An aspect of our South Carolina law practice is to help clients who have been seriously injured in car accidents. These injuries can occur in the blink of an eye but often have lifelong consequences. Sometimes accident victims assume that their medical treatment or rehabilitation will be covered by their insurance policy or that of another driver, but insurance companies often go to great lengths to minimize payouts and even try to shift blame onto injured parties. In these cases, a personal injury lawsuit may be necessary for an injured person to get the medical care that he or she needs and deserves.
A teenager who was seriously injured in a 2011 car accident recently named the driver’s father in a lawsuit. The young plaintiff still suffers from permanent injuries resulting from the crash, and she seeks compensation for medical bills and other damages, according to the suit.
The 17-year-old driver, who died in the crash, lost control of her vehicle and collided with a tree. Several other teens were in the car at the time, and one injured passenger told police that he, the driver and another passenger were drinking liquor in the hours leading up to the accident. Other witnesses told investigators that the driver had been drinking earlier that day.
The lawsuit claims negligence and recklessness on the part of the driver, as well as negligence on the part of her father for allowing her to operate a vehicle. Shortly after the accident, the driver’s father reportedly set up a fund to help the other injured parties, but apparently the donations came to only about $2,000, all of which was given to another passenger who was paralyzed as a result of the crash.
The case illustrates how plaintiffs can still seek compensation if the driver who caused the crash is no longer living. If you would like to learn more about personal injury law in South Carolina, our Myrtle Beach auto accident page may prove helpful.
Source: heraldonline.com, “Teen injured in SC crash sues driver’s dad,” Matt McNab, June 28, 2013