. However, in most cases whiplash injuries are mainly to soft tissues and joints.

If you have been injured in a rear-end auto accident seek medical attention immediately and consult an experienced Missouri Car Wreck Lawyer to ensure you receive all the compensation you are entitled to.

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A Personal Injury is any physical or mental injury to a person as a result of someone's careless or harmful act. Sometimes personal injury may be referred to as bodily injury. If the only damage in your case is that your car got dented or scratched, then you don’t have a personal injury case –you may have a property damage case. Many people are able to resolve property damage claims without a lawyer. In most cases your own insurance company will resolve the property damage for you.

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