Mississauga Personal Injury Lawyers
Peel Region has one of the highest collision rates in the GTA. Recent stats show that there are more than 6,000 reported car accidents per year in Peel, or nearly 440 motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) per 100,000 people. According to the region’s Vision Zero Road Safety Strategic Plan, approximately 1,000 of these motor vehicle accidents result in injury or death. In fact, Mississauga has been ranked twentieth on a list of the country’s least-safe cities, according to Allstate’s Safe Driving Study. There are a number of different reasons for the high incidence of collisions in the region, including aggressive drivers, impaired drivers, and distracted drivers. Some accidents can be attributed to winter weather conditions, still others to heavy trucks. In Mississauga, intersections are a particular “danger zone,” with more collisions happening in these areas than anywhere else. The Vision Zero plan targets several emphasis areas, including intersections, pedestrians, cyclists, and various driver behaviours. The initiative aims to use the four “E”s of road safety:
Engineering:
Changes to the roadway itself or to traffic control devices or regulations.
Enforcement:
Increased police and automated enforcement of existing regulations.
Education:
Education campaigns designed to influence driver behaviour such as advertising campaigns, signage, changes to drivers’ education courses.
Empathy:
Through all of the above initiatives, empathy for other drivers or road users should be emphasized.
However, it remains to be seen if these measures will be effective by the time the first phase of the project ends in 2022. While some numbers look better than they did before the Vision Zero project launched, Peel collision rates remain comparatively high.
HOW CAN A PERSONAL INJURY LAW FIRM HELP?
If you’ve been injured in a collision, you will need time to heal and recover. This can be a stressful time for injury victims, since they are often dealing with pain, the psychological effects of trauma, and stresses due to loss of abilities, loss of income, or loss of independence. However, there are some tasks that need to be done in a timely fashion following a car accident. Importantly, you have to file a claim with your insurance company, which entails completing numerous exacting forms as well as obtaining and submitting all relevant medical records. This can be difficult work under the best of circumstances for someone unfamiliar with the way the process works, but if you are recuperating from injuries, doing these tasks properly can be near-impossible. A good personal injury lawyer can guide you through this process and ensure that all necessary documentation is submitted on time. Incomplete or erroneous paperwork can be used as a reason for denial or delay of your claim, so it’s crucial that this work gets done right.
Depending on the circumstances of your accident, you may also decide to file a lawsuit. A personal injury lawyer can help you to ascertain whether that’s a good option in your case and can file a suit on your behalf.
FINDING A PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER
Some people try to navigate the claims process alone, or they hire a lawyer who doesn’t have knowledge in this area. However, it’s important to work with someone who has experience with personal injury law, since these cases can be complex.
One of the advantages of working with Sokoloff Lawyers is that our lawyers work on a contingency basis, which means that we do not charge up-front hourly fees. Instead, Sokoloff Lawyers gets a percentage of any settlement that you receive. This ensures that having legal advice will not place further financial hardship on your household. We don’t get paid until you get paid – you can be sure that we are working hard to get a good result in a timely fashion.
An initial consultation with one of our lawyers is free, so you can meet and ask questions before making a decision about whether or not to work with us. Be sure to bring any paperwork connected to your claim to this initial meeting, including medical records, police report, insurance policy information, photos of the accident scene or of your injury, etc. Our lawyer may ask you some questions about the accident and about your income. If you are still in hospital or rehab, or if you are unable to leave home, one of our lawyers can come to you.
Before meeting with a lawyer, it’s a good idea to write down a list of the questions you have about your case; listen closely to how the lawyer answers you and make sure you’re your lawyer’s communication style matches your own. If you prefer to communicate in a language other than English, put in a request. Sokoloff Lawyers is a multi-ethnic firm; we offer services in many languages. You can ask your lawyer about their experience with cases like yours, and about their trial experience. Although most personal injury cases in Ontario are settled before they get to court, our lawyers have trial experience, and a great track record of getting clients the compensation they deserve.
